What has been the tenure of SEC M BBall Coaches during the Expansion Era?

[jbcarol]

By the numbers: The nearly impossible task of beating UK in Rupp during the Calipari era

Calipari has a 109-4 record at home as Kentucky's head coach

UK has lost only one non-conference game in Rupp Arena under Cal

4: Number of undefeated seasons John Calipari has had in Rupp Arena (not including the current campaign). That's already the most ever for a UK head coach. Joe B. Hall and Rick Pitino each had three undefeated seasons at Rupp. Eddie Sutton and Tubby Smith had one each.

Hogs hold one of those wins at Rupp over Calipari.

Rupp, of course, coached in Alumni Gym and Memorial Coliseum. Holds national record for going undefeated for 10 consecutive seasons (with one year gap for suspended season due to death penalty).

[jbcarol]

Pitino: 'I didn't flip off fans'

Shortly after the game ended, social media was abuzz with a video posted to Twitter that purported to show Louisville Coach Rick Pitino holding up his middle finger to fans as he left the Rupp Arena court.

In the video, Pitino is looking down as he walks off the court and into the tunnel. As he goes through the tunnel, fans can be heard shouting. Pitino extends his right arm in the air.

U of L spokesman Kenny Klein was shown the video and told the Herald-Leader that it was not conclusive. [Call on the court was "the bird". Would need definitive evidence to overturn.]

Pitino told ESPN in a text message later Saturday that he did not make an obscene gesture. "I didn't flip off fans," he said. "My recollection was a 'We r #1.'"

Matt Jones ‏@KySportsRadio 16h16 hours ago

The Pitino "flipping the bird" video is the new Zapruder film of the U.K./UL rivalry

https://twitter.com/Fine_and_Tandy/status/680838341592526848

http://www.hudl.com/athlete/4690045/seiver-tandy

'16 PK for Frankfort High

[jbcarol]

Candidates announced Monday for possible inclusion in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's Class of 2016

Eddie Sutton, whose greater fame came before (Arkansas) and after (Oklahoma State) his four seasons in Lexington.

Lee Rose, once the coach at Transylvania before moving on to UNC Charlotte and Purdue, was also among the nominees announced Monday.

Asbury University graduate Steve Smith is the longtime coach at Oak Hill Academy, a private boarding school best known for advanced basketball preparation.

"Kind of exciting to be nominated ... ," Smith said. "I don't know if I'd ever get in. But just to be nominated is a thrill."

Smith wondered aloud about how many high school coaches have been enshrined. He recalled Bob Hurley. The multitude of stars to play for Smith include at least five who went on to Kentucky: Ron Mercer, Rajon Rondo, Jules Camara, Cliff Hawkins and, briefly, Alex Legion.

Smith also coached Carmelo Anthony.

Smith, who is in his 31st season directing Oak Hill basketball, has a career record that anyone not coaching the Harlem Globetrotters might envy: 997-65.

[jbcarol]

Happy Birthday

... To former South Carolina coach (and Tates Creek High graduate) Darrin Horn. He turned 43 on Christmas Eve. ...To former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson. He turns 74 on Sunday (today). ... To Kansas Coach Bill Self. He turns 53 on Sunday (today). ... To Travis Ford. He turns 46 on Tuesday.

[jbcarol]

Pat Forde Verified account
‏@YahooForde

Column: Rick Pitino's graceless postgame diminishes one of the better games in history of the UK-U of L rivalry http://yhoo.it/1ZuASzf

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Rick Pitino is paid roughly $6 million a year. You'd think part of earning that salary would be handling defeat – even bitter defeat – with an ounce of grace and accountability.

The coach of the Louisville Cardinals displayed none of that Saturday. On a day when his team played reasonably well and extremely hard before falling 75-73 to archrival Kentucky, Pitino made himself the talking point by bailing on postgame interviews and (perhaps) flipping off Wildcats fans on his way off the Rupp Arena floor.

Failing to face this particular music, after the Cardinals pretty much played their guts out, was an embarrassment. Sending out associate coach Ralph Willard to handle the press conference was a colossal copout. Willard has done a few other postgame media ops in Pitino's place this season – including their only other loss, at Michigan State – but you don't pull that maneuver here and now. Not after the Kentucky game.

