Notes: Antoine Walker’s epic card game with Michael Jordan; EKU-Morehead OVC rematch
Random notes for a Friday:
▪ Former Kentucky basketball star Antoine Walker is in the news, but not for his playing days. Instead, Walker joined “All Things Covered” and shared a story of a 36-hour gambling experience with none other than Michael Jordan.
“When Mike calls, the buy-in goes up a little higher. It’s going to be a number that everybody has to bring to the table. I’d say $20,000 just to get in. If you don’t have $20,000 to get in, you can’t even play. Mike was competitive. I remember one time we played spades for 36 hours. We were playing against two other guys and Mike and I were partners. They had us behind $900,000.”
Basketball notes
▪ The Kentucky women’s basketball team held off Florida 73-64 on Thursday afternoon in the quarterfinals of the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament in Greenville, S.C. Rhyne Howard scored 27 points for the Cats, who as the No. 5 seed will play No. 4 seed Georgia on Friday. Josh Sullivan of the Herald-Leader has the details.
▪ Earlier this week, Georgia’s Joni Taylor was named SEC Coach of the Year for women’s basketball after the team’s 18-5 regular season.
▪ Here’s the SEC Women’s Tournament bracket.
▪ I recorded a podcast with colleague and Herald-Leader ace recruiting reporter Ben Roberts on Thursday discussing the future of Kentucky basketball recruiting. We discussed who might be staying and who might be leaving from the current UK roster. We also talked Skyy Clark, future recruits, Reed Sheppard and this new league that wants to pay $100,000 to prospects to skip high school and college basketball.
▪ Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde wrote about Sheppard and John Calipari and the Kentucky recruiting crossroads. As usual, Pat does an excellent job, even if he does quote yours truly in the piece.
▪ Kentucky basketball wraps up its regular season on Saturday against South Carolina. As Jerry Tipton reports, the Gamecocks have had a frustrating season, as well. “We never got the opportunity to go through that journey that we all usually go through early in the year,” Coach Frank Martin said. “And we’ve been trying to figure that out in league play. And it’s made it really difficult for us.”
▪ Eastern Kentucky beat Austin Peay 70-67 in the quarterfinals of the OVC Tournament in Evansville on Thursday night to earn a semifinal matchup with Morehead State on Friday. That game will begin after the Jacksonville State-Belmont semifinal, which tips at 8 p.m. EST. Both games are on ESPNU.
▪ According to Jeff Goodman, OVC member Eastern Illinois has parted ways with Coach Jay Spoonhour.
▪ Bellarmine lost to Stetson 73-70 in the Atlantic Sun Tournament in Jacksonville. The Knights are 13-7 overall and 10-3 in the conference. They will wait now to see if a postseason tournament bid is possible.
▪ Villanova confirmed that guard Colin Gillespie is out for the year with a torn MCL. Gillespie averaged 14 points and 4.6 assists per game for the 10th-ranked Wildcats.
▪ Baylor is officially back. Following a loss at Kansas, which followed a long COVID-19 pause, the Bears have now beaten West Virginia and Oklahoma State back-to-back. No. 3 Baylor beat OSU 81-70 on Thursday.
▪ Michigan is officially back. The No. 2-ranked Wolverines rebounded from Tuesday’s pounding by Illinois to whip Michigan State 69-50 on Thursday.
▪ Trailing at halftime at home to UTEP, Kansas rallied for a 67-62 win Thursday night. Its Big 12 schedule finished, the Jayhawks added UTEP as a tune-up for the conference tournament. And nearly lost.
▪ Creighton has indefinitely suspended Coach Greg McDermott for the “plantation” remark he made to players.
▪ Perpetually crabby Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim got testy with a reporter on Wednesday night, questioning the reporter’s credibility since he was “5-2” and “never played the game.” Maybe Boeheim needs to be reminded that Bill Belichick never played a down of professional football but has won six Super Bowls. That’s five more titles than Boeheim has won.
▪ Could Mike Brey be on thin ice at Notre Dame? Chants of “Fire Brey” were heard at Notre Dame during the Irish’s 80-69 loss to North Carolina State on Wednesday night. The loss dropped Brey’s team to 9-14 overall and 6-11 in the ACC. Since back-to-back NCAA Tournament Elite Eight appearances in 2015 and 2016, Notre Dame is 90-70 overall, including 39-52 in the ACC.
Football notes
▪ You may have read where former LSU football coach Les Miles reached a settlement with a former LSU student who alleged that Miles was guilty of sexual harassment. A report released Thursday by the school accuses Miles of inappropriate behavior with students including one in which he, “kissed her and suggested ‘that they go to a hotel together and mentioned his condo as another meeting place. He also complimented her on her appearance and said he was attracted to her.’”
▪ Tennessee has set its first spring game under new coach Josh Heupel for April 24.
▪ Former Tennessee offensive coordinator Jim Chaney has signed on to be an offensive analyst with the NFL’s New Orleans Saints.
▪ Emory Jones has the inside track to succeed the departed Kyle Trask as Florida’s quarterback, reports Edgar Thompson of the Orlando Sentinel.
This and that
▪ Kentucky baseball opens a three-game series with Ball State on Friday. The Cats are off to a 6-0 start. Friday’s first pitch is set for 4 p.m. at Kentucky Proud Park. Saturday and Sunday are each set to start at 1 p.m.
▪ Kaden Martin, the son of former Kentucky football assistant coach Tee Martin, has committed to play baseball at Miami. Currently the wide receivers coach for the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens, Tee Martin led the Tennessee football team to the 1999 national championship. Kaden says he wants to play football at Miami, as well, but committed to primarily play baseball.
▪ Kentucky softball defeated Pittsburgh 8-1 and Florida Atlantic 3-1 on Thursday, the opening day of the Florida Atlantic University Parents Weekend Tournament. Now 16-0, the Wildcats will play Illinois State at 10:30 a.m. on Friday.
▪ Ranked No. 3 in the nation, Kentucky volleyball plays host to LSU on Friday and Saturday at Memorial Coliseum. Each match starts at 7 p.m. A perfect 12-0 on the season, Craig Skinner’s team is coming off a two-week layoff because of COVID-19 protocols.
▪ Scary story out of the Cincinnati Reds spring training camp. Outfielder Shogo Akiyama left camp recently to tend to a “personal matter.” After returning to Arizona, Akiyama revealed that he returned to Cincinnati to aid his wife, who suffered a serious injury when she was hit by a falling tree while walking in a Sharonville park. She is expected to be OK.
▪ It’s another big Kentucky Derby prep weekend with the Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct, the Tampa Bay Derby in Florida and the San Felipe at Santa Anita Park in California. The latter features Life Is Good, who figures to be one of the top contenders on May 1.
▪ The Mississippi legislature has passed a bill that bans transgender athletes from girls’ sports. Governor Tate Reeves is expected to sign the bill into law.
This story was originally published March 5, 2021 at 7:35 AM.
