Although Kentucky is losing an amazing player, the NBA is getting one of the best prospects in a while. ESPN The Magazine is featuring an article about the upcoming NBA Draft and who better to have on the cover than John Wall, the projected first pick of the draft. Below is a behind-the-scenes video of Wall’s photoshoot with ESPN. Hit the jump to check out the cover of the magazine.

The College Gameday section on ESPN’s website has a lot of videos up on it previewing the Kentucky vs Tennessee game tomorrow. Below is one of the videos talking about Rupp Arena, it’s fans, and what the experience will be like tomorrow morning for the Gameday show. Click here to check out the rest of the videos on ESPN.com.

We hope everyone enjoyed Big Blue Madness this past Friday. If you weren’t able to get tickets, hopefully you got to watch it on TV. It was a wild night with some great guests and a lot of awesome talent. We have uploaded photos to our Facebook page. You can click here to check them out.

This past Saturday the Horsemen met helmets with the Tennessee Valley Vipers in their third to last game of the season. This game was very pivotal for both teams. If the Vipers won then they would tie for first place in the conference. If the Horsemen won then they would secure a playoff berth, and put themselves in the running to be able to steal first place in the conference as well. With some awesome scoring in the second and third quarter and some amazing defense, the Horsemen pulled out a win last Saturday. That put them on a four game winning streak with two more games left in the season. If they win their two last games they have a chance of tying for first place in the conference. Congrats Horsemen! Show your support this Saturday at their last home game.

As I mentioned earlier, we had an interview with the Fillies this week. For those unaware [where have you been?], the Fillies are the cheerleaders for the Kentucky Horsemen, the arena football team that plays here at Rupp Arena. We thought since there are only two home games left (July 11th & July 18th), we would get the word out in case people wanted to catch a game, and also give you some insight into what it is to be a Fillie. Check out the interview below (click here to watch in high definition), the first of many interviews we plan to do from now on.

It’s more than a rodeo – it’s PBR BULLNANZA. And it’s CRAZY!! Seriously, crazy. These guys risk life and limb each time they enter the arena … and they love it! I’ve been to rodeos before, and admittedly, the bull riding competition is my favorite. And not just because these cowboys are donned in boots, chaps and cowboy hats, although that is reason enough. But it’s fast-paced, it’s exciting, and whether they actually manage to stay on for eight seconds so they can be scored, or not, we cheer for their effort, their technique, and their swagger.

Last night was Round I of this weekend event. Over 40 bull riders competed and the top 10 will return tonight to compete for the championship. Leading at the end of the evening was Cory Rasch, with a score of 89. The bull he rode was massive in size and strength, and at the end of the ride, he tore after one of the bullfighters and actually flipped him twice.

The reigning PBR World Champion, Guilherme Marchi, competed last night riding Tap Out, a huge bull that had never before been ridden. Marchi has won over $3 Million to date, but unfortunately, last night was not his night. He didn’t stay on long enough to be scored. That bull twisted and turned and jumped with all four feet off the ground. Marchi was no match for him and was quickly thrown.

It’s a family event, but it’s not for the faint of heart. The evening kicked off with an invocation and prayers were said for the safety of the riders and the animals. And the Edythe J. Hayes Middle School Chorus sang our National Anthem. The event also includes music, some entertaining banter between the announcer and the rodeo clown, and some pretty cool give-a-ways and promotions. But there’s real danger involved and I know of at least one rider last night who suffered a broken collar bone. Another one competed with a broken foot.

Most often, once a rider is thrown, the bull returns quickly to its pen. But not always. Sometimes they seek revenge and will go after the rider or after one of the bull fighters who are stationed on the floor to try to distract the bull from charging a thrown rider. And when that happens, the bull often succeeds. There is one cowboy on a horse who was kept busy last night lassoing wayward bulls. And many a men limped off the floor after they were thrown, tossed and chased by these bulls.

I enjoyed it much more than I had originally anticipated and the mutual respect between man and beast is evident. The finals begin at 8pm on Saturday, May 30. Tickets are still available, and if you don’t have yours yet, I encourage you to get one now. You won’t be sorry!

Guest Blogged by: Jana Curd

This past Tuesday, The World Famous Harlem Globetrotters sent some ‘Advance Ambassadors’ to make the rounds at news and radio stations and talk to kids. They do this for each of their events, and each time they come to Lexington I get to escort them around to the various locations. So sit back, read along and see what it was like to hang out with Herbert “Moo Moo” Evans and Shagari “Skyscraper” Alleyne (who you should recognize as a former UK player).