If Pitino's intention all along was not to do interviews after this game, that was never relayed to the media. And, again, this isn't the game for that. This is no time for Ralph Willard. This is the time for the $6 million man.

[jbcarol]

GoGamecocks.com ‏@gogamecocks 21h21 hours ago

Gamecocks continue to rise in men's basketball Top 25 http://scne.ws/D7BXlR  #thestate #gg

South Carolina continued to rise in the Top 25 polls, ranking No. 24 in The Associated Press and No. 20 in the USA Today/coaches' poll on Monday.

USC (11-0) rose one spot in the AP and three spots in the USA Today polls from last week.

Frank Martin's team earned South Carolina's first Top 25 ranking in 12 seasons.

[jbcarol]

Louisville deserves better than Rick Pitino

Here's all you need to know about Rick Pitino in a nutshell: over 48 hours after his team lost to Kentucky, the story is still all about him.

Never mind Trey Lewis and Damion Lee's gutsy play or the fact that after being down 16 points in the second half, Louisville came back and had a shot to win the game.

Louisville basketball program has a long and storied history. The program Denny Crum built deserves better than a man who makes it all about himself:

He's a coward
By now, you've seen the grainy videos of Rick flipping off fans as he walked into the tunnel on Saturday. You know that Rick Pitino refused to meet with the media after the game. You've read the pathetic piece of damage control he put on his blog this morning, most of which is a lie...

He's a sore loser

He made the game all about him

He sends his players out to do his dirty work for him

Missing the game-winning shot can't be easy, especially against your program's arch rival. Yet, while their head coach hid in the locker room, Damion Lee and teammate Donovan Mitchell went out to face the media. This wasn't the first time Rick's sent his players out to do his dirty work. Right after the Louisville scandal broke, he sent Damion Lee and Trey Lewis — both fifth-year transfers — to ACC Media Days while he hid at home. What a leader.

He whines

[jbcarol]

Daniel Paulling ‏@DanielPaulling 2h2 hours ago

Kennedy made a good point today. He'll finish season having faced 33 head SEC coaches. "It's a pretty volatile business."

[jbcarol]

Adam Zagoria ‏@AdamZagoria 4h4 hours ago Manhattan, NY

Adam Zagoria Retweeted Jeff Greer

Interesting thing is Rick Pitino told incoming transfer worst thing that could happen is losing a few scholarships; no NCAA Tournament


Jeff Greer
‏@jeffgreer_cj

Louisville-bound grad transfer Tony Hicks opens up about leaving Penn, lessons learned from suspensions, and U of L http://cjky.it/1JucdXA

Hicks, a 6-foot-2 guard from Chicago who led Penn in scoring the past two seasons, said he was also considering Miami, Nevada and Oregon, but he canceled a planned unofficial visit to Oregon after visiting Louisville.

His close friendship with U of L grad transfer Damion Lee, who played at Drexel during the same time that Hicks was at Penn, played a big role in Hicks' decision to come to Louisville. Lee has become an instant star with the Cards, and he told his friend that the same path could be perfect for him.

Hicks' three seasons at Penn did have some tumultuous times. He was suspended for four games over that span, once for failing a drug test and another time for punching a Columbia player during a game.

Looking back on those issues, Hicks said he has learned a lot from experiences, and that coach Rick Pitino told him Louisville would not tolerate any of those incidents if he came there.

n turn, Hicks said the ongoing NCAA investigation into allegations against Louisville's basketball program did come up in his thought process, but none of it was enough to deter him from the Cards.

"It did (come up). It absolutely did," Hicks said. "But at the same time, it's Louisville. It's Coach Pitino. It's the ACC. They honestly don't feel that anything will happen – at the most, (lose) a few scholarships, which won't impact me much.

"(Pitino) felt absolute worst-case scenario is no (NCAA tournament). If that were to happen, that wasn't a dealbreaker. I felt comfortable with it. I really just felt like they won't get punished too bad. It was something nobody who is there now had known about."

