Patterson, Meeks Named All-SEC
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Southeastern Conference unveiled its fifth annual men’s basketball coaches preseason All-SEC first and second teams Monday, tipping off another great season of SEC men’s basketball.
Thirty-two different players received votes for the teams and LSU and Tennessee led all schools with three selections each. Kentucky’s Patrick Patterson and Vanderbilt’s A.J. Ogilvy were the only unanimous first team selections.
The coaches preseason All-SEC first and second teams consist of a minimum of eight players on each squad, voted on by the SEC Head Men’s Basketball Coaches. No ties were broken and no predicted order of finish was made.
A list of the 2009 SEC Men’s Basketball Coaches Preseason All-SEC team follows.
| Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Cl. | Hometown |
| FIRST TEAM ALL-SEC | |||||
| Nick Calathes, Florida | G/F | 6-6 | 194 | So. | Casselberry, Fla. |
| Patrick Patterson, Kentucky# | – | 6-9 | 235 | So. | Huntington, W.Va. |
| Tasmin Mitchell, LSU | F | 6-7 | 240 | Jr. | Denham Springs, La. |
| Marcus Thornton, LSU | G | 6-4 | 205 | Sr. | Baton Rouge, La. |
| Chris Warren, Ole Miss | G | 5-10 | 160 | So. | Orlando, Fla. |
| Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State | F/C | 6-9 | 210 | Jr. | Brownsville, Tenn. |
| Devan Downey, South Carolina | G | 5-9 | 175 | Jr. | Chester, S.C. |
| Tyler Smith, Tennessee | F | 6-7 | 215 | Jr. | Pulaski, Tenn. |
| A.J. Ogilvy, Vanderbilt# | C | 6-11 | 250 | So. | Sydney, Australia |
| SECOND TEAM ALL-SEC | |||||
| Alonzo Gee, Alabama | G | 6-6 | 219 | Sr. | Palm Beach, Fla. |
| Ronald Steele, Alabama | G | 6-1 | 191 | Sr. | Birmingham, Ala. |
| Michael Washington, Arkansas | F/C | 6-9 | 239 | Jr. | McGehee, Ark. |
| Korvotney Barber, Auburn | F | 6-7 | 225 | Sr. | Manchester, Ga. |
| Terrance Woodbury, Georgia | G/F | 6-7 | 221 | Sr. | Virginia Beach, Va. |
| Chris Johnson, LSU | C | 6-11 | 210 | Sr. | Montross, Va. |
| Jodie Meeks, Kentucky | – | 6-4 | 208 | Jr. | Norcross, Ga. |
| Dominque Archie, South Carolina | F | 6-7 | 200 | Jr. | Augusta, Ga. |
| Wayne Chism, Tennessee | F | 6-9 | 242 | Jr. | Jackson, Tenn. |
| J.P. Prince, Tennessee | G | 6-7 | 205 | Jr. | Memphis, Tenn. |
Vandy at UK and other notes
Game will be on ESPN2, Saturday November 15th at 8 pm EST.
Other football notes from today:
- Right guard Jess Beets is out for the season with a torn ACL. That marks the end of his short Wildcat career.
- Receiver DeMorio Ford is out with another concussion. Ford has had an injury plagued season.
- Defensive End Ventrell Jenkins was named defensive lineman of the week in the SEC after his four tackle, two sack performance.
- Freshman receiver Gene McCaskill will be returing punts this weekend.
- Both quarterbacks (Hartline and Cobb) will play again this weekend.
- JK Jay has decided to spurn his visit to Kentucky. He’ll be taking a visit to Georgia later this month, however.
Kentucky’s Blue White Scrimmage
Saturday, Kentucky’s Blue team defeated it’s White team 86-81. Junior guard Jodie Meeks led the way with 32 points after making five of 11 three point attempts.
Sophomore Patrick Patterson followed up Meeks’ performance with 17 points.
During the scrimmage, it appeared that the starters were Meeks, Michael Porter, Patterson, Perry Stevenson and Darius Miller.
For the White squad, most people raved about the performance of transfer Josh Harrellson. Harrellson scored 16 points and pulled down 10 boards.
AJ Stewart, Matt Pilgrim, Mark Krebs and DeAndre Liggins all scored in double figures. Liggins also led both teams in assists with 9.
The general consensus is that this team is going to be much better than last year’s team. There’s a lot more depth and athleticism to go around. The only problem may be the lack of a pure point guard. Liggins is the closest that the team has to that guy, but he’s got a long way to go.
With all that said, Kentucky should have two all conference performers in Meeks and Patterson. Then newcomers Darius Miller, Josh Harrellson and DeAndre Liggins all appear to be incoming players who can make a dent in the lineup.
Fulmer — Out
This ESPN article claims that Phillip Fulmer will be moving on from his alma mater, the Tennessee Volunteers.
Good call by GhostofNeyland.
Bowl Eligible
After defeating Mississippi State 14-13 in Starkville Saturday afternoon, Kentucky finally became bowl eligible. And this is the first time in more 50 years Kentucky is bound for a third consecutive bowl.
With that in mind, what bowl will Kentucky be heading to?
