Bleacher Report - Articles by Benjamin Osborne

The SEC Needs Its Villain Back: Kentucky and Conference Success Go Hand in Hand

Benjamin Osborne — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 15:21:21 -0500

In case you haven’t noticed, SEC basketball has crashed. It seems like years ago that Florida was putting on a clinic in successive March seasons on its way to consecutive national championships. Heck, it seems like even longer ago when the SEC continually had multiple teams ranked in the Top 25.

Many computer rankings score the Mountain West to be a better league than the SEC, and the conference can’t dream of challenging the mighty Big East, ACC, and Big Ten.

What happened? Why can’t SEC programs put extended periods of success together these days? Perhaps the long-term success of SEC basketball depends on the long-term success of its most hated member, the team all others love to beat, the team that opposing fans will fill the seats to see.

The SEC needs Kentucky to become dominant again.

The SEC will always, always put football first. This will never change. It does not matter how much success Tennessee, Florida, or any other school has on the hardwood, for what happens on the football field will determine the fans’ happiness. The exceptions are Vanderbilt (a true anomaly in this league) and, of course, Kentucky.

Therefore, the national media will always consider SEC basketball an afterthought as compared to its rivals. The reason? SEC basketball programs have failed to establish themselves as national powers on a consistent basis.

Florida did win multiple national championships, but it missed the NCAAs altogether the next year. Tennessee might be a trendy favorite because of its flamboyant head coach, but the program has never made the Elite Eight, much less won a national championship. There has not been a consistent national power in the West since the mid-1990s, when Arkansas thrived under Nolan Richardson.

Which brings us to Kentucky. From 1992 to 2005, Kentucky was a staple on the national scene, earning no less than a five seed in the NCAA tournament. But the last three-plus years, the standard of excellence in the SEC has slipped mightily to where a top-25 ranking is rare. This is the only SEC program that puts more energy into basketball than football.

With Kentucky standing as dictator of the SEC, other SEC programs become motivated to work harder to reach that standard of excellence. It motivated a former Kentucky assistant to recruit better in the Swamp, and it resulted in two national titles. A dominant Kentucky program will motivate other SEC basketball programs to get better, to reach the standard of excellence that the Wildcats control.

Can Tennessee, Florida, LSU, or any of the other 11 schools set that bar? Not when the fans celebrate a big basketball victory by waking up the next morning and seeing how spring practice is going.

The SEC needs its villain back to motivate the league to return to national respectability.

Kentucky Wildcats Come to a Crossroads

Benjamin Osborne — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 03:43:10 -0500

After flying under the radar for nearly the whole month of December, the Kentucky Wildcats are about to reappear on the national stage, and the next three games may determine the course of the rest of their season. A month full of cupcakes has inflated Kentucky’s record to 11-3, but a Sunday showdown with Louisville will test the true validity of this Wildcat squad.

The national media has failed to truly notice the season Wildcat guard Jodie Meeks is putting together. The junior guard is averaging 24 points per game, shooting nearly 43 percent from three-point range, and is making a 30-point game a common factor.

Meeks topped out with a 46-point performance on nine three-pointers against Appalachian State, and followed it up with a 32-point showing against Tennessee State, highlighted by hitting seven threes in the first half.

In Billy Gillispie’s offense, Meeks still plays second fiddle to Patrick Patterson, who has made easy work of the light December schedule and little competition in the post. Patterson has dominated the paint to the tune of multiple double-doubles over this stretch, leaving little doubt that he has returned to 100 percent after offseason ankle surgery.

With SEC play quickly approaching, where do the Wildcats stack up in the conference? Nearly all will agree that the SEC is horrifically down this year; Tennessee is the only team on the national radar currently, and the SEC West exists as a cesspool of NIT-bound teams, at best.

Therefore, Kentucky has a favorable chance of contending for an SEC title by default. Tennessee, Florida, and Arkansas will be the top competitors, and there will inevitably be a shocking contender or two as the season unfolds. The SEC, while not being the “best” league, will not lack excitement.

But for Kentucky to assume its throne of SEC supremacy, which it abdicated in 2006 and has not recovered, several questions must be answered.

One, a third scorer must be found to accompany Meeks and Patterson. The preferred candidates would be talented freshmen DeAndre Liggins and Darius Miller, but both have looked a bit shaky on the offensive end as of late, particularly Miller.

Two, get forward Ramon Harris healthy. Harris has been in and out of the lineup since his frightening neck injury against Lamar, and his absence will hurt the Cats defensively. The junior from Alaska is by far the Cats’ best perimeter defender.

Three, defend dribble penetration more effectively. VMI beat them and Florida Atlantic nearly upset them due to it, and more athletic teams from the SEC (and Louisville) will look to break down the Cats defensively. Kentucky has been stout on the defensive end this month, but has that been a product of the schedule?

We will begin to find out on Sunday afternoon.

