The once proud University of Kentucky basketball program (7-9) is now mired in mediocrity.  While traditional powerhouses such as UCLA, North Carolina and Duke still manage to field national-championship contenders, for some reason, Kentucky has failed to keep up with the joneses.  And nowhere is this frustration more evident than their current seven-game losing streak to the Florida Gators.

Last night, Kentucky, after tying the game on a last-second three-pointer by Ramel Bradley, allowed Florida to score 20 points in overtime to keep Kentucky’s dubious losing streak alive.  Only one other school, Notre Dame, can match a seven-game winning streak against the Wildcats.  UF will have a chance to make it eight in a row in Lexington on March 9.

After attending last night’s game in person, one thing is clear.  Despite being considerably younger (the Gators boast ten freshmen and sophomores on their roster), the Gators are once again the better team.  Despite doing nearly everything possible to give the game away (Florida was up by twelve points late in the second half), the Gators still managed to eke out a victory, going 10-for-10 from the free throw line in overtime, after missing seven of nine late in the second half.

Far be it from be to pretend to know UK basketball like the rabid Kentucky natives, however, I can present an outsider’s perspective.  Neutral observers still feel Tubby Smith got a raw deal and was never truly appreciated for what he brought to the program, which included a national championship, several conference titles, ten 20-win seasons, an NCAA tournament appearance every year and an undefeated conference schedule in 2002-03.  Tubby is currently 12-4 at the University of Minnesota, while his successor is under .500.

It remains to be seen whether Billy Gillispie is the answer Lexington is looking for.  It will also be interesting to see how long a leash they give him.  Wildcat fans still must salivate with Billy-envy when they see Coach Donovan patrolling the sidelines of the two-time national champion Florida Gators.

Back in the late 1980s and ‘90s, it was not uncommon to see Gainesville’s O’Connell Center awash with rambunctious, blue-clad Wildcat fans heckling a program once lesser than theirs.  Kentucky fans have been known to travel like no other fans.  Last night, however, the Wildcats, while still present, we’re not quite as boisterous or numerous as in years past.  Perhaps the horrible weather kept ‘Cats away from the not-so-friendly confines of the O’Dome.  Maybe the free blue Gator t-shirts left for all fans washed out the Big Blue fans, but I think it’s safe to say, Kentucky fans, while still among the most proud fans in the nation, aren’t nearly as confident about the state of their program as they have been in years past.

Others that are better versed in the current Kentucky program can surely tell you about the state of high school basketball and the level of talent about to come out in the next few years.  Lexington, after all, did steal away Patrick Patterson from Florida last year, and trust me… Patterson heard it from the Florida fans last night every time he touched the ball.

Perhaps Florida should thank Kentucky.  After all, as probably our biggest conference basketball rival (now succeeded by Tennessee??), for decades, many orange and blue faithful learned about college basketball tradition from watching how much Kentucky cared about their program.  And we do boast a former coach of theirs as our leader, along with having former UK standout John Pelphrey assisting Billy the Kid way back in the day.

One thing remains clear, however, Florida basketball, despite losing so much talent to the NBA last year, remains strong.  And the fans remain rowdy.  With players like Nick Calathes, Marreese Speights, Chandler Parsons, Adam Allen, Jai Lucas and Alex Tyus, the future looks bright.  And unless Coach Gillispie can get his players to match the passion, connectivity, determination, and confidence showed by the youthful Gators, the streak may very well continue until next season.

If you’re fortunate enough among life’s incredible and educational journey, you end up meeting people who are simply special… kind, caring, and exceptional individuals.  The advent of the internet has dramatically increased our global reach and very often, we come to know people, become friends with and confide in someone we’ve never even met in person.  I have recently shared just such an experience and accordingly, I’d like to dedicate this blog to a very special person, one who’s served as an inspiration to me and many others on this very site.

I, for one, would like to take a moment to congratulate BluegrassLady.  I remember back in March 2007 when I wrote a blog blasting the University of Kentucky for courting Florida basketball coach Billy Donovan while his quest for a repeat championship was still ongoing.  In that blog, I called out the Kentucky program for being full of itself and a shell of it’s former self (I promised Bluegrass I wouldn’t bring up Gillespie’s 7-8 record since the ‘Cats visit Gainesville this weekend).  Well along came this feisty, great-looking brunette from Lexington, a former point guard, who started dishing out the criticism on my blog like she used to distribute the ball on the court.  The banter between us never got out of hand or hit below the belt (not our styles) but was rather constructive and positive. 