The options appear to be the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, the Music City Bowl in Nashville, the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta, the Outback Bowl in Tampa, the Papa Johns Bowl in Birmingham and the Independence Bowl in Shreveport.
If Kentucky defeats two of the three opponents, then the Outback is still possible, depending on what happens with the other teams. The Outback bowl is probably a bit of a stretch, unless the Wildcats can defeat the last three opponents on their schedule. It’s possible, but it’s not likely.
Two victories puts us in the Chick-Fil-A bowl more than likely, if the rest of the league continues in the direction it’s headed. With Tennessee struggling and Vandy struggling as well, the Wildcats appear to have a golden opportunity here.
If Kentucky wins only one game, then it’s likely they’ll wind up in the Music City Bowl or the Liberty Bowl. With no victories, then Kentucky is likely to go to the Papa Johns Bowl or the Independence Bowl.
November 8th – Georgia at UK
November 15th – Vanderbilt at UK
November 22nd – UK at Tennessee
UK at Mississippi State
Both Kentucky and Mississippi State are both in a fight to get bowl eligible.
Kentucky stands at 5-3 while Miss St is 3-5. Kentucky has the Bulldogs, the Georgia Bulldogs, the Tennessee Vols and the Vanderbilt Commodores left on the schedule. Kentucky believes they can win any or all of their remaining games. Georgia is obviously the longest of longshots remaining on the schedule. Tennessee has beaten Kentucky 20 plus straight times, but they appear pretty far down this year so there’s a chance.
The best options for getting bowl eligible for the Wildcats are the Vandy and Miss St games. Neither one is a given, but Kentucky has had recent success against both programs.
Kentucky needs to continue that success. But to do that, they need their roster as healthy as possible.
Kentucky comes in with it’s talented defense very banged up, but all 11 starters are able to play Saturday. For the first time since the Middle Tennessee State game, the Wildcats will have all 11 opening day starters available. Miss St has struggled on offense, like the Wildcats all season. You can expect Kentucky to hold Miss State’s offense under 300 yards and under 17 points.
On offense, Kentucky’s expecting a jolt of energy from newly named starting quarterback Randall Cobb. Still, this is Cobb’s first road start as a quarterback in the SEC. He says he’s not nervous and he wasn’t rattled by the Swamp, so he should be fine in Starkville. The question is can he get some movement out of his offense?
All five original starters are now available for the offense since Garry Williams went down in the Norfolk State game. Bowling ball back Moncel Allen appears poised to carry the running load for the Wildcats, with Alfonso Smith and Tony Dixon backing him up. At receiver, Kyrus Lanxter may make his return. The starters are expected to be junior EJ Adams and freshman Gene McCaskill. Both have played well recently and are expected to play big roles Saturday afternoon.
If the Wildcats can move the ball and keep the field position in their favor, Kentucky should win the game. But if the Wildcats turn over the ball more than the Bulldogs, then it will be difficult to win in Starkville.
My prediction?
Kentucky 23 Miss St 14
Hansbrough Out
When Kentucky opens the season in Chapel Hill to play the North Carolina 
Tarheels, the Heels may be without their star, Tyler Hansbrough.
Hansbrough is suffering from a stress reaction condition in his right shin. If it’s not properly treated, it could lead to a stress fracture.
Good luck to Tyler, and here’s wishing him a speedy recovery.
Back and Forth Continues
Kentucky and coach Gillispie were able to hold their Midnight Madness early, because of an NCAA loophole allowing individual instruction for two hours a week.
The NABC fought to stop it earlier and it appears they’ve gotten their way. The NCAA has now closed that loophole.
I’m sure Gillispie has something else up his sleave to counter-act this ruling.
Additionally, it appears the NCAA will also close the loophole that allowed UK to pay Daniel Orton’s father more than $6000 to speak as an expert at several UK camp appearances.
Gillispie, a very creative coach with the rules will definitely find other legal ways to recruit that few others are privy to.
Gillispie’s Practices? Perpetual Motion
Just from reading a few practice reports, I’m pretty impressed with what I’m hearing.
Kentucky hadn’t had open practices since the Pitino years. They were high energy and known for pushing the players to their limits. Gillispie’s practices are no different. They move seamlessly from drill to drill. When somebody messes up, they run sprints.
Even the managers and support staff are active. Wiping sweat and cheering on the players.
Everything about the practice is go-go-go.
According to Matt May, it appears the starters (today) are Patterson, Stevenson, Meeks, Miller and Porter.
Liggins is impressive as a freshman. Galloway is disappointing at this time. Harris is out with the sprained knee, so he isn’t participating in the drills. AJ Stewart and Jared Carter are running sprints.
Here’s Tipton’s take.
Abdul Gaddy to sign with the Huskies
Looks like it is over before it began. UK would have loved to land Gaddy, I’m sure. Unfortunately, he chose to remain on the west coast.
U-Dub is a solid program, though. Lorenzo Romar is an outstanding recruiter and if he becomes the same kind of Xs and Os guy, he’ll have no problems becoming one of the top coaches in the nation. It doesn’t hurt to add a stud like Gaddy to the roster, though.
