KSR Today: Calm Before the Kentucky Storm

Folks, this is it, the final day before the Big Blue Nation gets its first double dip of Kentucky football and basketball on the same weekend. To prepare for the madness, alarms were firing at the Joe Craft Center during Kentucky basketball media day. It was something else. Let’s not waste any time and dive right into what’s happening across the Commonwealth and beyond.

John Calipari at Kentucky Basketball Media Day

Kentucky basketball media day is one of the final preseason rites of passage. John Calipari spent more than 30 minutes talking with the media ahead of Friday’s exhibition opener against Georgetown at Rupp Arena. There are a few things we learned from Kentucky’s head coach:

When will we see the 7-footers?
Ugonna Onyenso and Aaron Bradshaw did not divulge any specifics, each sharing with KSR they have “no timeline” for a return. The quotes are so similar, it’s almost as if they planned it in advance. We got a little bit more insight on Big Z, who John Calipari believes we could see next week in Kentucky’s second exhibition game.

Practice is Competitive

To use his words, “it gets chippy” between the Cats, and that’s not a bad thing. The Wildcats have a bunch of freshmen, sprinkled in with vets, who are getting after it on the court, then chopping it up together in the locker room after practice.

‘Kentucky is Kentucky’

The SEC is the best it’s ever been, the non-conference schedule is a challenge, but entering year 15 John Calipari likes his team and the trajectory of the program.

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The First Conversation with Big Z

Zvonimir Ivisic learned the bright lights of the Big Blue Nation also bring along a bunch of cameras. In his first conversation with members of the media, he was punctual. Folks had to pry a little bit, but we did learn that his favorite Wildcat is DeMarcus Cousins. Wise choice, Mr. Z, wise choice.

Unfortunately, the event was cut short by fire alarms at the Joe Craft Center. That didn’t stop Drew Franklin and the rest of the KSR crew from sharing everything they learned at a chaotic tip-off event.

Snapshots from Kentucky Basketball Media Day

Another Kentucky Basketball Official Visitor

John Calipari is turning this weekend into a significant recruiting event. There will be not one, but TWO Five-Star Plus talents on campus. 6-foot-10 center Jayden Quaintance will be joined by 6-foot-4 shooting guard VJ Edgecombe. Each players are Top 10 players in the 2024 recruiting class. Not too shabby.

There’s also some big names from the gridiron visiting for the Tennessee game, headlined by four-star 2024 commit Elijah Groves. We’ll share more later today.

Trevin Wallace: Back?

Kentucky missed its star linebacker against Missouri. They’ll need their best athlete to operate in space against Tennessee and it looks like he’ll be back in action. Trevin Wallace returned to practice, then spoke to the media, a sign that you’ll see No. 32 this Saturday night at Kroger Field.

For more Kentucky football talk, tune into 11 Personnel’s Tennessee preview.

Thursday Night Football at KSBar

There’s no better way to kick off the weekend than with Thursday Night Football at KSBar and Grille. One lucky customer will win FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS at halftime. The Bills and Bucs are both hungry off a loss. Desperation breeds chaos and we could have some of that on our hands tonight at KSBar and Grille.

The action kicks off shortly after 8 pm on Amazon Prime. Buffalo is an 8.5-point favorite over Tampa Bay on FanDuel, with a total of 43. If you prefer to take in the college action, there’s a couple of games tonight on the four-letter networks.

Syracuse (+2.5) at Virginia Tech, 7:30, ESPN
Georgia State (+1.5) at Georgia Southern, 7:30, ESPN2

There Goes That Man

Malik Monk returned to the hardwood with a BANG. The former Wildcat isn’t going to be allowed back in Utah for the foreseeable future.

MALIK MONK MY GOODNESS 😲 pic.twitter.com/yBnqWqd5uR

— NBA (@NBA) October 26, 2023

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