[jbcarol]

Bulldog Sports Radio
‏@BulldogsRadio

Odd there, the refs called Howland and Stansbury, not Kennedy over to talk about something.  Teams back on the court as fat beats dominate.

[jbcarol]

Bulldog Sports Radio
‏@BulldogsRadio

Odd there, the refs called Howland and Stansbury, not Kennedy over to talk about something.  Teams back on the court as fat beats dominate.

Michael Bonner ‏@MikeBBonner 13h13 hours ago

Kennedy: Rick was  like a mad scientist before the game drawing plays up.

Alex Caruso: I know he won't tell us. But I saw a smile on his face when he walked outta here.

Texas A&M pulled out one more win for Rick Stansbury at the Hump http://on.thec-l.com/1Rbku5o

[jbcarol]

A&M pulled out one more win for Rick Stansbury at the Hump

Stansbury coached 459 games at Mississippi State. He guided MSU to two SEC tournament championships and six divisional crowns (back when the SEC had those). He has the most wins in school history with 293.

[jbcarol]

Gamecock MBB ‏@GamecockMBB 7h7 hours ago

@FrankMartin_SC named recipient of Jim Phelan Award Mid-Season Honors http://www.gamecocksonline.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/010816aad.html ...

Phelan Award is presented annually to the top coach in Division I men's basketball. The award is named in honor of Jim Phelan who coached his entire career at Mount Saint Mary's University.

[jbcarol]

Michael Carvell ‏@Carvell_AJC 51m51 minutes ago

South Carolina coach Frank Martin on team's 15-0 start: 'They've got me on a ride right now that's unreal' http://sec.news/1RsHcpY

Martin has his Gamecocks at 15-0 after a 69-65 victory over Vanderbilt.

Martin said the path his program has taken since 2012 has been hard to believe.

"They've got me on a ride right now that's unreal," Martin said according to The State's David Cloninger.

South Carolina has arguably been the most pleasant surprise in college basketball this season, but the Gamecocks are no longer just a nice, non-conference story. Now the Gamecocks can smell their first 20-win season since the 2008-09 season and earn their first bid in the NCAA Tournament since the 2003-04 campaign.

The Gamecocks have proven they're a legitimate contender in the SEC, and not many people would have anticipated that when Martin took the job four years ago.

"The ride of being where we were at four years ago to where we're at right now, is pretty special," Martin said...

[jbcarol]

Happy birthday To Rod Barnes. The former Ole Miss player and coach turned 50 on Friday. ...

[jbcarol]

Kevin Brockway ‏@gatorhoops 13h13 hours ago Florida, USA

With win over LSU, Florida picked up 600th SEC basketball win. #Gators 600-624 all-time in conference play.

Billy Donovan's Florida teams were 202-109 in SEC conference play.

[jbcarol]

Matt Jones ‏@KySportsRadio  49m49 minutes ago
Brooklyn Nets fire their coach...almost certain Calipari will be their top choice...so we have that talk to look forward to

[jbcarol]

Former Bama and Vandy head coach and Kentucky AD CM Newton was in Tuscaloosa for UK-Bama game

Newton played basketball at Kentucky from 1949-1951 and was later the head basketball coach at Transylvania, Alabama, and Vanderbilt before returning to Kentucky to serve as athletic director from 1989 to 1999. C.M. now lives in Tuscaloosa and attends Alabama basketball games from time to time, always when the Cats are in town.

After the postgame press conferences wrapped up, Newton was nice enough to answer a few questions for me about his night and seeing Calipari.

"John [Calipari] has been a good friend for a long period of time, just as Avery has been for a long period of time. I guess that's one of the benefits of being old, is you're able to take these young whippersnappers and be friendly to them," he joked.

Once his media duties were over, Calipari came over and gave Newton a big hug in the back of the media room, a touching moment that Newton said meant a lot to him.

"It was very meaningful," Newton said, mentioning how his son, Martin, used to work as the Director of Basketball Operations at Kentucky under Calipari before accepting the job as the athletics director at Samford in 2011. "It was a great moment. Cal is very special."

