July 19, 2012
GUESS WHO’S BACK, BACK AGAIN

VanderKitty

Speculate ye who hath returned! Returned once more! VanderKitty hath returned! Advise your colleagues!

What-ho and salutations, ye supporters of Deare Olde Vanderbilt! Numerous are the months that hath passed since we last met to discuss the sporting fortunes of our fair university, but be not affrighted! This week in Birming-Ham, Alibamo, our very own firebrand of a coachman, Jameson Franklingtonshire, hath informed the gathered, slovenly, predominantly elephantine masses with their various recordation machines that all is on the up-and-up in Nash-Ville collegiate footballing!

I must say, I am much pleased with this news! I have recently been greatly disturbed by the fortunes of my dear friend and compatriot, J.P. Meowrgan of New York and his recent ill-advised business ventures. Old J.P., a real brick if ever one there was, is so beside himself, his wife forced him to take a month’s vacation on his vintage sailing yacht to Tahiti just to calm his nerves! No doubt he will purchase a vacation island whilst there, the old Palooka!

Well, dear friends, I must be off to my chateau for a much deserved nap and a crystal goblet filled with Fancy Feast. Adieu, mes amis!

2:18pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwPh627V
Filed under: vanderbilt college football 
June 29, 2012
Congrats on the NBA Draft

Last night in somewhere, New Jersey, the NBA held the 2012 amateur draft. Well, not really amateur, because there are always some weird euro pros in there, but mostly amateur. Kentucky had six guys drafted, four in the first round. Anthony Davis went first to New Orleans, as expected, and he’ll be awesome even if Chris Paul isn’t there anymore. A decent PG would be nice, though. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist went second, to his apparent surprise, to the Charlotte Bobcats. The Bobcats are terrible, so that sucks for MKG. Terrence Jones went in the top 20 at 18 (lower than expected, obvs) to Houston, who apparently plans to field an entire roster of forwards in 2012-13. Marquis Teague went at 29 to the Bulls where he can hopefully prove to be an adequate replacement for Derrick Rose when he’s injured, which is fairly often, unfortch.

Doron Lamb went to the woeful Milwaukee Bucks in the 2nd round, which is surprising because he’s such a good shooter. I have a feeling he’ll be a long term player in the league because of that single commodity, and he can play point fairly well, also. Darius Miller gets to join Davis in New Orleans, which is pretty cool. My buddy Pat texted me last night to say he thinks of all the Cats drafted this year, Miller will have the longest career. He may be right. Darius is awesome, and woefully underrated by draft position.

Vanderbilt also had a banner night in New Jersey with two picks in the first round. John Jenkins went to Atlanta at 23 - not bad, the Hawks are pretty good - and Festus Ezeli went to Golden State in the last pick of the first round. Not real sure about what Festus will do for GSW, but he’s a good defender and a large body in the paint, and he cleans up the rim pretty well. Jeff Taylor went to Charlotte, presumably to back up MKG as the first pick of the 2nd round.

I know shit about the NBA so I won’t try to comment on what I think our boys’ roles will be in the League. MKG and Davis are stars if you ask me, even if MKG’s offensive game in the halfcourt is kind of spotty. I think Lamb, Taylor, and Miller were all 1st round talent, to be honest, and I hope they play their way into two-year deals. Love all these guys, they all deserve the best based on how they played for the Cats and Dores these past few years, and good luck to all of them.

9:11am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwOM0Pnw
Filed under: vanderbilt Kentucky kentucky basketball NBA 
June 26, 2012
sportshivemind: Vanderbilt Football is ready to kick some ass.

sportshivemind:

Vanderbilt Football is ready to kick some ass.

8:58am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwO9Bvig
(Notes: 4)
  
Filed under: vanderbilt college football 
June 21, 2012
We’re talkin’ about Playoffs.

Not for very long, mind you. Reports are ubiquitous today that the BCS is dead and college football’s champion will be determined via a four team playoff. Let’s not pretend this isn’t still bullshit, because it is. Boise State is still never going to see that four team playoff, even if they beat the entire army of the People’s Republic of China, and people will still be plenty pissed about the fifth team that gets left out, instead of the old eleventh team left out of the BCS or whatever. It’s still bullshit, and we’ll still watch it.

As a Kentucky fan, I hold no illusion that this holds any significance to me whatsoever. As long as the Music City Bowl still exists, I know where Kentucky will be playing in the event they manage to win six or seven games, their theoretical success-ceiling. The same token more-or-less applies to Vanderbilt; though the Commodoresareflying up recruiting rankings lately, they’re not gonna sniff the Top 10 at the end of the season barring a sudden plague destroying the native populations of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Louisiana. So this is all fun to pay attention to in theory, but in reality, college football is a myth, and we’re sheep who devour it before becoming some rich white guy’s mutton sandwich in mid-January. That doesn’t mean it’s not fun, though.