ESPN Strikes Gold With Tip-Off Marathon

Benjamin Osborne — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 06:32:04 -0500

Imagine my glee when I turned on ESPN last night at midnight and found myself witnessing the opening tip of Massachusetts and Memphis.

ESPN, which has authored many failed ideas and gimmicks in the past, has found something that works in its Tip-Off Marathon, which amounts to a full day of college basketball on its family of networks.

Following the Memphis game (which the Tigers pulled away from the Minutemen to win by 22), coverage of Fresno State-St. Mary's and Hawaii-Idaho State kept the Worldwide Leader in Sports busy with college hoops until 6 a.m. The action continues until tonight's battle in Chapel Hill between top-ranked North Carolina and Kentucky.

In the past, college basketball has always eased itself into the sports consciousness at the beginning of its year. A notable preseason tournament, such as the Preseason NIT, has always kicked off coverage, but with other preseason tournaments popping up around the country like popcorn, their impact has been diluted a bit.

To solve the problem, and create a opening ticket which people can get excited about, ESPN introduces 24 hours of basketball heaven, which opened in Memphis with the (should have been) National Champions and closes in Chapel Hill with the (everyone is assuming will be) National Champions.

Also, the pitch of a game between the two winningest schools in college basketball history, even despite Kentucky's well-documented struggles, makes ESPN's project even more successful.

After months of college basketball-induced starvation, it's fantastic to have the chance to watch basketball anytime you want. It kind of gives you the feeling that it's March again, and you can't get away from college basketball—even if you tried.

So props to ESPN for satisfying our basketball appetites.

Bluegrass Ready For Wildcat Renaissance

Benjamin Osborne — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 09:24:00 -0500

While Rich Brooks has Kentucky football back in a bowl game for a third consecutive year, Wildcat fans have not ignored the fact that basketball is ready to rock and roll in the Bluegrass.

Kentucky fans never need an excuse to look ahead to upcoming games on the schedule, so here’s a look at ten games that Big Blue fans will be particularly excited (and nervous) about…

10. LSU @ Kentucky – February 28th

With a week left in the SEC regular season, LSU might be playing for an SEC West title and Kentucky will likely be jockeying for position in a crowded SEC East. In any case, LSU is undoubtedly the top SEC West foe playing in Lexington this season.

9. Kentucky vs. Kansas State (in Las Vegas) – November 28th

The best UK fans know their club hockey team is famous for playing its home games at midnight. Now the basketball team takes a try, as this battle of the Wildcats will keep fans in the Bluegrass up to well into the early morning hours of the Saturday which the Wildcat football team might finally defeat Tennessee.

8. Kentucky @ Florida – March 7th

Billy’s boys should be improved from last season’s late collapse. This game—Senior Day in the Swamp—will potentially crown an SEC East champion and possibly decide who has to play in the first round of the SEC Tournament on the following Thursday. The Cats have not won in Gainesville on Senior Day since 2003, and it will take an extraordinary effort for the Cats to do so this season.

7. Kentucky @ Tennessee – January 13th

It’s natural that the first SEC road test would come against what many say is the SEC’s best team. Kentucky has lost its last two games in Knoxville, but only by a cumulative margin of seven points. A win here to start SEC play and Kentucky would assume the driver’s seat in the East.

6. Miami (FL) @ Kentucky – December 6th

Not many people are discussing this game when considering UK’s top non-conference tests, but the Hurricane should make waves in the ACC this season. Miami is ranked 17th in the Associated Press poll, and few early season tests (with the possible exception of a home bout with Ohio State) should allow them to jump in the rankings. Expect this game to get much attention when early December rolls around.

5. Florida @ Kentucky – February 10th

In the meat of the SEC schedule comes a Super Tuesday clash between the Gators and Wildcats. By this time, favorites will have emerged in the East, and one of these teams will need this victory to keep chase in the division. Wildcat fans take particular delight in beating Billy Donovan at home, a fact they enjoyed for the first time last year since 2005.

4. Vanderbilt @ Kentucky – January 10th

Remember the 41-point annihilation that the Commodores dealt the Wildcats in Nashville last year? Well Billy Gillispie sure does, and he’s sure to use it to motivate his Cats to kick off SEC play with a total beatdown of a Vanderbilt team which should be significantly down from the last few seasons.

3. Kentucky @ North Carolina – November 18th

That’s No. 1 North Carolina, and in a game that Kentucky really has nothing to lose at this point, Wildcat fans have been clamoring for this game since the schedule was released. The status of Tyler Hansbrough is uncertain at this point, but perhaps Kentucky fans would not mind seeing the All-American go up against UK’s star forward Patrick Patterson. An upset win in Chapel Hill would propel Kentucky waaaaay up the rankings and have Wildcat fans starting to dream about Championship No. 8.

