KSR Today: Another Boom for Kentucky
There’s nothing quite like a good old-fashioned Kentucky basketball BOOM. The Big Blue Nation received a surprising heads-up from Cody Fueger on Wednesday. Within a few hours, Trent Noah was officially a Kentucky Wildcat.
It was an eventful 24 hours for one of the best scorers in the history of Kentucky high school basketball. He was released from his South Carolina National Letter of Intent at approximately 1 pm on Tuesday. We heard that BOOM about 24 hours later. Many around the BBN were able to connect the dots to Noah, until Matt Norlander spilled the beans prematurely. Noah did not officially make the announcement until about an hour later. Come on, Norlander, let the guy have his moment!
Once officially on board, Mark Pope was eager to share his excitement for the new addition.
“Trent Noah is one of the elite shooters in this class,” Pope said. “He is a tough, hard-nosed player with a special physicality. As an eastern Kentucky native, Trent will bring a grit, toughness and determination to the program that is representative of this state. We’re looking forward to Trent joining this talented group.”
As soon as Pope was hired, Noah was the first player that came to mind. He feels like the perfect fit for Pope’s offense. He’s a big-bodied scorer that can shoot the snot out of the ball. After leading Harlan County to the Sweet 16 championship game, Noah is returning to Rupp Arena to help tip off the Mark Pope era.
The Kentucky Basketball Roser Puzzle is Almost Complete
Noah is the third high school player to commit to Mark Pope, joining Collin Chandler and the guy who beat him in his final high school game, Travis Perry. The Cats now have ten players locked in for 2024-25. As Jack Pilgrim shared on KSBoard, we’re now entering a waiting game as targets test their skills at the G League Elite Camp and NBA Draft Combine.
Tyler Ulis Following Calipari to Arkansas
It wasn’t all delightful news on Wednesday, although we should’ve seen this coming. After spending two years on the bench as a student assistant, John Calipari said Tyler Ulis will be joining him next year at Arkansas. The former Consensus First Team All-American wasn’t going to stay at Kentucky forever. We all knew that. Still, this is one departure that does sting a little bit more.
Former Kentucky Wildcat to Xavier
Remember Cam’Ron Fletcher? He had a cup of coffee in Lexington during the disastrous 2020-21 season, playing in just nine games before leaving the Kentucky basketball program. He landed at Florida State and has struggled to avoid the injury bug, missing all but seven games last season due to a knee injury. He sought out greener pastures in the transfer portal and landed at Xavier.
Check Out Pope’s New Custom Kentucky Kicks
Billy Hobbs always delivers the goods. The proprietor of True Blue Customs has created plenty of artistically crafted shoes for athletes over the years. He welcomed Mark Pope back to Lexington with one exceptional pair of shoes packaged in an incredibly ornate box.
The First Twilight Thursday at Churchill Downs
The Kentucky Derby is a blast, but it’s actually not the best thing Churchill Downs does. That honor belongs to Twilight Thursdays, the happy hour event that features $2 beers, food trucks, and eight races from 5-8:30 pm EST each Thursday. This year things will look a little different, thanks to the new Paddock. By the looks of Churchill Downs’ website, live music will still be playing upstairs in the Paddock Plaza, but the food trucks will be at The Grove, the shady area near the first turn that hosted the events a year ago. If you’ve never been before, I highly, highly recommend.
SGA Comes Up Short in MVP Vote
Following a banner year for the Oklahoma City Thunder point guard, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was this close to winning the MVP. He finished second to Nikola Jokic, who won his third in four years. An MVP still eludes a former Kentucky Wildcat. Shaq told Jokic that he believes the award should’ve gone to Shai.
SGA will get a chance to prove he deserved to win the award tonight win the Thunder take on the Mavericks in game two of the Western Conference semifinals. The action tips off at 9:30 pm EST on ESPN. Cleveland and Boston will get things started at 7 pm EST on the four-letter network.
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