Our first stop was at WBUL 98.1 The Bull where we met up with the Moo Crew for their morning show. The Globetrotters talked about their experiences with the team, and Skyscraper talked about his experiences playing with the UK basketball team, and of course, the current news with our new head coach. Shortly thereafter, we drove out to WKYT-TV, our local CBS station, and met up with Rob Bromley. Moo Moo and Skyscaper taped a sports segment (as shown in the photo above) with Rob and discussed all sorts of aspects of being a Harlem Globetrotter.

After WKYT we headed over to the UK Children’s Hospital. We walked around the hospital, from room to room, and met all the kids. Skyscraper and Moo Moo did a bunch of ball tricks which brought smiles to all the kids’ faces. There were plenty of pictures taken, a lot of laughing, and tons of fun which seemed to bring joy to the kids and take their mind off of being in a hospital. Following the hospital, we went to Rosa Parks Elementary, where Skyscraper and Moo Moo did a CHEER assembly which taught all the kids about respect, healthy bodies, and other important lessons (shown in the photo above). After the assembly, Skyscraper did a few interviews with local reporters, while Moo Moo sat in on the school’s news program (shown below).

After a quick lunch at Applebee’s, we headed over to the local ABC station, WTVQ-TV. Skyscraper and Moo Moo taped an interview with Kent Spencer (in the photo at the top of this page), and then taped a number of fun promos where they did ball tricks and teased Kent by holding his script high above his head. WTVQ was the last stop, so once we were done we headed back to their hotel where we dropped them off. Even though the stops are usually similar each year, it’s always a fun and exciting day, and it never gets old seeing how much fun the kids have meeting them.

Three words- LOUD AND FUN! Talk about action packed entertainment! These guys know how to please a crowd- and let me tell you, the crowd was loving it! It started with the opening Pit Party. Fans showed up to get autographs and pictures with all of the drivers (including Grave Digger’s driver, Gary Porter!), which was definitely the right way to kick off a show.

All the drivers seemed really nice and excited to be there. Then things got really exciting when the 5 trucks came out and began to crush some cars. I was blown away at how much air time these heavy trucks can really get! The first competition was a small race between the trucks, and ended with Black Stallion taking home the win!

I did notice throughout the show that there might have been some technical problems with the Grave Digger truck. These problems may have started when he came out during the introduction and accidentally flipped over while taking a turn. Other than some small delays, his performance was excellent!

For me, the peak of the show was the motorcross bike jumps and the free-style monster truck performances, which included lots of wheelies and donuts! Overall, the show was very entertaining and fun for the whole family. I would definitely recommend going to Monster Jam… but remember to bring your earplugs!

Guest Blogged by: Jessica DiCentes

This past Saturday was the last day of this year’s National City/KHSAA Boys’ Sweet 16® State Basketball Tournament at Rupp Arena. The Semifinals were decided by two matches earlier in the day, at 10:00am and 11:30am. The final took place at night at 8:00pm, and was definitely a match to remember. Hit the jump below to read the results of Saturday’s games.

Session 7 started with West Jessamine (28-8) vs. Central (18-14). West Jessamine had already knocked out Hazard in the first round, and Grayson County in the second round, and had the better record of the two teams. Although Central’s season record wasn’t quite as pretty, they knocked out Graves County and the ever-powerful Eastern. The game was well fought on both sides. Both teams had fought hard to get to the tournament, and fought hard while there to get to the semifinals. In the end, Central came through with the win, netting 52 points to West Jessamine’s 48. The game following that one was Holmes (34-2) vs. Elliott County (32-2). Holmes proved last year that they are a force to be reckoned with, making it all the way to the finals only to come up short. They have come back this year as strong as ever, with the best record going into the tournament. Elliott County is no stranger to winning either, tied for the second best record coming into the tournament. Holmes once again proved their strength and knocked out Elliott County by scoring 67 points to their 57.

Later that night, the finals kicked off at 8:00pm. It was the underdog Central (19-14) vs. the team with the best record, Holmes (35-2). Not only did both teams do an amazing job throughout the tournament, but they really brought it all for the final game. In easily the best game of the tournament, Holmes ended up coming out with the win scoring 67 to Central’s 63. The most amazing thing is that the game went into double overtime! Congratulations to Holmes on winning the tournament! Also congrats to Central for an amazing game and for being the runner up.

Stay tuned for next year’s coverage. Same blog time, same blog channel.