2. Tennessee @ Kentucky – February 21st

Besides the SEC race implications, this game may boil down to two freshmen from the Bluegrass. The Vols’ Scotty Hopson, of Hopkinsville, KY, is hyped as one of the nation’s top ten freshmen, but he was not judged to be the best outgoing senior in his own state last year.

That award of Mr. Basketball went to Maysville’s Darius Miller, who is flying under the radar preseason much the way a former Maysville (and Tennessee) star did four years ago—a guy by the name of Chris Lofton. Seeing Hopson and Miller match up should be a highlight of this mid-February contest.

1. Kentucky @ Louisville—January 4th

I mean, what else would it be? Louisville, as usual, is perennially overrated to start the season, but the Cards should be rounding into fine form when the Cats visit in the first days of 2009. The matchup to watch will be Patrick Patterson battling with freshman man-child Samardo Samuels, but the Wildcats’ front court depth will be seriously tested in Freedom Hall. Despite what the two teams’ rankings will be at that point, this game should go down to the wire.

These ten games will offer only a portion of the entire puzzle which will put together Kentucky’s season in 2008-09. Avoiding non-conference flubs like last year’s Gardner-Webb and San Diego will be pivotal to Kentucky’s journey to return and excel in this year’s NCAA Tournament, and there are many potential land mines in November and December which could cripple Kentucky early on. To ensure a return to the NCAA Tournament and obtain a higher seed than ‘8’, the Wildcats have five steps to take…

1) Win two of the following non-conference games: North Carolina, Kansas State, West Virginia/Iowa, Miami (FL), Louisville

2) Win ten SEC games, including a road game at either Tennessee, Florida, or Alabama

3) Find consistent point guard play, either by committee or the emergence of freshman DeAndre Liggins

4) Find a second option from the perimeter to join Jodie Meeks, who may be the best shooter in the conference

5) Avoid the injury bug which so crippled last year’s team

Many national pundits are perhaps overlooking the Wildcats for various reasons, ranging from last year’s limited success to the supposedly weak SEC, but a win in Chapel Hill on Tuesday would change those expectations in a hurry.

With a potential first team All-American in the post (Patterson), a potential All-SEC player on the perimeter (Meeks), and a coach who will stop at nothing to succeed (Gillispie), the Wildcats have the pieces coming together to make a strong, if not spectacular, run in 2008-09.

Kentucky Faces Challenging Path to Bowl Bid Despite 3-0 Start

Benjamin Osborne — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 06:04:48 -0400

Three games into the season, Rich Brooks and his Kentucky Wildcats quietly sit undefeated and on pace for a third consecutive bowl appearance.

Even though six games does not guarantee a bowl invitation (see South Carolina last season), one would think the wildly enthusiastic Wildcat fans will travel in mass to anywhere around the country, making a bowl invite at six wins likely.

But as Kentucky prepares to enter SEC play, one should not assume the Cats will be bowling again this winter.

That’s not to say Kentucky is not in position for another good year. The defense is ranked in the top 20 nationally in several defensive categories, including total defense, scoring defense, rush defense, and red zone defense.

Big Blue marched into Papa John’s Stadium, a place they had not won in six years, and crushed Louisville 27-2. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Mike Hartline has not thrown an interception and has made few mistakes that have cost the Wildcats.

But all is not rosy for Kentucky. The offense has been plagued with inconsistent play from the wide receiver position, which is not surprising due to the extreme lack of experience in the receiving corps.

More troubling, the rush offense has yet to take off despite a wealth of talent and experience in the backfield. Senior running back Tony Dixon has been especially slow to make an impression this year.

Along with offensive woes, something foreign to Kentucky the past few years, injuries have begun to hamper Big Blue. Starting middle linebacker Micah Johnson and defensive lineman Ricky Lumpkin suffered ankle injuries that will keep them out against Western Kentucky this weekend.

Backup quarterback and true freshman Randall Cobb also suffered an ankle injury against MTSU that will sideline him for the next month. Cobb adds a big play factor to the Wildcat offense, and without him on the field, the Wildcat offense at times will be paralyzed.

Perhaps the biggest threat to the Wildcats returning to a bowl is the SEC itself. In case you haven’t noticed, the SEC is really good.

Kentucky will play currently ranked teams Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and (wait for it) Vanderbilt over the course of SEC play, along with tough road contests at Mississippi State and Tennessee.

That leaves home games against South Carolina and Arkansas, and the coaches of those two respective teams (Spurrier and Petrino) have never lost to Kentucky.

The Cats MUST defeat Western Kentucky this weekend and find a way to get, at the very least, two SEC victories to go bowling once more.

If Kentucky is to find postseason success, they must do three things: 1) find consistency in the wide receiving corps, 2) thrive at the running game, and 3) avoid any devastating injuries, particularly to the defense.

Kentucky may very well play in December once more, but the next three victories will be infinitely more difficult to secure than the first three.