Another funny thing? I guarantee you all they talked about on Finebaum today was playoffs and how unintentionally hilarious Harvey Updike is. I listened to Kentucky Sports Radio this morning, however, and you know what? The word “football” was not even mentioned. I guess that’s because Calipari, Derek Anderson, and Wayne Turner were on and we just won the NCAA tournament, but still, this is big news. Huge news, really, for most college sports fans. It didn’t get one second of airtime on the most popular sports show in the state. No one said the ridicule Kentucky football fans get from the rest of the SEC wasn’t deserved.

3:24pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwNrMin9
Filed under: college football Kentucky vanderbilt 
May 8, 2012
Vanderbilt and UofL play baseball in Nashville tonight. Winner gets a new bourbon barrel. Pretty cool; go Dores.

Vanderbilt and UofL play baseball in Nashville tonight. Winner gets a new bourbon barrel. Pretty cool; go Dores.

2:52pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwL6oP9f
(Notes: 3)
  
Filed under: bourbon Vanderbilt Kentucky tennessee louisville 
March 16, 2012
NCAA Tournament: Round One Aftermath

  • Kentucky handled the shit out of Western, opening up a lead in the second half of up to 30 points. Terrence Jones played like a beast, and no one could stop Doron Lamb or Marquis Teague. I have some concern about MKG not scoring a lot, but it typically doesn’t stop him from going full throttle at all times. Paranoid UK fan also worries about the fact that WKU went on a 16-1 run to end the game, reminiscent of the Vandy game just a week ago. Hoping that’s not a trend.
  • Vandy played pretty well, too, against a better than expected HAAHHHVAAHD squad. The Dores move on to face a really good Wisconsin squad on Saturday.
  • Baylor either didn’t play very well, or they aren’t all that good, because South Dakota State almost won that game. Syracuse also struggled but won with the help of the referees over UNC-Asheville.
  • VCU and Colorado have ruined most of my brackets.
  • MURRAY STATE RACERS! Man, I really hope they beat Marquette.

8:26am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwI3--ck
Filed under: kentucky basketball kentucky vanderbilt Vanderbilt Basketball Baylor WKU Harvard South Dakota State VCU Colorado Murray State Marquette 
March 12, 2012
SEC Tournament Recap

Congrats to the Vanderbilt Commodores, who won their first SEC Tournament since 1951. Vandy played a really good game yesterday and, when Kentucky couldn’t hit shots down the stretch, won the game going away in the final minute. The Dores should be very proud of their team, who has historically been awful in the SEC Tourney under Kevin Stallings.

Vanderbilt had a considerably easier path to the title game than Kentucky did, thanks to Mississippi State totally imploding to put UGA in the second round game, and then UT somehow folding against Ole Miss. Kentucky didn’t look like the same team that ran roughshod over the league the entire tournament, but we have to hope that the Cats learned something from the experience. One thing that Vanderbilt did to defensively very well was keep Kentucky from getting points in the paint in the last eight minutes of the ball game, using a zone that Kentucky either wouldn’t or couldn’t solve.

Well done, Commies, and best of luck in the Snooty Bowl against Harvard on Thursday.

10:34am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwHtCQm7
Filed under: SEC sec basketball Kentucky kentucky basketball vanderbilt Vanderbilt Basketball mississippi state Georgia tennessee ole miss 
March 9, 2012
SEC Tournament: Round One Recap

I’d post a picture of chalk, but then Mississippi State went off and lost to Georgia. Georgia? Yes, Georgia. LSU beat Arkansas, which was bound to happen because the game took place outside the confines of Fayetteville. Alabama tried really hard to lose to South Carolina, but South Carolina did what South Carolina do and sucked at playing basketball in 2012. Auburn/Ole Miss wasn’t as wacky as I thought because the Tigers are awful at scoring (even without Varez Ward ZING) and Murphy Holloway is not.

Mississippi State has no excuse. They’re way better than Georgia in almost every way. One thing that the Dawgs do better than the Dogs, though, is play really hard and with a sense of purpose, even though that purpose still ends up in a dry offensive possession more often than not. I’d still like to see State make the Dance, but they’d probably still lose in the first or second round anyway, so maybe letting someone else play is a better idea.

ROUND TWO:

LSU vs. Kentucky: Despite LSU’s best efforts to concuss Anthony Davis, Kentucky beat the shit out of the Tigers at home earlier this year. Anthony Hickey, LSU’s talented point guard from Hopkinsville, KY, said something yesterday to the effect of “It’ll be easier this time, we’re playing them in our own back yard,” to which Twitter impresario responded “I guess the first time they played in your living room,” which was funnier than anything I could come up with. This game should be over by halftime.

Alabama vs. Florida:Alabama can totally win this game if they can defend the perimeter. Jamychal Green matches up really well with Patric Young. I got pulled over by the cops in Huntsville once but got out of the ticket because ROLL TAHHHDE.

