Dec. 2, 2002
High Point Panthers (2-1)
vs.
No. 15/16 Kentucky Wildcats (2-1)
Press Conference Quotes
Live Audio
Live Gametracker Stats
The High Point Game
Rupp Arena – Lexington (23,000)
Dec. 3, 2002
8:08 p.m. ET
RADIO
UK Radio Network (90+ stations): Tom Leach, Mike Pratt, Dave Baker.
Listen Live
TELEVISION
UKTV: Rob Bromley, Martin Newton and Dick Gabriel.
vs. High Point
Nickname: Panthers
Web site: highpointpanthers.com
Season Statistics
Series Record: UK leads 1-0
In Lexington: UK leads 1-0
Only Meeting: Dec. 27, 2000, UK 102, HP 49
Coaches
Tubby Smith (High Point ’73)
Overall: 258-106 (.709) (12th year)
at UK: 134-44 (.753) (6th year)
vs. High Point: 1-0
Jerry Steele (Wake Forest ’61)
Overall: 623-498 (.556) (39th)
at HPU: 472-424 (.527) (31st)
vs. Kentucky: 0-1
DID YOU KNOW?
Did you know that Kentucky is 84-15 all-time in home openers, with nine of those losses occuring before the great Adolph Rupp began coaching in 1930? The Cats are 65-6 since 1930, including a debut loss to Western Kentucky last year. The Cats are 23-3 in home openers at Rupp Arena.
High Point Visits for Season Opener; Cats Without Barbour
Kentucky returns from the Maui Invitational to open play at Rupp Arena against Tubby Smith’s alma mater, High Point. The Wildcats had two wins and a loss last week in the Hawaiian tournament for a third-place finish, but it was this past Sunday that the Cats suffered another injury, losing starting guard Antwain Barbour with a broken hand. The 6-5 junior fell during practice and suffered a third metacarpal fracture in his left hand. Coach Smith expects Barbour to be out of action for five weeks.
Smith has a variety of options to replace Barbour, including freshman Kelenna Azubuike or Jules Camara, a 6-11 forward/center who gave UK an effective one-two punch with Marquis Estill in the Cats’ last game against Gonzaga.
Daniels Out
Junior Erik Daniels will miss the High Point game as part of a four-game suspension he’s serving for violating NCAA rules governing summer league play. Daniels had permission to play in a summer league in Lexington, but when he returned home to Cincinnati, he participated in a second summer league. UK asked the NCAA to reconsider but its appeal was denied. The 6-8 forward is scheduled to return against North Carolina on Dec. 7.
With Daniels out, Antwain Barbour injured and Cliff Hawkins ineligible until after the fall semester, Tubby Smith’s roster has been reduced to nine scholarship players and three walk-ons.
PROBABLE STARTERS
KentuckyNo. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Ppg Rpg Hometown '03 Note10 Keith Bogans G/F 6-5 213 Sr. 16.7 4.7 Alexandria, Va. 19th in UK career scoring44 Chuck Hayes F 6-6 247 So. 6.3 4.3 Modesto, Calif. 11 pts, 9 boards vs. Zags50 Marquis Estill C 6-9 236 Sr. 11.7 4.3 Richmond, Ky. Last 2 games: 8 fouls, 31 mins.40 Jules Camara F/C 6-11 240 Sr. 11.0 7.3 Dakar, Senegal Team's leading rebounder4 Gerald Fitch G 6-3 188 Jr. 8.9 5.4 Macon, Ga. 10 assists, 3 TOs in Maui
High PointNo. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Ppg Rpg Hometown ’03 Note4 D. Van Weerdhuizen F 6-6 220 Sr. 15.0 3.7 La Center, Wash. Team’s leading scorer5 Danny Gathings F 6-6 205 So. 14.0 6.7 Winston Salem, N.C. Team’s leading rebounder00 Kashawn Hampton F 6-8 275 So. 8.0 6.3 Worcester, Mass. Transfer from Alabama A&M23 Matt Anderson G 6-0 180 Fr. 5.7 3.0 Lenoir, N.C. Averages 33.3 mpg3 Jeff Allen G 6-0 185 Fr. 4.3 *3.0 Woodbridge, Va. Has started last two games*Assists
Series Information
This is the second meeting between the Wildcats and Panthers. UK defeated High Point on Dec. 27, 2000, 102-49. The visitors, which recently made the move up to D-I status, compete in the Big South Conference. The only other BSC school that the Cats have competed against was UNC Asheville. UK owns a 2-0 record vs. UNCA.
Other major D-I schools on the High Point schedule this season include Clemson, Vanderbilt and Washington State.