What did C.M. think of his alma mater's performance tonight?

"I thought it was a well-played basketball game, particularly by Kentucky. They just whopped on Alabama and I really didn't expect it. I don't know what the coaches expected, but I didn't expect it."

Mrs. Tyler Thompson

[jbcarol]

Steve Walentik ‏@Steve_Walentik 5m5 minutes ago

Calipari has shot down interest in the Brooklyn Nets job, said he's "humbled to be here."

[jbcarol]

Mizzou self-imposes penalties for NCAA violations from Haith regime

MU's statement makes it clear the violations took place under the watch of the previous coaching staff and "there is no evidence that any current staff members were aware of the violations."

Haith was 71-28 in three seasons at Missouri, which does not include five wins during the 2013-14 season when he served an NCAA suspension stemming from the investigation into recruiting allegations during his time at the University of Miami. Haith was charged with failure to promote an atmosphere for compliance at Miami. Haith is 33-17 in two seasons at Tulsa.

[jbcarol]

Joe Walljasper ‏@JoeWalljasper 44m44 minutes ago

Missouri says it received a verbal NCAA notice of inquiry on April 14, 2014. Frank Haith took the Tulsa job four days later.

Mizzou got the NCAA inquiry in April 2014 but retained Tim Fuller for another season until he left.

The release says the "former associate head coach" was prohibited from off-campus recruiting for 3 months. Tim Fuller held that position

[jbcarol]

Steve Walentik ‏@Steve_Walentik 2h2 hours ago

Kim Anderson said he was not made aware of the NCAA investigation when he interviewed for the Missouri job in April 2014.

[jbcarol]

Steve Walentik ‏@Steve_Walentik 2h2 hours ago

Kim Anderson said he was not made aware of the NCAA investigation when he interviewed for the Missouri job in April 2014.

Dave Matter ‏@Dave_Matter 1h1 hour ago

Still unclear when Anderson learned about NCAA letter of inquiry but MU knew 2 weeks before he took job. He was not told at time of hire

[jbcarol]

Jeff Eisenberg ‏@JeffEisenberg 57m57 minutes ago

It's not right that Frank Haith's former schools keep getting waylaid yet he skips town one step ahead of trouble: http://yhoo.it/1W8RUAX

Suddenly it's a lot clearer why former Missouri coach Frank Haith made the unusual decision to leave for lower-profile Tulsa almost two years ago.

Haith bolted immediately after learning NCAA investigators once again had caught his scent.

In a news release issued Wednesday, Missouri revealed that it launched a joint investigation 19 months ago with NCAA enforcement staffers into potential violations committed during Haith's tenure. The investigation began after Missouri received a notice of inquiry from the NCAA on April 14, 2014, a mere four days before Haith was introduced as Tulsa's new coach.

The investigation uncovered major rules violations, most notably donors providing impermissible benefits to many players and at least one prospect. In response, Missouri vacated all 23 wins from the 2013-14 season, stripped itself of two scholarships and self-imposed a postseason ban, meaning they will not compete in the 2016 SEC tournament or NCAA tournament.

Haith was not named in the Missouri release and was not charged with any violations, yet it seems unfair if he escapes penalty while the program he was in charge of gets waylaid by major punishment. After all, this is the second time in less than five years that he has switched jobs at a convenient time and left his former program in NCAA shambles.

In 2013, the NCAA "factually concluded" that while at Miami, Haith authorized a $10,000 payment to a recruit, paid off a booster to stay quiet and tried to cover up the violation when investigators began asking questions. By the time the NCAA unveiled its findings, Haith was already at Missouri, so he received only a five-game suspension for those transgressions, a veritable slap on the wrist considering those were games against Southeastern Louisiana, Southern Illinois, Hawaii, Gardner Webb and IUPUI.

[jbcarol]

Nick Schnelle ‏@neschnelle 2h2 hours ago

Anderson's face says it all after taking questions about NCAA investigation of the MU men's basketball program.

[jbcarol]

David Cloninger ‏@DCTheState 9h9 hours ago

The longest winning streaks in program history will stay at 17. First 3-0 SEC start since 1996-97 will continue to elude USC.

