Billy Gillispie certainly isn't endearing himself to many of his peers.
 
Just a few months after the NABC put out a statement frowning on the commitments of those who haven't yet started their sophomore year of high school (which was aimed at Gillispie), the organization has once again targeted the Kentucky coach for his decision to move up Midnight Madness in Lexington one week earlier.

The NCAA rule states that coaches can work with their team for two hours per week until the official start of practice - which is Oct. 17. Gillispie has opted to utilize his two hours on Oct. 10 in front of a capacity crowd at Rupp Arena.

Word is that there were numerous coaches on a conference call who were less than thrilled with Gillispie's decision. They feel that the NCAA allows the coaches the two hours per week for skill development and Gillispie is taking advantage of the rule.

It was the unanimous decision of the Board that skill development events should not be open to the public.

One theory for Gillispie's decision to move Midnight Madness is so that he wouldn't have to fight with other schools to try and bring highly touted recruits John Wall and Daniel Orton on campus - in addition to numerous other kids who would have gone elsewhere for what can be a huge recruiting tool.

Now the NABC will likely ask the NCAA to put in a rule that eliminates Midnight Madness from being held prior to the official start date of practice.

ROLLS ROYCE

We wrote a story on Tubby Smith's recruiting success and here are some thoughts from his most highly touted commit - potential McDonald's All-American Royce White.

``Minnesota was my favorite from the beginning. Coach (Dan) Monson was a really good guy and dealt with me in a classy way, but he may not have been hard-nosed enough and wasn't able to deal with some of the knuckleheads he had on the team."

- White said that he may not have chosen to remain at home if Smith hadn't been the head coach. He had late interest from North Carolina and UCLA and schools like Kansas, USC and Arizona were in the mix. ``I might have left if Coach Smith wasn't here," White admitted.

- White said he was 6 years old when Minnesota went to the Final Four in 1997. ``I've seen them compete with good teams and play hard, but never in my life have I seen them be competitive at the NCAA tournament level."

RANDOM NOTES: The battle between Kansas, Memphis and even USC for talented Brewster Academy (N.H.) forward Thomas Robinson isn't quite over. In fact, it appears as though Robinson - who sounded like someone ready to pull the trigger for the Jayhawks a little more than a week ago - will visit Memphis. It's a huge weekend for the Tigers, who will also host Xavier Henry this weekend. ... Louisiana Tech coach Kerry Rupp kicked guards J.C. Clark and Jamel White off the team for violating team rules. Clark averaged 9.5 points per game last season and White sat out after transferring from Nebraska.