Not long thereafter, Frank Irizarry began hosting his Foxblogger webcast and Bluegrass and I became regulars.  I later found out that it was my Donovan post that inspired her to contribute to Foxsports.com.  Apparently I ruffled some feathers on Catspause.com.  Well, I can tell you, as many of you already know, Bluegrass ended up inspiring me and becoming my partner in several He Said/She Said debates (all her idea).  I was flattered to be selected as her partner as she and I ended up debating hot topics including Pete Rose, Bobby Knight, Emmitt vs Barry, the designated hitter rule, the rookie salary cap, cheating in sports, baseball’s all-star game, the projected outcome of the 2007-8 Boston Celtics and whether fans should even watch professional sports.  It was all in good fun.  I began looking forward to those weekly contributions.

During a period of recent, personal hardship, Bluegrass called me and e-mailed me consistently to see how I was doing.  Again, this is a person I’ve never actually met.

Well recently, BluegrassLady, con####uous by her recent absence to the Fox blogosphere, has landed a job writing for the Williamson Daily News and I, for one, couldn’t be more proud of her.  She’s once again doing what she loves to do, writing for a living, and I commend her for that.  She’s been feeling under the weather lately (nothing to do with the 7-8 record, I’m sure), so I wanted (all of us here) to wish her a speedy recovery and to also let her know she has friends here at Foxsports.com.

So, Pam, we’ve all got nothing but love for you, beautiful.  Whether you realize it or not, you’re an inspiration to us all.

My…how the tide has turned in Lexington, Kentucky.

A close friend of mine who attended the last regular season game between Florida and Kentucky game relayed to me an interesting story.  He told me you haven’t lived as a Gator basketball fan until you look into the eyes of a Kentucky Wildcat after beating them six consecutive times, only to have them stare back at you, then look dejectedly down at the floor in defeat.

Steeped in tradition, the University of Kentucky, once a powerhouse in college basketball, has in recent years been relegated to the middle of the pack in the Southeastern Conference, which is still a respectable position, just not by Kentucky's standards.  Despite what most Wildcat fans will tell you, this is NOT for lack of quality coaching.

Last week, in a surprise announcement, former head coach Tubby Smith announced he was resigning his position at Kentucky to take on the University of Minnesota job.  I don’t pretend to know what went on behind closed doors or Coach Smith’s reasons for leaving.  Suffice it to say, Coach Smith did not get a fair shake after taking over for Rick Pitino.  Even the national championship that Tubby won in 1998 came with an bluegrassterisk* since he won it “with Pitino’s players.”  In departure, Coach Smith took the high road and showed class by not discussing or disclosing his personal reasons for leaving Lexington.

With their newest coaching vacancy in high visibility, UK has reportedly gone after Coach Bruce Pearl, who’s happily staying at Tennessee and John Calipari, who Memphis recently locked up until 2012.  Coach Pitino has also denied any interest in returning.  However, Kentucky’s prized possession is the young Billy Donovan, a former assistant at Kentucky, who has successfully led the Florida Gators to last year’s title and yet another Final Four this year… his third in eight seasons.

According to the Lexington Courier Journal, a recent blog posted on The Cat’s Pause, a website that covers UK sports, reported a rumor that Kentucky was close to signing a ‘blockbuster deal’ with Donovan.  Now anyone with any sense (I guess that excludes Kentucky fans) realizes that Coach Donovan is locked away in the O’Connell Center with his assistant coaches breaking down game film of his future opponents.  The only blue on his mind is the light blue uniforms of the UCLA Bruins.

As Gator fans, we would obviously be devastated to see Coach Donovan leave.  University president Bernie Machen has openly stated that nobody is going to steal Coach Donovan from Gainesville.  For those who still think Gainesville is first and foremost a football town, keep in mind, with another national title this year, the basketball program will have as many championships historically as their pigskin counterparts, all with the same coach.  While Norm Sloan may have brought the Florida program into national prominence and Lon Kruger carried it to its first Final Four berth, it was Donovan, now the all-time coaching leader at Florida that perfected it.

To you, Kentucky fan, I say hands off until the coaching season is over.  Wish all you want.  Keep your framed picture of Coach Donovan under your pillow, dream sweet dreams and get that checkbook open.  After the way your fans, media and alumni treated Coach Smith, Donovan’s close personal friend, it’s unlikely that you stand as good a chance of landing Billy as you think you do.

If Coach Donovan does decide to leave, we wish him the best and thank him for the prominence and class he’s brought to our program.  And Kentucky fans, if he departs for the Bluegrass State, make sure you don’t run him out of town like you did your last coach.