FINAL: Alabama 73, No. 19 South Carolina 50. The Gamecocks fall to 15-1, 2-1 SEC and host Missouri on Saturday.

[jbcarol]

Kevin Brockway ‏@gatorhoops 25m25 minutes ago Orlando, FL

Billy D update -- Oklahoma City at 28-12 in first season, third seed in the Western Conference. On pace for 56-57 wins.

[jbcarol]

A History of the John Calipari/Bruce Pearl Rivalry

On Saturday, John Calipari and Bruce Pearl will face off for the twelfth time in their careers. Don't let the recent good-natured quips fool you; back when Calipari was at Memphis and Pearl at Tennessee, the two were engaged in a fierce rivalry. Some would go as far to say they hated each other, while others would argue that the animosity was all for show. After spending the day combing through the archives to examine their relationship, I'd say it's somewhere in the middle, but I'll let you judge for yourself.

Calipari at Memphis, Pearl at Tennessee

In 2006, the series between Memphis and Tennessee was renewed after a four-year hiatus when the Volunteers threatened to stop playing the Tigers in football if the basketball series didn't start back up. After starting on a sour note, the rivalry grew more intense as Calipari and Pearl traded jabs, Cal reportedly upset Pearl was recruiting on his turf in Memphis while Pearl felt Calipari didn't respect Tennessee's program. In 2005, Pearl and Calipari fought for standout point guard Willie Kemp from Bolivar, Tennessee, a small town just over an hour from Memphis. Calipari became irked when Pearl kept contacting Kemp even after Kemp had committed to Memphis. From there, it was on...

[jbcarol]

Clay Travis ‏@ClayTravis 8h8 hours ago

Cuonzo Martin's Cal team is tied for 8th place in the Pac 12 and has lost three straight. Who could have ever seen this coming?

[jbcarol]

College Hoopedia ‏@CollegeHoopedia Jan 13

On This Date: @OleMissMBB C Andy Kennedy set @UAB_MBB scoring mark (41 vs @SaintLouisMBB). @UABathletics @BlazerTalk http://collegehoopedia.com/blog/date-january-calendar-notable-games-college-hoops-history-0 ...

[jbcarol]

Barbee no-shows first possible return to Auburn Arena

Former Auburn head coach and current Kentucky assistant coach Tony Barbee was not present for his first possible return to Auburn Arena since being fired on March 12, 2014. In Barbee's absence, Auburn pulled off arguably the biggest win of his successor's era with the Tigers program: a 75-70 victory over No. 14 Kentucky.

Kentucky spokespeople said the official visit for Barbee not being on the bench for Saturday's game was an out-of-state recruiting trip.

Barbee was promoted, from an administrative role given to him by Kentucky head coach John Calipari not long after he was fired, to a full-time assistant coaching position that will pay him a $375,000 annual salary. Barbee is also still being paid by Auburn per the $2.4 million buyout to his contract that wasn't set to expire until 2017.

Barbee only defeated one ranked team in his tenure at Auburn, a 65-55 victory over then-No. 23 Mississippi State on Feb. 12, 2012, and finished with a disappointing 18-50 record in Southeastern Conference play.

Jeff Borzello Verified account
‏@jeffborzello

John Calipari in the building -- watching his son, Brad, play against his five-star signee Wenyen Gabriel. #HHClassic

Matthew Stevens ‏@matthewcstevens 12m12 minutes ago

Matthew Stevens Retweeted Jeff Borzello

But the question everybody in Auburn wants to know: Is Tony Barbee there recruiting too? #MGMAuburn


Brandon Marcello ‏@bmarcello 19h19 hours ago

Auburn's former coach isn't here, but students still had their signs ready for Tony Barbee. (via @bennettphoto)

[jbcarol]

SEC Network ‏@SECNetwork 13h13 hours ago

The longest active #SEC🏀 win streak: 11.

Florida has won 11 straight over Alabama.

Vanderbilt has won 11 straight over Auburn.

[jbcarol]

The last UK coach to win at Bud Walton Arena is Billy Gillispie.

