Observations from Athens...

[DonnieKat]

Just got back from Stegeman. Here are some thoughts:

-If anyone thought Ramel was not the most important player on UK's team, today dispelled that. After Ramel went down the offense stalled. Players were out of position, the offense didn't run as smoothly, the team did not huddle as much prior to the opponents' free throw shots (have you noticed Ramel always initiates this?).....he is CLEARLY the leader of this squad. There were times at the end of the first half and beginning of the second where Jasper, Porter and Crawford were jawing at each other on offense for being out of position. Things just run more smoothly when Smooth is around.
-Arguably the performance of the season for Joe Crawford. Best game by any UK player this year. Period. As I mentioned in another thread, Joe was getting treatment every TV timeout, UK timeout, break in the action or time he was taken out of the game. He was helped off the court after the game by Dwight Perry and someone else. Couldn't even get off the court on his own. Inspirational.
-This is the worst year of SEC officiating I can remember. Very, very bad again today. After one timeout, Sundiata Gaines was set to shoot a 1 and 1. He then asked the ref why he wasn't shooting 2 (ummm....b/c it was a foul on the floor and you weren't shooting). The ref looked like someone farted in his face; totally confused. He stood there for a second and then ran to the announcers to rewatch a play that happened two minutes ago. YOU'RE THE FREAKING REF! How can you A) not remember what just happened and B) let a player dictate your calls? Ridiculous.
-Great complimentary performances from Ramon Harris and Michael Porter today. Both played w/in their games today and didn't try to do too much. Porter, Harris, Bradley and Patterson are the best defenders on this team by far.
-Perry, Perry, Perry, Perry, Perry.....you were doing so well. You can literally watch his confidence go up and down while playing. Made some good plays, made some bad plays...I give him a 'C' today.
-How many fast break points did UK have today? Any? One?
-Biggest cheer from UGA fans today came at halftime when Richt, Knowshon and Stafford brought out the Sugar Bowl trophy. The crowd wents nuts...that should give you a pretty good idea of where their basketball program stands.
-My favorite moment of the day was a few minutes after Bradley went down. I was furious an intentional wasn't called and you could tell most UK fans were p*ssed. Bliss is a goon in my opinion. Anyway, as Bradley is being helped off the court, the UK fans at Stegeman begin to shout 'Go Big Blue'. UGA fans started to boo; you could tell the crowd was into it even though the place was only 60% filled (and the upper bowl was most Wildcats by my vantage point). Great moment. I hope (think) the players appreciated it.

That's all I can think of for now. Great game by the Cats. Great effort. What a win on the road.

[ontheroadto8]

Nice post...were you amongst the many Cat fans chanting "Go Big Blue" while Remel was coming off the court? That seemed awfully loud for a road game. Also, was the arena as empty as it looked on TV? I'd swear there were a couple thousand empty seats...pathetic!

[DonnieKat]

Nice post...were you amongst the many Cat fans chanting "Go Big Blue" while Remel was coming off the court? That seemed awfully loud for a road game. Also, was the arena as empty as it looked on TV? I'd swear there were a couple thousand empty seats...pathetic!

A couple thousand empty seats is probably right and Stegeman isn't that big. Oh yeah, I was screaming 'Go Big Blue'.....I don't like Bliss, never have never will.

The lower bowl was so spotty my girlfriend and I snuck down about ten rows behind the UK bench in the second half. Great view! Overall, a very strong representation by the Wildcat Nation.

[Terry L. Wildcat]

Donnie, Thanks for your great report :thumbup:

[BigblueDrew]

Bliss has now joined Ricky Blanton, Leon Douglas, and Toney Harris on my alltime thug squad. Dirtiest player I've seen in the SEC in a decade.

[jpay]

Bliss has now joined Ricky Blanton, Leon Douglas, and Toney Harris on my alltime thug squad. Dirtiest player I've seen in the SEC in a decade.

Don't see it... Good hard foul. It should have been intentional as he had no shot at the ball.But we were on the road, and that is just the way it goes.... But Bliss is no thug. Good solid big man. He gave Patterson fits today. I would love to have him.

[flacat22]

Don't see it... Good hard foul. It should have been intentional as he had no shot at the ball.But we were on the road, and that is just the way it goes.... But Bliss is no thug. Good solid big man. He gave Patterson fits today. I would love to have him.

I agree, as much as I hate to say it it appeared to me that Ramel was trying to draw the intentional with a bit of acting and then couldnt recover in time to catch/brace himself...No problem with Bliss...now the red headed goon that preceded him is another story...

[rsjones1983]

Steve Newman, I couldn't stand that guy!

[SamKat]

After the block was assured and the wrist foul was made by Bliss, he shoulder bumped Ramel who flew hard onto the floor. It became a slam dunk foul. Not intentional? I disagree with you, jpay, in all respects.

Very much like Callathes' intentional foul of Ramel to me.

Neither called.

Thanks DonnieKat! Good report!

[UKBOO]

Don't see it... Good hard foul. It should have been intentional as he had no shot at the ball.But we were on the road, and that is just the way it goes.... But Bliss is no thug. Good solid big man. He gave Patterson fits today. I would love to have him.