Ole Miss v. Tennessee:This should be a good game because, again, these two teams have somewhat similar frontcourts. Tennessee, however, can shoot, and Ole Miss kind of can’t. I do like what the Rebs have done so far this year, and Andy Kennedy may be doing just enough to stick around for another couple seasons. However, UT is better at this point. Both teams, with a win, will really help their bubble stay intact, so I think that motivation factor is a wash at this point.

Georgia vs. Vanderbilt:Georgia is probably going to try to hit the Dores in the mouth a lot because they certainly don’t out-talent them. Vandy’s probably gonna win, but Georgia isn’t gonna give up by any means. This’ll either be a last minute struggle or, if Vandy decides they want to execute, an ass kicking of epic proportions a la Ole Miss earlier this season. Either way, Dores win.

Enjoy the games!

9:14am  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwHiaoM_
(Notes: 1)
  
Filed under: sec basketball LSU Kentucky kentucky basketball alabama Florida ole miss tennessee Georgia vanderbilt Vanderbilt Basketball 
March 8, 2012
SEC Tournament Started

Like, 20 minutes ago. Kentucky is the prohibitive favorite to win it all, but people honestly believe that they’ll fall before they reach the final game on Sunday. I beg to differ. Vandy’s got a good chance to get out of their half of the bracket if they don’t do what Vandy teams have historically done in the Tournament, suck. A UK/Vandy final might be too much for my household to handle. ON TO THE PREDICTIONICATIONS! (winner of first/second round matchup in all SUPERBOLDITALICS)

Thursday, March 8

No. 8 LSU vs. No. 9 Arkansas, 1 p.m., SEC Network

No. 5 Alabama vs. No. 12 South Carolina, 3:30 p.m., SEC Network

No. 7 Ole Miss vs. No. 10 Auburn, 7:30 p.m., SEC Network

No. 6 Mississippi State vs. No. 11 Georgia, 10 p.m., SEC Network

DEEP THOUGHTS:

- Wow, that’s chalky, and not in a Chalky White kind of way. Most chaotic game will be Ole Miss and Auburn because who the fuck knows who’s gonna play well in that game? Also, State could totally lose to Georgia.

Friday, March 9

LSU-Arkansas winner vs. No. 1 Kentucky, 1 p.m., SEC Network

Alabama-South Carolina winner vs. No. 4 Florida, 3:30 p.m., SEC Network

Ole Miss-Auburn winner vs. No. 2 Tennessee, 7:30 p.m., SEC Network

Mississippi State-Georgia winner vs. No. 3 Vanderbilt, 10 p.m., SEC Network

DEEPER THOUGHTS:

- Kentucky ain’t goin’ out on Friday, or I’m getting hammered/fired that afternoon. Florida could totally lose to Alabama at the rate the Gators have played lately, and Tennessee could totally lose to Ole Miss or Auburn, but they seem to care a lot nowadays and probably won’t. If State survives Georgia, that’s a tough game for Vandy to win. They dropped the regular season game at home thanks to a complete disaster in the last five minutes of that game, so hopefully they’ll get the ship right for this one. NAUTICAL HUMOR!

Saturday, March 10

Semifinal 1, 1 p.m., ABC

Semifinal 2, 3:30 p.m., ABC

Sunday, March 11

Championship Game, 1 p.m., ABC

(via sbnation.com)

ABC has these games? Weird. Go Cats and Go Dores.

1:29pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwHfqqBD
Filed under: sec basketball Kentucky vanderbilt kentucky basketball Vanderbilt Basketball mississippi state Georgia Tennessee Ole Miss LSU Arkansas Alabama Auburn South Carolina Florida 
February 28, 2012
Vanderbilt Senior Night

Tonight’s the last game in Memorial Gym for Brad Tinsley, Steve Tchiengang, Festus Ezeli, Jeffery Taylor, Lance Goulbourne, and probably John Jenkins as the Commies take on Florida. Florida’s been on a bit of a slide lately, thanks in no small part to the season-ending injury to forward Will Yeguete. I look at Yeguete as a role-player for the Gators at best, but his loss has had more of an impact than I thought, as the Gators have lost 2 of 3 since he’s been out. That includes a really stupid road loss at Georgia this past weekend. That’s right. Georgia.

Vanderbilt, on the other hand, has been on a bit of a tear in the past two weeks, its only two losses coming in spirited efforts against Kentucky. The Dores typically still have problems with Florida, and the Gators can light it up from the outside. However, if Vandy limits Florida’s three point attempts to the 15-18 range, I think the Commies can come away with a win on Senior Night and maybe even tie Florida for second in the SEC. Should be a fun game.

2:25pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZgqfcwHBXkV_
Filed under: vanderbilt Vanderbilt Basketball 
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