TEAM COMPARISONS
cats panthersRecord 2-1 2-1Scoring Offense 74.3 69.7Scoring Defense 70.7 73.0Scoring Margin +3.7 -3.3FG % 45.0 46.9FG % Defense 40.1 48.03FG % 27.3 33.33FG % Defense 34.3 34.5Free Throw % 70.8 65.9Rebound Average 37.3 34.0Opponent Reb. Avg. 38.0 35.0Rebound Margin -0.7 -1.0TO Average 13.0 15.0Opponent TO 15.0 15.0TO Margin +2.0 0.0Blocks Average 5.7 0.3Steals Average 8.3 7.3
Home Openers
Kentucky is 84-15 all-time in home openers. Nine of those losses occurred before Adolph Rupp began coaching in 1930. The Cats are 65-6 since 1930, losing the home opener in 1955 to Temple, 1962 to Va. Tech, 1972 to Iowa, 1988 to Northwestern State, 2000 to Penn State and last season to Western Kentucky.
UK now stands at 23-3 in home openers at Rupp Arena.
Maui Invitational Results
Kentucky finished in third place at the 19th annual Maui Invitational. Kentucky beat Arizona State in the first round before getting upset by Virginia in the semifinals. The Wildcats then beat No. 20 Gonzaga in the consolation game. It was the third appearance for UK in the Maui Invitational. The Cats are now 7-2 all-time in the tournament, earning a championship in 1993 and a third-place finish in 1997 in their two previous appearances.
Keith Bogans averaged 16.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game to earn All-Tournament team honors. UK rival Indiana beat Virginia to claim the 2002 title.
Well more than 500 Kentucky fans made the trip to the Maui Invitational to cheer on the Wildcats. UK chartered an L1011, and along with an official traveling party of 55 team and school personnel, an additional 300 fans were aboard the plane. Also, another 150 fans purchased the trip through Commonwealth Travel in Lexington and flew commercially. Others made the trip via additional travel agencies or on their own to help give the Wildcats the largest cheering section among the eight participating teams.
Tickets On Sale
Tickets are on sale for the Dec. 3 High Point game.
The upper arena seats are $17 apiece and can be purchased at the Memorial Coliseum ticket office – 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday – online by clicking the ‘Tickets’ link at the top of the page, by phone at 859-257-1818 or 800-928-CATS or at participating Ticketmaster locations statewide.
Back in the Day
Tubby Smith is a 1973 graduate of High Point College where he excelled as an all-conference performer for the then-NAIA school. Smith became a Panther after his scholarship offer from Maryland was withdrawn. He signed with Coach Bob Vaughn for whom he played his freshman season. JD Barnett then took over for the next two seasons before Jerry Steele, the current coach, accepted the job 30 years ago.
Smith earned four letters in basketball at the school before graduating with a bachelor’s in health and physical education. He also left High Point with Donna Walls, the homecoming queen, who later became Mrs. Donna Smith.
Rupp Arena
Kentucky begins its 27th season at Rupp Arena, where the Wildcats own a 340-39 (89.7%) record.
The Cats have won the national attendance title the past seven seasons. Overall, the Wildcats have won 15 national attendance titles in the building.
Once again this season, the arena debuts new upgrades, including all blue seats in the lower level, a new concourse, a standing-room only “eRUPP-tion Zone” for the student body and a media press box, all totaling $5.1 million. The new purple concourse is two levels, replacing the old one-level boxed concession stand. It features greater concession stand access and more restrooms. The ‘eRUPPtion Zone” moved 400 season ticket holders to other seats in lower arena and moves the band and nearly 700 students into the end zone nearest UK’s bench. It also gives students access to floor-level seating, er, standing. Shockingly, a UK junior from Lincolnton, N.C., Andy Acker, named the area in a contest among the student body. His entry was picked from nearly 200 submissions.
Milestones
Keith Bogans is currently 19th on UK’s all-time scoring list, just two points behind No. 18 Kyle Macy with 1,409.
Bogans needs 12 three-pointers to reach No. 4 Travis Ford on the all-time three-pointers made list at UK. Bogans currently has 179 trifectas.
Jules Camara ranks seventh on the Wildcats’ all-time blocked-shots list, trailing No. 6 Nazr Mohammed by 12 blocks.
100-YEAR CAT FACT
Kentucky’s first home win came against the Lexington YMCA on Feb. 18, 1903. In its first season of basketball, the Wildcats opened with a loss to Georgetown College, then rebounded for a hard-fought, 11-10, victory, which also marked UK’s first win in basketball. The Cats closed out the inaugural season with a loss to Kentucky University, now known as Transylvania College.
Three Mania
Kentucky ranks third nationally in consecutive games with a made three-pointer. The Wildcats have hit a three-pointer in 476 consecutive games, which trails UNLV and Vanderbilt.