[jbcarol]

Adam Zagoria ‏@AdamZagoria 17h17 hours ago

ICYMI: Larry Brown Says NBA Isn't Inevitable for John Calipari
https://www.sny.tv/college-recruiting/news/larry-brown-says-nba-isnt-inevitable-for-john-calipari/162381048?tcid=tw_article_162381048 ...

"No, he loves where he is," Brown, the Hall of Fame coach of undefeated SMU, said Wednesday on The 4 Quarters Podcast. "He's one of the few guys that I think can embrace the expectations that's on his team every night.

"I'm sure he'll be great anywhere he goes but he's in a perfect spot. I spoke to him [Tuesday], we talk all the time. He's not happy with the way his playing but Cal's teams always get better at the end of the year. He really teaches his kids how to win.

"I hope he stays where he is. Not to say the NBA's not great, not a wonderful opportunity but gosh, I can't think of a better program for him to be the head of."

As for his own future, the 75-year-old Brown says he plans to continue coaching for the foreseeable future despite SMU's postseason ban that resulted from NCAA penalties in the Keith Frazier case.

[jbcarol]

Jerry Tipton ‏@JerryTipton 9h9 hours ago

Cal said he spoke with former UK Coach Eddie Sutton after the game. "He looked good, by the way. He looks really good."

Sutton, who also coached for Arkansas in his career, turns 80 on March 12.

[jbcarol]

On the icy post game exchange between Calipari and Mike Anderson

"It's fine. He and I talked after. He apologized and I said, 'If I said anything to you to make you mad, I apologize. I say all kind of stuff.' So probably something I did say and he deserved to react the way he did. We're fine."

[jbcarol]

Adrian Wojnarowski ‏@WojVerticalNBA 4h4 hours ago

Cleveland has fired coach David Blatt, sources tell Yahoo.


Interesting to see if any SEC coaches will be mentioned as candidates in 2016.

Matt Jones ‏@KySportsRadio 4h4 hours ago

Nevermind RT @WojVerticalNBA: Assistant Ty Lue has agreed to a multi-year deal as new Cavaliers head coach, league sources tell Yahoo Sports

[jbcarol]

ESPN Stats & Info ‏@ESPNStatsInfo 3h3 hours ago

Kentucky: 31st consecutive home win, longest active streak in SEC

[jbcarol]

Ben Garrett ‏@SpiritBen  21h21 hours ago
Taking everything into account (and, yes, I'm including recruiting misses), this year has been Andy Kennedy's best coaching job. Seriously.

[jbcarol]

Razorback Basketball ‏@RazorbackMBB Jan 26

Basketball #legend and former Arkansas HC Eddie Sutton to be honored with Banner Ceremony next month in BWA. 🐗🏀

http://bit.ly/ESbanner


John Calipari ‏@UKCoachCalipari Jan 21

Eddie Sutton, a longtime friend and a great coach. Glad I got to spend time with him after the game.

[jbcarol]

Matt Jones ‏@MattJonesADG  18m18 minutes ago
Arkansas is now 7-3 in games vs. AP top-five teams at Bud Walton Arena.

[jbcarol]

Jon Rothstein ‏@JonRothstein 21h21 hours ago

Dana Altman, Rasheed Sulaimon, and why the Pac-12 is the most competitive league in CBB. Observations @CBSSports: http://cbsprt.co/1JM7f8Z

Arizona made 15 of its first 16 shots and built an early 28-16 lead before Oregon came back and earned a thrilling 83-75 win on the road.

The victory now gives the Ducks a full two-game lead over the Wildcats in the Pac-12 standings and the triumph was a result of Altman's flawlessness with his team's offense.

Oregon scored 83 points, shot 51.6 percent from the field, and had just six turnovers on the road against a team that had won 49 straight home games -- that's amazing.

Pac-12 is the most competitive conference in the country

That doesn't mean that it's the best league or has the most teams that are going to be capable of reaching a Final Four, but it does mean that every single night the programs in this conference are going to be in for a dog fight.

