November 16, 1998
Nov. 17, 1998
8 p.m. ET
Rupp Arena (23,000)
Lexington, Ky.
On the Air
RADIO UK Radio Network -- 7 p.m. WVLK-AM 590 & WLRO-FM 101.5 (flagship) Ralph Hacker (play-by-play), Sam Bowie (analyst), Dave Baker (host), Tom Leach (scoreboard)
TELEVISION UK Television Network — Live 8:08 p.m. WKYT-TV (flagship) Rob Bromley (play-by-play), Martin Newton (analyst), Dick Gabriel (sidelines)
Probable Starters
Kentucky Wildcats (0-0)
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. #Ppg Rpg 34 Scott Padgett F 6-9 240 Sr. 11.5 6.5 14 Heshimu Evans F 6-6 215 Sr. 8.8 5.4 33 Michael Bradley C 6-10 235 So. 2.4 1.7 11 Saul Smith G 6-2 175 So. 2.5 *1.4 5 Wayne Turner G 6-2 190 Sr. 9.3 *4.4
Key Reserves
32 Desmond Allison G/F 6-5 206 Fr. -- -- 3 JP Blevins G 6-2 186 Fr. -- -- 40 Jules Camara F/C 6-11 213 Fr. -- -- 21 Tayshaun Prince G/F 6-8 206 Fr. -- -- 12 Todd Tackett G 6-2 180 Fr. -- --
EKU Colonels (0-0)
33 Darick Mattox F 6-8 195 Jr. -- -- 42 Warren Stukes F 6-7 240 Sr. 1.9 3.8 35 Ronnie Griffin C 6-9 245 So. -- -- 5 Darius Acuff G 6-2 185 So. -- -- 12 Chris Fitzgerald G 6-0 170 Sr. 5.7 1.1 # Ppg and Rpg from last season* Assists per game
Coaching Comparisons
Orlando Tubby Smith (High Point 73) Overall (8th year) 159-66 (70.7%) at UK (2nd year) 35-4 (89.7%) NCAA Appearances (5) 12-4 (75.0%) vs. Eastern Kentucky 0-0Scott Perry (Wayne State 86) Overall (2nd year) 10-17 (37.0%) at EKU (2nd year) 10-17 (37.0%) vs. Kentucky 0-0
98 Champs Begin 96th Season
Riding a 13-game win streak which includes a 1998 NCAA Championship gamevictory over Utah, the Kentucky Wildcats begin their trek towardback-to-back national titles when Eastern Kentucky visits Rupp Arena.
The Wildcats, ranked fourth in the preseason AP poll and sixth in thepreseason USA Today/ESPN coaches poll, completed their exhibition season onNov. 11 with an 88-74 victory over the Aussie All-Stars. UK also defeatedthe California All-Stars, 103-74, on Nov. 3.
UK is the all-time winningest program in college basketball with 1,720victories, which leads North Carolinas mark of 1,709 wins. The Cats begintheir 96th season after three consecutive appearances in the nationalchampionship game.
The new season will mark Tubby Smiths second year as head coach at UK.Smith, a former Big Blue assistant coach (1989-91), guided the Wildcats toa 35-4 record to begin his UK tenure, winning the Triple Crown in theSoutheastern Conference as the Cats claimed the SEC East title, the overallchampionship and the SEC Tournament trophy prior to their march to the 98Final Four. Smith also is beginning his eighth season as a college headcoach, his 26th season in coaching.
Tickets
Nearly 1,500 tickets remain for both the Eastern Kentucky and Mercer gamesthis week. The tickets are unclaimed seats from the student allotment.Tickets are priced at $15 each and can be purchased at the UK ticket office(9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) or at the Rupp Arena box office (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).Seats also can be ordered over the phone with a Visa or MasterCard bycalling 606-233-3535 or 800-928-CATS.
Series Notes
Kentucky has defeated Eastern Kentucky in all five meetings. The firstmeeting was a 35-10 win 70 years ago on Dec. 15, 1928. The last meeting wasa 107-78 UK win on Dec. 8, 1993.
The UK game is Easterns season opener as well.
EKUs Scott Perry has never coached against the Wildcats.
EKU is located in Richmond, Ky., just 25 miles south of Lexington.