The Wildcats’ last game without a three-pointer came 14 seasons ago against Seton Hall on Nov. 26, 1988, a “three-point” loss in the Great Alaska Shootout.
Estill Holds Record Mark
Senior Marquis Estill shot six-of-eight from the field in the season opener against Arizona State and now has the minimum 200 made field goals in his UK career to take the career lead in FG percentage. In the Maui Invitational, he finished 15-of-19 from the field.
Estill ranks ahead of the school’s previous record holder, Charles Hurt (1980-83), who shot 59.3 percent. Estill can own the school record should he maintain the pace throughout the season. The 6-9 center can earn a fourth year of eligibility should he graduate by the fall semester of 2003.
Career FG Percentage (Min. 200 made)
62.4 Marquis Estill (211-338) 2001-03
59.3 Charles Hurt (303-511) 1980-83
59.1 Melvin Turpin (626-1059) 1981-84
58.1 Rick Robey (533-917) 1975-78
57.1 Kenny Walker (765-1339) 1983-86
Next Opponent
The No. 2 all-time winningest team plays host to Kentucky on Saturday — North Carolina. The Tar Heels are off to a great start, winning the Preseason NIT last weekend in New York after upsetting No. 2 Kansas in the semifinals before beating Stanford in the title game.
This week, the Heels (5-0) play at Illinois on Tuesday in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Double-Doubles
Kentucky got its first double-double performance of the season when Jules Camara totaled 12 points and 10 rebounds in relief against Virginia. It marked Camara’s fifth of his career.
Chuck Hayes nearly pulled off the feat against Gonzaga, but fell just short, finishing with 11 points and nine boards against the Bulldogs.
100th Season
The Wildcats are playing their 100th season of basketball this year. The Cats have a number of events planned throughout the season, including fan balloting for the program’s greatest players, games and moments. The celebration will include replays of the top 10 games on radio, a 25-year celebration of the 1978 NCAA Champions, and four special-edition bobblehead dolls that fans can collect. The year-long celebration concludes with an all-letterman reunion on Feb. 23 at the Mississippi State game.
Kentucky celebrates unparalleled tradition, including seven NCAA titles, the most wins in college basketball, the best winning percentage in college hoops, the most consensus All-Americans, the most AP top-10 finishes, the most SEC Championships and tournament crowns and 15 national attendance titles.
Tough Schedule
Kentucky was ranked 15th in last week’s AP poll and 16th in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
The Wildcats have already beaten No. 20 Gonzaga in the Maui Invitational to own a 1-0 record against ranked teams this season.
The Wildcats could play as many as seven teams ranked in the Top 25 this season, including three top-10 squads — Florida, Alabama and Michigan State. Georgia, Indiana and Mississippi State also are ranked.
SEC Domination
UK will play its 70th season of SEC action in 2003. A charter member, the Cats have been the most dominant team in the league through the years, recording a 780-212 mark (78.6%). No other team has won more than 647 regular-season SEC games (Alabama) and no other team has a better winning percentage. UK has averaged 11.3 wins and 3.1 losses per season during its SEC tenure.
The Wildcats have won 41 SEC titles and 23 SEC Tournament Championships, more titles than the other teams combined.
Kentucky has won eight of the last 11 SEC Tournament titles.
National Exposure
Following three appearances on ESPN or ESPN2 during the Maui Invitational, the Cats will appear on national TV 16 times during the 2002-03 regular season. The Cats will have 10 ESPN appearances and six games on CBS.
PRESEASON NOTES
Exhibition Review
The Wildcats trailed Athletes in Action for much of the game before rallying for a one-point win.
AIA, which shot 58.5% from the field, held a 52-39 lead early in the second half. But then the Cats rallied. Antwain Barbour got untracked and buried a three with 8:54 left to cut the lead to one, 61-60. Barbour then picked up a steal and fed Kelenna Azubuike to take a one-point lead. The Cats extended their lead to seven before AIA rallied.
With 2.9 seconds remaining, Reed Rawlings drained a running two pointer for an 82-80 lead. After a mid-court timeout left 2.6 seconds remaining, Keith Bogans inbounded to Marquis Estill, who gave it back to Bogans who hit the off-balance three-pointer as time expired to give the Cats the win.
Gerald Fitch led all scorers with 25 points and Chuck Hayes added 13 points and 10 boards.
Against Team Nike, UK struggled from the outset, trailing the all-stars by as many as 10 points in the first half.
Early in the second half, with a full-court trapping defense, UK rallied to take a 47-45 lead. But Team Nike recovered and held a one-point lead, 72-71, with 3:12 remaining. With the Cats shooting just 36.1% from the field for the game, the shoe company squad took the nine-point win.