Based on how they have been calling it in every game I have watched, and even based on the rules, it was intentional. The guy came from behind and hit RB on the shoulder. He had no play on the ball what so ever.

[Got_Billie_G?]

At least they called a foul. After watching what Calathes did to Bradley during the UF game and to get a no-call on that made me wonder. At this point I'll take whatever we can get.

At first I thought it was intentional but he was going for the ball, Bradley had it secured and hidden though so Bliss was making a blind swipe at it. Look, Bliss is a donkey and probably not the most coordinated player on the floor so taking that into account I'd say it was just a play on the ball, not an intentional take down. He even went up to Bradley as he was walking off the court to make sure he was OK. Bliss is no Tony Harris, THAT guy was a P U N K!

[blewis18]

I agree with the two above that Bliss didn't cause everything on this foul. I do however think the state of Jaspers the other night compared to this one isn't even close Bliss's should have been intentional. I DON"T think that Bliss caused as much of that injury as everyone is putting on him.

[POEKLM]

Thanks for posting this....loved reading your report and the Go Big Blue cheer was awesome!

[TrueblueCATfan]

Good post.....and yes Ramal is the leader on this team

we need him back :thumbup:

[Terry L. Wildcat]

IMHO Bliss is not a dirty player but a player who does the dirty work...and he overachieved yesterday and gave us fits...that young man hustles.

[biglabcatdaddy]

Bliss has now joined Ricky Blanton, Leon Douglas, and Toney Harris on my alltime thug squad. Dirtiest player I've seen in the SEC in a decade.

And the bufoons calling the game on national television made him player of the game! This is a terrible example to set for kids watching the game.

[DonnieKat]

IMHO Bliss is not a dirty player but a player who does the dirty work...and he overachieved yesterday and gave us fits...that young man hustles.

I disagree. I know BCG talked to him after the game and said it was a good, hard, clean foul and Felton apologized and yada, yada, yada. This is not Bliss' first rodeo in the SEC. He's been around forever and he's ALWAYS been the guy dishing out hard fouls, overly aggressive screens and questionable elbows. There's a difference b/t high energy players (Balkman, Noah) and dirty players....Bliss falls into the latter category. Don't like 'em.

[dhens7]

I disagree. I know BCG talked to him after the game and said it was a good, hard, clean foul and Felton apologized and yada, yada, yada. This is not Bliss' first rodeo in the SEC. He's been around forever and he's ALWAYS been the guy dishing out hard fouls, overly aggressive screens and questionable elbows. There's a difference b/t high energy players (Balkman, Noah) and dirty players....Bliss falls into the latter category. Don't like 'em.

I think it just looks like he is playing dirty or dishing out hard fouls because he is very unccordinated. After he fouled ramel, he kind of fell into his back. He also came over as Ramel was being helped off the floor and kind of patted him on the stomach as if to say he didn't mean for anybody to get hurt. Ramel's "flop" had a lot to do with Ramel getting hurt. I don't think it was dirty at all. Intentional yes, dirty no.

[dhens7]

Just got back from Stegeman. Here are some thoughts:

After one timeout, Sundiata Gaines was set to shoot a 1 and 1. He then asked the ref why he wasn't shooting 2 (ummm....b/c it was a foul on the floor and you weren't shooting). The ref looked like someone farted in his face; totally confused. He stood there for a second and then ran to the announcers to rewatch a play that happened two minutes ago. YOU'RE THE FREAKING REF! How can you A) not remember what just happened and B) let a player dictate your calls? Ridiculous.



they were questioning WHO was supposed to be shooting, not if it was 1-1 or 2 shots. Either way, they should know that. I thought these refs were horrible

[PeachtreeCat]

Thanks for the report, Donnie. I wasn't able to make it to Stegeman this year, but enjoyed watching the game on TV and your report! I too was perplexed by the number of empty seats because the game had been SOLD OUT for over a month!

[Will Lavender]

Thanks for the report, Donnie. I wasn't able to make it to Stegeman this year, but enjoyed watching the game on TV and your report! I too was perplexed by the number of empty seats because the game had been SOLD OUT for over a month!

Wha?

Must have been a football recruiting special on Fox SportsNet.

[lighthouse]

they were questioning WHO was supposed to be shooting, not if it was 1-1 or 2 shots. Either way, they should know that. I thought these refs were horrible

Wrong. The only question they had is, was he shooting. If you remember the play, he went up to shoot and after he was fouled, he passed the ball to the right corner.

Thanks for the report Donnie. It's always good to hear a live report.

[dhens7]

Wrong. The only question they had is, was he shooting. If you remember the play, he went up to shoot and after he was fouled, he passed the ball to the right corner.

Thanks for the report Donnie. It's always good to hear a live report.

We might have to agree to disagree on this one, because when they came to the line you could read Gaines' lips and he kept saying "its me" and pointing to himself. THen another official walked up and I saw him say something I couldn't make out then he said "Technical Foul"

You cannot get a Technical foul for shooting 2 free throws when you are only supposed to be shooting the 1-1.

