GoGamecocks.com

Kentucky freshmen bond like brothers

Wildcat newcomers Wall, Bledsoe building winning foundation of friendship

Written by SETH EMERSON

semerson@thestate.com
Posted on 06.30.09
email print reprint or license
Comments (0)

Related Content

The fabulous freshmen at Kentucky are already gelling, according to Wildcats coach John Calipari.

The nation's top basketball recruiting class is on campus and hanging around like brothers, Calipari said Monday during an SEC coaches teleconferences.

"I love what they come with. They all come with an attitude of let's try to win all the games," Calipari said. "When we were at Memphis we brought in the one crew that just said we should win all the games, and all of a sudden we started winning almost all the games because they convinced the returning players we could do this."

The relationship that may have been the most surprising is between John Wall and Eric Bledsoe. Even though both are touted as point guards, Calipari said playing the two together is a "distinct possibility," with their off-court friendship figuring in.

"The best thing is they like each other," Calipari said. "They're together, like 24-7."

Gillispie vs. Kentucky. While Calipari continues to garner attention, so does his predecessor in Lexington.

Billy Gillispie, fired in March after two seasons, has sued the school over his payout. Kentucky on Friday asked a federal judge in Texas to either dismiss Gillispie's lawsuit or move the case to Kentucky.

Gillispie, a native of Texas, filed his suit in federal court there, claiming fraud and breach of contract. The university counter-sued him in state court in Kentucky.

Gillispie, who went 40-27 in two seasons with the Wildcats, is seeking at least $6 million, the payout for the remainder of his agreement when he was hired. The coach never signed a contract with Kentucky, only a memorandum of understanding. Gilliespie claims the memorandum was the equivalent of a contract, which Kentucky disputes.

Waiting on big men. Mississippi State is still awaiting news on two marquee freshmen who have yet to be cleared by the NCAA.

Renardo Sidney, rated one of the nation's top center recruits, has yet to enroll in school. The NCAA recently asked to speak to Sidney and his family about unspecified concerns regarding his amateur status, according to the Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger.

The status of John Riek, a 7-foot-3 Sudan native, has yet to be resolved as well. Riek worked out for some NBA teams before electing to sign with Mississippi State.

Old friends. The hiring of Mark Fox at Georgia resulted in at least one fact: For the second consecutive year, one SEC coach replaced another one at their former schools.

Fox had been at Nevada, where he was hired when Trent Johnson left for Stanford. Johnson is now the coach at LSU.

"I think he has all the ingredients not only to be a good coach but to be a great coach," Johnson said of Fox. "But I don't want to take any credit for that. I want to take credit for him being introduced to his wife."

Last year South Carolina hired Darrin Horn, who at Western Kentucky had replaced Dennis Felton when Felton went to Georgia. But Horn and Felton were fellow SEC coaches for less than half a season, and never faced each other, as Felton was fired in January.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Reach Emerson at (803) 771-8676.

  • Search
  • GoGamecocks.com
  • Web search powered by YAHOO! SEARCH

Recent Video

Latest Forum posts