“Mountain Tops”, by Ira Combs
Cats’ NCAA run starts and ends in Anaheim
(Getting healthy & recruiting important to get back among college hoops’ elite)
Billy Clyde’s boys are done and Kentucky’s 2007-08 rollercoaster hoops season has ended. You won’t see during any interviews on TV or written in any newspaper columns that any player or coach is glad it’s over but they all are, and being an ex-player and coach both on the high school level I can understand and appreciate their emotions as their difficult season (by UK standards) draws to closure.
Truth of the matter is that as each game passed by the last two weeks it became more difficult to overcome the latest and most devastating loss to injury in 6′ 9″ freshman forward / center Patrick Patterson. Senior guards Joe Crawford & Ramel Bradley carried the Cats’ torch about as far as they could until big-time hoops reality set in and Gillispie’s maiden voyage drifted off into the sunset out west in Anaheim, California. As the final seconds ticked off the clock in UK’s 74 - 66 1st round loss to Marquette it ended a 17-year streak of UK advancing past the 1st round of the last 17 NCAA tournaments, but it did continue the streak of 17 consecutive appearances in the big dance which no other school except Arizona can claim - they’ve been invited 28 consecutive years.
For this particular UK team to squeeze out an 18 - 13 season with the limited roster it had to work with, it is a toss-up who should be commended the most, it’s players or coaches, because both overcame it’s share of adverse situations. At the end of the day or in this situation the season I think Billy Gillispie summed it up best when he told a reporter after the loss to Marquette, ” It’s not an end to a difficult 1st season at UK, it’s a solid new beginning to a bright future.”
Future Cat hoop fortunes
Several things need to happen for UK to get back to the top 10 elite status they have enjoyed for most of its historic past, and more than likely Big Blue Nation is still one year away from that. First the injury ward and rehabilitation room at Joe Craft Center must be cleared of it’s two most talented tenants in Soph. guard Jodie Meeks and Fr. f/c Patrick Patterson. Both came into the program each of the last two years with sterling credentials at their positions, however at the moment their careers are in a holding pattern with injuries but reports are encouraging they both will be at 100% come October 15th for Big Blue Madness festivities.
Make no mistake, next year’s team will be built around this inside-outside duo and regardless of who else is brought in during the spring signing period it should be. Both are solid big-time offensive talents to start an offense with. As for the components around them look for junior to be Derrick Jasper and incoming freshman Deandre Liggins a high-profile 5-star PG to fight it out for the lead guard position. The small forward or wing guard opposite Jodie Meeks is one position next years team needs badly and one possibility in that role could be the Cats’ most recent commitment in junior college standout Kevin Galloway, a 6′ 6″ small forward who reportedly is a solid shooter & scorer and look for Mason Co. standout Darius Miller to make a bid for some minutes at this position as well. The most pressing need is help inside for Patrick Patterson in both the scoring and rebounding departments; however according to the recruiting gurus there’s not much left in this class that would make an impact next season. Either Billy Gillispie is going to have to pull a rabbit out of his hat in this matter, or Perry Stevenson will have to make more strides as a quality back up or compliment to Patterson because it looks at the present time like next years UK roster is going to be stockpiled with 6′ 6″ and 6′ 7″ players who are fitted more to the wing and small forward positions.
Regardless of what or who Gillispie brings in during the spring signing period you can bet next year’s roster will be much deeper in quality, talent and in better shape to absorb injuries than this year.
But now that the season is behind us the most important and first item of business that will propel the program on into the future in an optimistic manner would be for Gillispie and Mitch Barnhart to agree on a contract and I’m betting that will happen any day now.