Season Openers
Kentucky has won eight of its last nine season openers. The one loss was a79-71 overtime defeat to Clemson on Nov. 15, 1996 at the BCA Classic inIndianapolis.
The Nov. 17 start of the season equals the second earliest opener in UKhistory. The Nov. 15, 1996 game against Clemson was the schools earliesttip-off. The Cats also played Duke on Nov. 17, 1979, an 82-76 overtime lossin the Tip-Off Classic in Springfield, Mass.
November To Remember
UK will play six regular-season games this November, the most games everplayed by a UK team during the month. Last season, the Wildcats played fivegames, and in 1989, Kentucky played four.
The six games will be played in 12 days. After the EKU opener, Kentuckyreturns to Rupp Arena on Thursday to face Mercer. The Cats then battleWright State on Monday, Nov. 23, at The Crown in Cincinnati beforedeparting for three games in the Puerto Rico Shootout beginningThanksgiving Day.
Rupp Arena
UK begins its 23rd season at Rupp Arena needing just nine victories toreach 300 in the 23,000-seat facility. The Wildcats are 291-34 (89.5%)overall in Rupp. They have recorded seven perfect home seasons and threeseasons with only one loss. The building opened in 1976. The Wildcats willplay 13 games at Rupp Arena during the 1998-99 season.
Three Wildcats Out
Sophomores Myron Anthony and Ryan Hogan, along with junior JamaalMagloire, are currently serving four-game suspensions and will not be inuniform against Eastern Kentucky. All are expected back when UK facesWright State on Nov. 23 in Cincinnati.
In addition, Anthony will not travel with the team this semester to roadgames that would require him to miss class time.
Cats Win Both Exhibitions
The California All-Stars came loaded with former UCLA stars CharlesOBannon and Jelani McCoy, along with former U of L players Damion Dantzlerand B.J. Flynn, but after a 22-8 first-half burst, the Wildcats cruised intheir exhibition opener, 103-74 on Nov. 3.
Six Wildcats scored in double figures, led by Heshimu Evans 20 points andseven assists. UK compiled 26 assists — 18 by the UK starting front line.Scott Padgett contributed 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists andMichael Bradley had 15 points, seven boards and five assists. UK shot 53.9percent from the field while holding the All-Stars to 34.6 percent.
Last week, UK bettered the Aussie All-Stars 88-74. Freshmen TayshaunPrince, Todd Tackett, JP Blevins and Jules Camara led the Cats charge froma five-point deficit to a seven-point lead just before halftime. For thegame, Padgett led UK with 19 points and eight rebounds while Evans had 12points, seven rebounds and nine assists.
UK Gets Four Signees
Kentucky has received four national letters of intent during the earlysigning period which began Nov. 11. Keith Bogans of Hyattsville, Md.,Marquis Estill of Richmond, Ky., John Stewart of Indianapolis and MarvinStone of Huntsville, Ala., have all signed to play basketball for theWildcats in 1999-2000.
Bogans, a 6-4 guard who averaged 19.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per gamelast season at DeMatha Catholic, is rated as one of the top guards in thenation by nearly every recruiting expert. He was a second-team All-Americanby Parade Magazine last season while leading DeMatha to a 34-1 record and aNo. 3 ranking nationwide. He picked Kentucky over Connecticut, Michigan andNorth Carolina.
Estill, a 6-9, 265-pound forward/center at Madison Central, played only 10games last season due to an injured left knee, but averaged 16.8 points and11.7 rebounds per game. As a sophomore, he led the state in shooting,canning 76.9 percent of his shots. He tallied 14.0 ppg and 7.7 rpg as theIndians advanced to the regionals with a 21-9 record. He chose UK overLouisville.
Stewart, a 7-0, 285-pound center from Lawrence North High School, averaged15.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game last season. He earnedAll-County honors and played on the Junior All-Star team last summer inIndiana.
Stone, a 6-9, 244-pound power forward, averaged 19.1 points, 12.7rebounds, 4.5 blocks and 3.0 assists last year in leading Grissom High to a25-5 record. He was named Class 6A Player of the Year in Alabama and athird-team Parade Magazine All-American. He chose the Cats over Alabama andAuburn.
Rule Changes
The biggest rule change for the 1998-99 season concerns a held ballsituation created by the defense. In previous years, the offense retainedpossession of the ball if it owned the possession arrow. With the change,the ball will be awarded to the defense at the spot nearest to where theheld ball occurred. The arrow then, does not change.