He had to be telling him that if they check and find out it is not him, he would get a T.

[UKBOO]

Wrong. The only question they had is, was he shooting. If you remember the play, he went up to shoot and after he was fouled, he passed the ball to the right corner.

Thanks for the report Donnie. It's always good to hear a live report.

I think dhens is right on this one. The pass confused the baseline official as to who was going to the line. A different player handed him the ball going into the time out before the shots... They thought UGA was attempting to pull a fast one. I saw the official tell Gaines that if he didn't belong at the line he would get a T as well.

[Wildcat Larry]

Bliss swings elbows every time he gets a rebound, the shoves in the small of the back to get those rebounds, and when someone commits a foul, he takes the opportunity to slam into the player fouled, too, if he's close enough to do so.

He tries to hurt people, or at the very least intimidate them with his bulk and elbows.

[Praray]

I may be very much in a minority on this but I feel the offense actually ran very smooth with Jasper running the lead guard spot. We only had 8 turnovers during the game, a season low I think. We certainly need Bradley and everything he brings to the table but I feel we miss his scoring much more than we miss his game management. Georgia is a very good defensive team and our shooting percentage against them was well above their normal defensive stats for the season.

[Will Lavender]

I may be very much in a minority on this but I feel the offense actually ran very smooth with Jasper running the lead guard spot. We only had 8 turnovers during the game, a season low I think. We certainly need Bradley and everything he brings to the table but I feel we miss his scoring much more than we miss his game management. Georgia is a very good defensive team and our shooting percentage against them was well above their normal defensive stats for the season.

I think that's just a byproduct of how much we've improved. A lot of times Porter (and even Ramon Harris) were handling it against the press, so it wasn't all Jasper.

Even though Derrick had a fine game, I think we're finally beginning to trust each other. Everybody is cutting hard, looking for the open man, screening. I haven't seen the offense move like this since Azubuike and Hayes left, and I think it's about teamwork first and who mans point guard spot second.

[Praray]

Jasper played 35 minutes during the game, had six rebounds, 2 points, 5 assists of the 13 team total. Harris played one of his better all around games but had 3 turnovers, no assists and Porter had no assists. I too think the team has improved from where they were in November but also feel that getting Jasper back on the court is a major contributor to that improvement. Even coach Gillispie says Jasper sees the court better than anyone on the team and makes the best decisions when handling the ball. Bradley is essential to the success of this team but his scoring is what I consider needed much more than his play making. Jasper is not much of a scorer but at 6'6", can guard multiple positions and is a very strong rebounder for his size. It was a good team win and I am not trying to downplay the roles of any of those fine young men who played and contributed to the win, just feel that Jasper was the major factor in running the offense. Having Jasper on the floor frees Bradley up for a role he is much better suited for, Scoring.

[Will Lavender]

Jasper played 35 minutes during the game, had six rebounds, 2 points, 5 assists of the 13 team total. Harris played one of his better all around games but had 3 turnovers, no assists and Porter had no assists. I too think the team has improved from where they were in November but also feel that getting Jasper back on the court is a major contributor to that improvement. Even coach Gillispie says Jasper sees the court better than anyone on the team and makes the best decisions when handling the ball. Bradley is essential to the success of this team but his scoring is what I consider needed much more than his play making. Jasper is not much of a scorer but at 6'6", can guard multiple positions and is a very strong rebounder for his size. It was a good team win and I am not trying to downplay the roles of any of those fine young men who played and contributed to the win, just feel that Jasper was the major factor in running the offense. Having Jasper on the floor frees Bradley up for a role he is much better suited for, Scoring.

Good points. I love Jasper; in many ways I think he's the most important player on the team.

I still think the team has improved in their cutting and screening and overall teamwork, but I agree that Jasper's presence on the floor is a major part of that improvement.

[bleedbluelady]

At least they called a foul. After watching what Calathes did to Bradley during the UF game and to get a no-call on that made me wonder. At this point I'll take whatever we can get.

At first I thought it was intentional but he was going for the ball, Bradley had it secured and hidden though so Bliss was making a blind swipe at it. Look, Bliss is a donkey and probably not the most coordinated player on the floor so taking that into account I'd say it was just a play on the ball, not an intentional take down. He even went up to Bradley as he was walking off the court to make sure he was OK. Bliss is no Tony Harris, THAT guy was a P U N K!

I don't know if Bliss is a dirty player or not. But, I can't believe fans are so naive to think that just because a player does something like that means he has class or isn't a punk. Can you say pucker up? Sorry, I guess the skeptical side of me is coming out.

[Praray]

Will, I think you and I are basically saying the same thing, just using different approaches. We cannot go very far without Bradley in the lineup, he is instrumental to this team's success in my opinion. Jasper being in the lineup with him releaves him of a lot of the ball handling and setting up of teammates and allows him to give us that badly needed scoring. My hat is certainly off to all the young men wearing the UK uniform right now, they are playing with aches and pains and showing a ton of character.