In the two games, UK combined to shoot just 39.6% from the field while the two opponents combined to shoot 55.2% from the field. In Tubby Smith’s five previous seasons, 175 games, only 16 teams have shot better than 50% from the field against the famed Cats’ ball-line defense. In addition, the two opponents shot 61.5% from three-point range.
Returning Production
UK lost just one starter off its 2002 Sweet 16 team (Tayshaun Prince), but returned just 67.1% of its scoring from a year ago. Here’s the complete breakdown, which includes Cliff Hawkins, who’s expected to return during the Christmas holidays:
Points 67.1%
Rebounds 76.6%
Assists 81.7%
Blocks 67.3%
Steals 77.4%
SEC Preseason Poll
The Wildcats were picked to finish third in the SEC Eastern Division in a preseason poll of media members. UK, which has not finished lower than second since the league split into divisions in 1992, was also predicted to finish fourth in the race for the SEC regular-season crown.
Keith Bogans was the only Wildcat picked as either first- or second-team preseason All-SEC poll. The first team included Erwin Dudley (Alabama), Mario Austin (Miss. State), Jarvis Hayes (Georgia), Maurice Williams (Alabama), and Brett Nelson (Florida). The second team included Bogans, Ronald Dupree (LSU), Matt Bonner (Florida), Ezra Williams (Georgia) and Derrick Zimmerman (Miss. State).
BIG BLUE MANIA
Keightley’s Seen Half of UK’s Games
Incredible.
Bill Keightley is in his 42nd season as equipment manager of the UK basketball team. The beloved “Mr. Wildcat” has served on the staff since the 1961-62 season and has witnessed 1,267 games during his career, owning a 968-299 record during that era.
The Wildcats, who are celebrating their 100th season of basketball, have played 2,389 games, meaning Keightley has witnessed 53.0% of the games.
The Lawrenceburg, Ky., native, who has a jersey retired in the rafters of Rupp Arena, has worked under five different head coaches at UK — Rupp, Hall, Sutton, Pitino and Smith. The current cats have a modern nickname for the 75-year-old Keightley — “Smooth.”
Wiggins In 50th Season
Big Blue fan Bob Wiggins continued his amazing streak of following the basketball Cats. He’s starting his 50th season watching Kentucky play in person and through his own record-keeping, has attended 1,225 UK games.
Wiggins, who is retired and lives in Falmouth, Ky., saw 615 consecutive games — home and away — from 1977 until he suffered a heart attack just before the 1996 Great Alaska Shootout. It’s the second-longest streak on record at UK. The longest record is the late Steve Reardon’s 626 games.
The illness forced Wiggins to miss four games, but he has since returned to see every contest in person, a streak of 211 games.
Meanwhile, his home court streak is still intact. Wiggins has not missed a home game in 42 years, a streak spanning 589 games. During that period, which dates back to 1960-61, UK has a home record of 523-66.
UK’s NBA Players
To start the 2002-03 NBA season, the following Wildcats were active:
Derek Anderson – Portland
Tony Delk – Boston
Jamaal Magloire – New Orleans
Jamal Mashburn – New Orleans
Walter McCarty – Boston
Ron Mercer – Indiana
Nazr Mohammed – Atlanta
Scott Padgett – Utah
Mark Pope – New York
Tayshaun Prince – Detroit
Antoine Walker – Boston
In addition, former UK assistant coach Jim O’Brien is the head coach of the Boston Celtics while former UK All-American Pat Riley coaches the Miami Heat.
Other Wildcats participating in professional basketball include Heshimu Evans, Jared Prickett, Andre Riddick and Wayne Turner, who are all playing overseas, and Saul Smith, who plays for Columbus of the NBDL.
Hoops Heaven
TV Guide called it “Hoops Heaven.” And back by popular demand, KET will air an encore presentation of television’s most comprehensive look at the game of basketball in Kentucky. “Basketball in Kentucky — Great Balls of Fire” airs Dec. 4-5 at 8 p.m. ET on KET and KET2. The four-part documentary series moves through more than a century of the people, places and moments that have defined the game, exploring what basketball has meant to the state both as a sport and as a vital part of our cultural fabric.
UKathletics.com 100-Year Catalog and Online Store
UK Athletics has released an official catalog and online store with products celebrating the 100 years of UK hoops. The product line includes memorabilia, Tubby Smith autographed items, videos, DVDs and the full-line of Nike apparel. The catalog is a special 100-year basketball that features UK’s national champions, All-Americans, great coaches and 100-year logo. Fans may call 888-234-9350 or log on to ukauthentic.com to purchase items.