All other situations — i.e. two players diving for a loose ball and bothgaining possession at the same time — will be governed by the direction ofthe possession arrow.
In another change, when a double personal foul is called, the ball will beawarded to the team in possession of the ball when the foul occurred. Thearrow will not change and the shot clock will not be reset.
Also, a rim that is pulled down and contacts the ball before it returns toits original position is basket interference.
Orlando Tubby Smith – Personal
Birthdate: June 30, 1951
Hometown: Scotland, Md.
Family: Wife Donna, Sons G.G. (21), Saul (19) and Brian (14); Coach Smithis one of 17 children.
Education
High School: Great Mills (Md.), 1969
College: High Point (N.C.), 1973
A four-year letterwinner (1970-73), he was team captain as a senior andco-captain as a junior… An All-Carolina Conference selection.
Coaching Record
1979-86 Asst. Coach VCU
1986-89 Asst. Coach S. Carolina
1989-91 Asst. Coach Kentucky
Tulsa
1991-92 17-13
1992-93 15-14
1993-94 23-8 (NCAA 16)
1994-95 24-8 (NCAA 16)
Total 79-43 (64.8%)
Georgia
1995-96 21-10 (NCAA 16)
1996-97 24-9 (NCAA 64)
Total 45-19 (70.3%)
Kentucky
1997-98 35-4 (89.7%)
Totals
7th year 159-66 (70.7%)
Highlights
In his first season, Tubby Smith won the NCAA title, the SECregular-season championship, the league tournament title, the EasternDivision crown, and the regional title. He was named 1998 National Coach ofthe Year by Basketball Weekly and the Black Coaches Association and co-SECCoach of the Year by the AP. Following the season, he was presented withthe Winged Foot Award and the Victor Award for his coaching success and hewas named Parent of the Year by Parent Magazine.
Previously, he had won Missouri Valley Conference titles and MVC Coach ofthe Year honors at Tulsa in 1994 and 95 after posting identical 15-3records in league play.
As an SEC coach, he is 33-15 (68.8%) against SEC competition during theregular season. In the SEC Tournament, hes 7-2. In the NCAA Tournament,hes compiled a 12-4 record in five tournament appearances.
Smith has coached four of his last five teams to at least the Sweet 16in the NCAA tourney — two at Tulsa, one each at Georgia and UK — andrecorded the first back-to-back 20-win seasons in UGA history.
White House Tour
The 1998 NCAA Champion Kentucky Wildcats toured the White House and metPresident Clinton on Mon., Nov. 9. Clinton honored the Wildcats and theTennessee Lady Vols on their respective 1998 titles in an East Roomceremony which was broadcast live on radio and television across Kentucky.
Seniors Cameron Mills and Jeff Sheppard presented Clinton with a No. 1Kentucky jersey, just like the 96 UK champs had done two years prior.
“We gave you one of these back in 1996, and I never recall you wearingit,” said Mills during the ceremony. “But Im going to give you another onein good faith that youll wear it.”
“Cameron,” Clinton responded, “for all you know, I slept in it.”
The ceremony concluded a day that began with lunch at Greveys, a popularrestaurant in Falls Church, Va. thats owned by former UK All-AmericanKevin Grevey. From there, the Wildcats toured the Supreme Court beforetheir trip to the White House.
Youth Movement
Kentucky returns nine lettermen from the 98 squad known as the ComebackCats, including two starters. But nine of the 14 Wildcats are freshmen orsophomores. Only 11 teams in Division I college basketball have morefreshmen and sophomores on their rosters than UK.
UKs returning production includes — points: 52.1%; rebounds: 62.8%;assists: 59.8%; blocks: 60.5%; steals: 59.5%.
The Wildcats roster includes three seniors, two juniors, four sophomoresand five freshmen.
Cat Streaks
The Wildcats will start the 1998-99 season with a 13-game winning streak.Kentuckys last defeat came on Feb. 14, 1998, a 73-64 loss to Ole Miss inRupp Arena.
The most consecutive wins in UK history is 32, dating from 1953-55. Withthree more wins at the start of the 1998-99 season, UK will equal theschools 10th-best streak overall.
