For those fans too young to remember
- Thread starter cathouse
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It was a heck of a win, but I have ZERO interest in playing that Duke team in March. They have some really solid pieces on that team and Scheyer is an underrated coach.
That reminds me of my dad, especially during the mid 70s teams. In the 74-75 season I heard a crash during a game. My dad had took out a lamp with a rolled up newspaper. He mellowed out after the 78 championship but he did get pretty frustrated during Tubby's last years and BCG's time here.
Seemed like every season Tubby would say we were going to be more up tempo. I think he was just trying to make the fans happy being he replaced Rick and the style we played. This Pope team doesn't play that style but my goodness is this fun to witness. Outside of the full court press for 40 minutes, this is as close to Pitino ball as it gets. Those were my favorite years as a fan. I haven't been this ecstatic since Year 1 Cal.
I'm getting sick of hearing Matt Jones and everyone talk about talent. This team is as talented as any. If you want to talk NBA players than sure probably less, but for college this team is stacked
My thoughts exactly! And this is exactly what I recently told my son who became a UK fan while he was a teen growing up during the early CCC years. It’s nice to finally have our current team’s play to reference to help describe what it was like watching those Pitino teams. I’ve been waiting a long time for this and I’m really happy that all of the younger fans can experience what we did.
Dad never quite got like that but man.....the yelling was something. I have a "damnit doll" during games in case I need to toss something. Doesn't happen as often as it used to, but sometimes, especially during the last 5 years, it found it's way to the floor forcefully.
I had a small, plush basketball with UK on it that was meant to be thrown, lol. When it hit the target it said "GO CATS!". I'm gonna have to try and find it. I used it all the time back then but never moreso than that '98 dUKe game.
I have been thinking the exact same thing. It’s not just him, people use that term to refer to raw athleticism, which is very important but only part of the equation. We have a team full of talented players, whom are experienced. Experience factors into “talented” in my mind. Just my opinion.
After I lost a TV remote to a anger throw to the floor, I got my little stuffed wildcat. He's taken a beating over the years, especially when we nearly choked the 2012 title. And the poor thing barely survived 2015. Whew.
We have solid college players. They are talented....but not like NBA talented. Sure a couple of them might make a team and have a solid career, but we don't have the "Star Power" we did under Cal. And that's ok for right now. We will need to nab one or two going forward to have that explosive athleticism if we need it. But Pope will have a system around what he has in players. And not force square pegs in round holes.
Yeah man, it's a good thing I haven't dug that thing up in over 25 years because there'd be nothing left of it sitting through Cal games 🤣. Funny story but I had just met my Wife around that time and she had gotten out of an abusive relationship back then. When I was throwing that ball she had the look that maybe she should be rethinking things. I told her I'm only like this during Kentucky basketball games. Took her a bit to understand 🤣
Same. Same. I'm pretty good under pressure (Most times) but UK basketball means more. So, I get a little Neanderthal at times.
Exactly.
We may not have top 5 NBA draft picks, but last I checked that has only gotten us one title in 15 years.
I will take the team talent that we currently have any day of the week.
To me talent is skill. Every player on this team has basketball skills that we haven't had in a while
Kentucky basketball under Mark Pope is definitely bringing back those wonderful memories of the Rick Pitino days. For those too young to remember what UK basketball was like under Pitino, just watch the 1st half of UK's 1993 Sweet-16 game against a really good 5 seed Wake Forest team then you will see why us older UK fans have such fond memories of the Rick Pitino days.
I laugh when I read the comments of some of you "old guys" back to the Pitino era. He was great and if he had made some adjustments and had remained, we'd have 2 or 3 more banners hanging right now. He was before his time and on the cutting edge. A master at Xs and Os and preparation...which brings me to you "old guys." I actually am an old guy. I started with the greatest master Coach Rupp when Cotton Nash was the man. I experienced the Runts. I was at UK and involved in the program in the painful transition between Coach Rupp and Joe B. I was before every game being on television, social media, fan sites like this, ESPN, and on and on. My outlet was listening to Claude and Cawood on the radio and when I moved away from Kentucky listening to WHAS or WCKY and sometimes having a helluva time hearing on a bad atmospheric nite. Reading material was the Lexington or Louisville papers. Occasionally Sports Illustrated...And the ultimate was every once in a while, a gift my Dad gave me, tickets to a game a Memorial Coliseum. I knew because of being an old man that because the old day nuisances of Kentucky basketball being so much of my makeup starting with Rupp, that so much of that strong tie was melting away with the previous regime. If you weren't around pre-Pitino, you missed so much the core of what Kentucky basketball meant if you acquired it in the old days. You were relieved and knew that Mitch had done the right thing by hiring Pope. You knew it was the right thing when you saw the big blue madness and you saw Adrian Smith in a walker and Cliff Hagans daughter hold his arm to escort him out to mid court to show support for Pope and Kentucky basketball coming back. Even before the Duke game, us old guys knew we were back. The victory the other night proved it. It matters again. As Joe B. said, Kentucky basketball is a way of life. That way of Life had been taken away from an old guys perspective. Its back now. I feel certain that Mark Pope will go down as the 3rd best coach our program ever had. Thank you Rick Pitino for talking Mark Pope into becoming a Kentucky Wildcat.
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