Thanks to Hunter Mitchell of Cameron Mills Radio, for allowing us to use this amazing picture!
Us Kentuckians have always taken great pride in the tradition and love of basketball and this year is no different. When the UK Wildcats lost their season opener to Duke, I think all of us were flabbergasted. Blindsided. Shocked. No one predicted the brutal beating of the Cats, especially considering we were hyped as the 2nd best team in the nation. Moving forward was an exercise in faith as we all had to push the reset on our expectations and settle in for an unpredictable ride. But we managed. And so did our boys.
As Coach Cal and our top recruits do every year, they slowly but surely pulled themselves together to end the regular season in the #4 position - one number higher than Duke, I might add. Oh, the irony. And now as we enter tourney time, speculation begins. Will we be the #1 seed? Will we have another crack at Duke? Will we... could we... win it all? Just how far will our Cats go this year?
No matter what the ending, one fact remains; Big Blue Nation loves our team. There are so many adjectives to describe these determined and young (always young) fellows. But I thought it would be best to leave it to the fans to find that one word to sum up who our 2019 UK basketball team is. And boy, are these good.
Among all of these fabulous words, one was said the most and that word was unpredictable. Yes, unpredictable. Just like our loss against Duke this year. We have been consistently unpredictable.
But you know what? That is what I love so much about UK basketball. Let's face it, if we were a shoo-in for the whole kit and caboodle, what fun would that be? Well, maybe that would be OK, but still. That's not the point.
The point is the best moments in life are the surprising glories. The times where hope, hard work, determination and perseverance prevail despite the unpredictability.
And here we are. Nearing the end of our 2018-19 journey, exercising all of the adjectives displayed above. The truth is, when our Cats dig deep, play like brothers, contribute their best, sweat blue blood until the very last second of the game... we are amazing. TRULY AMAZING!
So unpredictable? Yes. I still think so. But that is just who we are. Let's just embrace it.
Predictability is overrated. It's for teams like Duke and the Patriots (talk about boring). I am fine with keeping everyone on their toes. Including me. My rear was made for the edge of the seat.
That's what keeps me coming back, year, after year, after year - the unpredictable chance that we could win it all.
Doggone it, we just might!
I love these guys! Now, let's go kick some b-ball butt!