I’ll have a full story on the Kentucky-North Carolina matchup later, but I wanted to drop a few off-the-beaten-path notes that I found interesting before I head to dinner:– In praising Brandon Knight for his hard work and dedication, John Calipari pointed out Brandon Knight’s displeasure with getting a 91 on a sociology test. “Still got an A but he is mad,” Calipari said. “Conscientious.” Knight, whose favorite class is anthropology, said he thought he should have had a higher grade. “We have to turn in sheets when we miss class,” Knight said. “Some stuff I wasn’t there for. As long I got the A I was happy, but I thought I should have gotten a higher grade.”- Josh Harrellson is still shocked to see his name and face on ESPN. Being the center of attention isn’t an everyday thing for a guy who rode the bench until this year. After the Ohio State upset, Harrellson received a ton of love on SportsCenter. “My girlfriend called me and said she saw they just had me highlighted,” Harrellson said. “I didn’t get to see it but then I asked Brandon Knight and he said, ‘Yeah, they had you highlighted, a whole segment about you.’ Just hearing about that puts a smile on my face.” – Knight admitted that being from Florida, he didn’t know much or think about the tradition of Kentucky basketball before he arrived in Lexington. He said the names and banners that hang in Rupp Arena opened his eyes to the importance of the program, and he actually likes the idea that only national championship banners are hung in the Rupp rafters. “They only accept excellence and perfection as far as that goes,” Knight said. “I enjoy that. I like the fact that Kentucky basketball, they expect nothing but national championships. It kind of motivates me a bit. Sometimes when I get second-place trophies I just put them in the trash. My dad gets mad at me for doing stuff like that. If it’s not the best, I don’t want it.”- I talked with some of the players today about UK’s pregame preparation and Calipari’s decision not to show his team any video or scouting report until the pregame meal. All of them said they loved it because the focus is on what they can take care of. “I want them worrying about us,” Calipari said. “Let’s play our best. If that’s not good enough, it’s been a heck of a year. That’s how I prepare them for every game they play. The board that they will see prior to the game is exactly like the board when we played Mississippi Valley State early in the year. The board is exactly the same in our approach.”- Calipari referred to North Carolina coach Roy Williams as a Hall of Famer in his news conference, and yet, according to one reporter, he is the second-most famous coach in North Carolina. Calipari seemed dumbfounded by that statement. “Who is the most famous?” Calipari said. “The guy who has 900 wins,” the reporter answered. “Oh, I forgot about him,” Calipari quipped. That “him” is Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.- Speaking of playful coaching jabs, Roy Williams had one for Calipari on his sideline coaching: “John goes a little wacko on the sidelines because he’s John.”