Avenging a loss to Georgia and locking up a key assistant football coach--it was a very good day for the Big Blue Nation.  Let's start with the hardwood, where for the second game in a row, the Cats played some of the season's best basketball for 30-plus minutes only to let the opponent make it closer than it should have been at the end.  There's still time to get better at crunch time so it's important to focus on how good this team can look when it's playing its best.  In a game in which leading scorer Terrence Jones scored a season-low seven points and Brandon Knight contributed just 11, Kentucky had a double-digit lead with four minutes to play against a team that provides the Cats with some real matchup problems.  That's progress from what we saw in Athens three weeks ago.  Now, to football.  Kudos to Mitch Barnhart and the UK administration for having Joker Phillips' back.  Alabama was reportedly  making a run at Tee Martin, a rising star in the coaching ranks that Phillips brought into the UK program before others recognized Martin's potential.  Doing what it took to keep Martin on the staff sends the messages to the recruits Joker is pursuing that UK is serious about moving this program to a higher level.  And UK maximized the publicity potential by making the announcement at the basketball game, where all the media were gathered.  With signing day looming on Wednesday, sending good messages is very timely.

v. Louisville
September 2 / 3:30pm eastern
listen on UK-IMG Sports Network
See full schedule