Oregon and Washington are both currently tied atop the Pac-12 standings with 6-2 records in league play, but after that, there are eight separate teams that are all within one game of each other.

UCLA is currently in ninth place with a 3-5 mark in conference play, but the Bruins have already shown that they're capable by beating both Kentucky and Arizona at home in addition to winning at Gonzaga.

[jbcarol]

Brent Zwerneman ‏@BrentZwerneman  37m37 minutes ago College Station, TX
Impressive victory as No. 5 Texas A&M pulls away from No. 14 ISU 72-62, to chants of 'SEC' from sellout crowd. Win 300 for Billy Kennedy.

[jbcarol]

New York Times reported on former Florida Coach Billy Donovan's transition to the NBA this season.

The story detailed how Donovan made a point of meeting with each Oklahoma City Thunder player last spring and summer.

The meetings were designed to help build a partnership between coach and player.

"I think a lot of times people fail to realize that, even though these guys are stars and they've got brands that are worldwide and they have unbelievable name recognition, they're still people," Donovan told the Times. "They still go through normal things that people go through."

The story detailed how Donovan wanted to meet face to face with players rather than simply talk on the phone or via Skype.

"It was much, much more of a collaborative effort working with him (Russell Westbrook), than it was saying, 'Hey, listen, this is what you're doing," Donovan said. "Because he's clearly one of the best players in this league, and his voice to me matters in terms of how I can help him and help the team."

[jbcarol]

Arkansas to honor Sutton

Arkansas announced last week that it will honor former Coach Eddie Sutton at its game against Missouri on Feb. 20. The school plans to hoist a banner recognizing his 11 seasons as Arkansas coach.

Sutton, 79, had a 260-75 record as Arkansas coach from 1974 to 1985. Of course, he left the school to become Kentucky coach in 1985.

"He built the foundation for this program," former Arkansas All-American Joe Kleine told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. "Without him being there, I don't think a lot of things that came after that would have transpired. I think he laid the foundation for what we all enjoyed with Arkansas basketball in the 1970s, '80s, '90s and up to today."

Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long credited Sutton with putting the school on the basketball map.

"Coach Sutton not only transformed our program, he introduced the game of college basketball to Arkansans across the state," Long said in a news release. "When he arrived, Barnhill Arena still had dirt floors under the bleachers. By the end of his tenure at Arkansas, Barnhill Arena boasted a Final Four banner and a rabid Razorbacks fan base making it one of the toughest places to play in the nation."

Sutton had a career record of 806-226 in 35 seasons of coaching at Creighton, Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma State and San Francisco.

Arkansas honored Nolan Richardson at a banner ceremony last season. Richardson led the Hogs to the 1994 national championship, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances and three Final Fours in 17 seasons. He won a school-record 389 games.

[jbcarol]

SEC-Big 12 Challenge may have created a bit of history on Saturday when Texas Tech played at Arkansas.

Tech was the fourth team Tubby Smith had led into a game at Arkansas. Earlier in his career, he coached teams representing Tulsa, Georgia and Kentucky at Arkansas.

Has any other coach led four or more teams into regular-season games at one site?

No one.

[jbcarol]

 Kevin Brockway ‏@gatorhoops 3h3 hours ago Florida, USA

Oklahoma, coached by former UF coach Lon Kruger, remains No, 1 in AP Top 25.

[jbcarol]

Patrick Brown ‏@patrickbrownTFP 23h23 hours ago

[Rick] Barnes says Kentucky contacted him when that job came open a couple of times when he was at Texas.

[jbcarol]

@GrantRamey ‏@GrantRamey 7h7 hours ago

Vols rally from down 34-13 in first half to stun Kentucky, and it was news to Kevin Punter http://www.knoxnews.com/sports/vols/mens-basketball/vols-upset-kentucky-84-77-2aa51498-5b7f-6d8d-e053-0100007f5187-367452071.html ...

[jbcarol]

Kevin Brockway ‏@gatorhoops 8h8 hours ago Orlando, FL

With 15 wins, Mike White is tied w/John Lotz (73-74) and Norm Sloan (60-61) for the second most wins by a first-year Florida coach.