Monday’s National Championship game is set after UConn and Butler emerged victorious from two hard-fought semi-final games yesterday in Houston. In the heavyweight game, the Huskies took out the Kentucky Wildcats behind Kemba Walker’s 18 points, seven dimes and six boards. The game was won in the backcourt, as Walker and mates Shabazz Napier (four points) and Jeremy Lamb (12 points) outplayed the Kentucky duo of Brandon Knight (17 points on 6-23 shooting) and Doron Lamb (13 points). Kentucky was down 10 at intermission but came storming back in the second half to tie it up. Down two with the ball and 16 seconds left on the clock, Kentucky came out of a timeout and ran a “play” that saw Knight dribble around for several seconds before passing to DeAndre Liggins for a fadeaway, contested 30-footer that had no chance. Ballgame … Read More »

You ever spent hours working on a project, then within five minutes it became totally useless? That’s how it was for whoever on the Atlanta Hawks production staff spent their time making fake movie posters hyping the Hawks as “The Road Warriors” because they went into last night’s game in Miami with a 7-2 road record, best in the East. About five minutes into the first quarter, however, before they could even show the graphic, LeBron and D-Wade and Bosh led the Heat on a 14-2 run and built a lead Miami would never lose … This was the game we envisioned when the Heat trio first joined forces. Read More »

On the summer’s last major stage for high school basketball, the Kentucky Wildcats again couldn’t stay out of the headlines.

During halftime of the nationally-televised Elite 24 showcase at Venice Beach, Calif., Kyle Wiltjer announced his commitment to UK. The 6-9 forward from Portland, Ore., then went on to win co-MVP of the game, scoring 20 points.

If recruiting is more than half the battle in college basketball, John Calipari is setting himself up to win a war (or at least a national championship). Read More »

Going into his senior year, Winter Park (Fla.) High School point guard Austin Rivers is ranked 2nd overall on the HighSchoolHoop.com national Top 50 list. Having recently de-committed from Florida, he now has Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, Kentucky and the Gators vying for his signature.

The younger son of Celtics coach Doc Rivers, Austin has agreed to give HSH and Dime exclusive access by chronicling his thoughts in a regular diary. Here’s an excerpt from his latest entry: Read More »

The most controversial college basketball recruiting saga of 2010 is over, at least in terms of determining a winner and a loser.

Terrence Jones, the 6-9 All-American guard/forward who made headlines when he verbally committed to Washington a couple weeks ago before almost immediately re-opening his recruiting to consider Kentucky, has in fact signed a letter-of-intent with John Calipari and the Wildcats. From the Seattle Times: Read More »

It’s safe to say that in one year, John Calipari has turned Kentucky into NBA U. With five players slated to go in the first 20 picks of this year’s NBA Draft, and commitments last week from top-five players in the Class of 2010 (Brandon Knight) and Class of 2011 (Michael Gilchrist) – not to mention All-American senior Doron Lamb – you’d think Coach Cal would take a day off. Think again. While there are still some outstanding players who might commit to the Wildcats for next year, Calipari is focusing his attention on the Class of 2012. Read More »

Forget the first 82. The NBA playoffs get underway today: Cavs/Bulls at 3 p.m. EST (ABC), followed by Hawks/Bucks at 5:30 p.m. (ESPN), Celtics/Heat at 8 p.m. (ESPN), and Nuggets/Jazz at 10:30 p.m. (ESPN). Naturally, the Atlanta vs. Milwaukee series is getting the least amount of hype and attention, but honestly? It could be the best of the bunch. Ever since John Salmons came to the Bucks in a deadline trade, their games against the Hawks have routinely gone down to the wire, with Salmons and Joe Johnson serving each other heaping bowls of Bucket Pudding … Read More »

If you missed it on National Signing Day, John Calipari is rebuilding another monster at Kentucky. Right after five of his underclassmen went pro, he immediately landed Brandon Knight, the top senior PG in the country, and Michael Gilchrist, maybe the top player period in the 2011 junior class. In addition to them, Calipari has two blue chip commits in swingman Stacey Poole and Turkish big man Enes Kanter. It’s time to add one more. While All-American senior shooting guard Doron Lamb is formally announcing his decision tomorrow at the Jordan Brand Classic, we already know what it’s going to be. Doron Lamb is headed to Kentucky. Read More »

With the NBA regular season in the books, Thursday was apparently just right for firing coaches. The Sixers unloaded Eddie Jordan after just one season, while the Clippers cut interim coach Kim Hughes loose. And in Detroit, Joe Dumars is surprisingly keeping his gun in the holster and won’t fire first-year coach John Kuester. If you’re one of the popular candidates for available jobs like Jeff Van Gundy, Avery Johnson or Mark Jackson — or, you know, somebody who actually coached this past season — which of those jobs sounds more appealing? In L.A. you’d be working for maybe the worst owner in sports, but in Philly you’d inherit a roster that seriously lacks in talent and basketball IQ … Read More »

I told you yesterday that the McDonald’s All American Game Selection Show was happening tonight, as the top 24 high school basketball seniors in the country would be selected to play in the prestigious 2010 Games set to tip off in Columbus, Ohio on March 31. Well the ballots are in, so check out the rosters for both teams. Read More »