The Wildcats have also:
won 14 straight road games. The last team to defeat UK on the road wasSouth Carolina (Feb. 4, 1997);
won 14 consecutive neutral site games, dating back to the Arizona lossin Maui in November 1997;
played in the last three Final Fours;
played in the last four regional championship games;
won six of the last seven SEC Tournament titles, including the last two;
have hit three-pointers in 334 consecutive games.
Multiple Season Victories
The Kentucky Wildcats continue to set NCAA records for wins in multipleseasons. The last two seasons, UK tied its own NCAA record with 70victories (six defeats), a mark it set originally in 1947 and 48. In thelast three seasons, UK has tallied 104 victories (11 losses) and in thelast four years, the Wildcats have 132 wins (16 losses).
SEC Media Picks
Kentucky was the favored squad to repeat as Southeastern ConferenceChampion and Scott Padgett was selected to the five-man All-SEC team whenvoting was conducted at SEC Media Days in early November.
UK received 17 of the 21 votes to repeat as league champion with Tennesseeearning three votes and Arkansas getting one.
Padgett was the Cats lone member of the All-SEC team. Wayne Turnerreceived one vote for preseason MVP but was left off the All-SEC squad.
SEC Media Day Predictions
Champion
Kentucky 17Tennessee 3Arkansas 1
Eastern Division Western DivisionKentucky (24) 159 Arkansas (25) 160Tennessee (3) 129 Auburn (1) 114South Carolina 96 Ole Miss (1) 108Georgia 92 Mississippi St. 69Florida 67 Alabama 63 Vanderbilt 33 LSU 38
All-SEC
G - BJ McKie, South Carolina 27G - Tony Harris, Tennessee 12F - Jumaine Jones, Georgia 23F - Scott Padgett, Kentucky 21C - Tyrone Washington, Miss. State 16
MVP
BJ McKie, South Carolina 16Jumaine Jones, Georgia 3Wayne Turner, Kentucky 1Tony Harris, Tennessee 1
Turner Chases NCAA Record
Senior guard Wayne Turner has a chance to play in more college basketballgames than anyone on record. Turner, who has logged time in 114 gamesduring his three-year career, has a chance to break the mark of 148 gamesheld by Dukes Christian Laettner.
The Wildcats have a 30-game regular-season schedule and Turner must playin 35 games to grab the record. The Boston native has missed only one gameduring his career — the 1996 NCAA Championship game against Syracuse.
Turner Climbs Assists, Steals Lists
Wayne Turner has a chance to become one of the top-five all-time assistsmen in UK history. The junior point guard led the team with 173 assists in1998, boosting his career total to 349 assists. The mark leaves him eighthon UKs all-time list. Dirk Minniefield (1980-83) is the schools all-timeleader with 646 assists. If Turner can duplicate last years total, he canfinish his career third behind Minniefield and Anthony Epps, (1994-97) whototaled 544 career assists.
On the steals chart, Turner can become the schools all-time leader. Healready holds the UK record for most steals in a season with 79 as asophomore. Hes currently fifth with 181 career assists, 20 behind leaderTony Delk (1993-96) with 201.
1,000-Point Chase
Seniors Scott Padgett and Wayne Turner hope to become the 45th and 46thplayers to join the prestigious 1,000-point club at UK. Padgett, the teamsleading returning scorer, has scored 785 points in his career and Turner,the teams second-leading returning scorer, has posted 782 career points.
AP Trivia
The Kentucky Wildcats have been ranked in The Associated Press collegebasketball poll every week since the second week of the 1990-91 season.
UK has been ranked in the Top 10 by the AP in the last 77 weekly polls,dating back to Feb. 21, 1994.
Tough Schedule
Kentucky could face 14 teams that played in last seasons NCAA Tournament,including top seeds Kansas and Duke. The Wildcats also could face 19 teamsthat participated in postseason play in 1998 (NCAA or NIT).
Teams of the Decade
Despite starting the decade with a 14-14 record, UK is second in wins inthe 1990s with 254, trailing only Kansas.
Team Wins (98 Record) 1. Kansas 263 (35-4) 2. Kentucky 254 (35-4) 3. North Carolina 248 (34-4) 4. Arkansas 237 (24-9)
For the past seven seasons, UK has been the winningest basketball team inthe nation.
Team Wins (98 Record) 1. Kentucky 218 (35-4) 2. Kansas 205 (35-4) 3. North Carolina 197 (34-4)
