With the Kentucky General Assembly underway, new bills are being introduced that will directly impact Kentucky’s younger demographic. Here are three to watch this session:
S.B. 9
Senate Bill 9 is summarized as “an act related to hazing.” If passed, this bill will establish hazing in the first degree as a Class D Felony and hazing in the second degree as a Class A misdemeanor.
Spectrum News 1 said that the current consequences of hazing are up to universities and colleges. The consequences may include expulsion or suspension of students and organizations.
The bill defines hazing as “action which endangers the mental or physical health of a minor or student for the purpose of recruitment, initiation into, affiliation with, or enhancing or maintaining membership or status within any organization.”
According to the bill, these actions can be executed by minors or students in various ways:
“Violate federal or state criminal law; Consume any food, liquid, alcoholic liquid, drug, tobacco product, or other controlled substance which subjects the minor or student to a risk of mental harm or physical injury; Endure brutality of a physical nature, including whipping, beating or paddling, branding, or exposure to the elements; Endure brutality of a mental nature, including person-
al servitude, sleep deprivation, or circumstances which would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial mental distress; Endure brutality of a sexual nature; or Endure any other activity that creates a reasonable likelihood of mental harm or physical injury to the minor or student.”
The bill would also disqualify those convicted of hazing from receiving the Kentucky Education Excellence Scholarship, a scholarship program administered by the Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority.
A fire was lit under this bill by the family of Thomas “Lofton” Hazelwood.
Hazelwood, a member of UK’s Farmhouse Fraternity chapter, died from alcohol toxicity on Oct. 18, 2021, after a chapter re-
lated event. The Kernel recently uncovered details surrounding his death and the culture of hazing in his chapter.
Section 6 of the bill states “this Act may be cited as Lofton’s Law.”
This bill is sponsored by Sen. Robby Mills. S.B. 20
The General Assembly is also introducing an additional bill that will directly impact the lifestyle of a mass amount of college-aged students.
Senate Bill 20 will attempt to ban TikTok from state government technology and networks. It has been declared an emergency due to the risk of sharing confidential data with foreign governments.
The bill states it will “prevent the use of TikTok on state govern-
ment-issued equipment or while connected to any network owned, 20 operated, or otherwise under the control of state government.”
In the past five years, TikTok has become one of the most popular apps. It provides a constant loop of video content ranging from 15 seconds to three minutes.
According to the bill, the goal is to promote the preservation of safety, security, privacy of Kentucky and its citizens.
This bill is sponsored by Senators Robby Mills, Gary Boswell, Donald Douglas, Stephen Meredith and Phillip Wheeler. S.B. 24
The General Assembly also introduced a bill that will impact how college students pay for their higher education in Kentucky.
Senate Bill 24 refers to chang-
es in Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarship (KEES) funding for students who are graduates from noncertified high schools.
The bill defines an eligible noncertified school graduate as someone who meets the following guidelines:
“Is a citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States and a Kentucky resident; Graduates in the 2023-2024 academic year or thereafter from a Kentucky nonpublic secondary school not certified by the Kentucky Board of Education; Is not a convicted felon; and Completes all KEES noncertified student application requirements set by the authority.”
According to the bill, upon its approval, the base amount for the KEES award for noncertified school graduates will take an ACT score into account. Currently, KEES money only considers a noncertified school graduate’s GPA.
These changes do not apply to University of Kentucky students.
This bill is sponsored by Senators John Schickel, Jimmy Higdon, Ralph Alvarado, Gary Boswell, Donald Douglas, Rick Girdler, Stephen Meredith, Robby Mills, Adrienne Southworth, Damon Thayer, Lindsey Tichenor, Stephen West, Phillip Wheeler, Gex Williams, Mike Wilson and Max Wise.
As of Jan. 6 at 2 p.m., the General Assembly adjourned and these bills have not passed in the House. The regular session will convene again on Feb. 7th.
Two UK dining locations –Intermezzo Cafe, located in the Patterson Office Tower, and Rising Roll, located in the College of Engineering – closed at the end of the fall 2022 semester.
UK Dining announced the news in an Instagram post on Dec. 16, 2022, and the comments provided a sense of disapproval.
“What a huge disappointment. Rising roll is the best place on campus to eat,” Instagram user @ thecormancrew said in a comment on the post. “I think this is a huge mistake. That place is packed every day.”
The Instagram post did not announce a plan for what will be replacing the business.
The Kernel reached out to UK Dining’s management team for the reasoning behind the removal and future plans for the spaces and received no response.
Students and faculty members described on campus dining locations as places of gathering that
form fond memories.
“Intermezzo was my go-to from 2012-2016. So so so many memories - even where I fell in love,” Instagram user @hadiwhoo said in a comment on the post. “Sad to see it go.”
With positive reviews of the establishments, questions arose about what the future of on-campus dining will look like.
“Where are we gonna eat now? I’m so sad,” Instagram user @thecormancrew said in a comment on the post.
Even with the closing of Intermezzo Cafe and Rising Roll, there are multiple on-campus dining hotspots for Wildcats to try in the spring 2023 semester.
A popular spot for a quick bite to eat or drink is PJ’s Coffee. It’s located in the Gatton College of Business and Economics next to an assortment of student study spaces. Their menu offers coffee, drinks, pastries, sandwiches, beignets and grab & go items.
Megan Axium, a junior marketing and management student,
Permanently closed Rising Roll stands behind gates in the Ralph G. Anderson Engineering Building on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky.
said she goes to PJ’s Coffee at least once a week when school is in session.
“I like the variety of different things. They have frozen, and then they have the peach palmer and how they bring in the New Orlean’s twist,” Axium said.
Another dining location popular among the campus crowd is
Einstein Bros. Bagels, located in the Chemistry-Physics Building. They serve a variety of different types of bagels, coffee, tea and grab & go items as well.
Despite alternative dining options, Intermezzo Cafe and Rising Roll set the bar high and left the public in dismay as reflected in their reactions.
Two days into the 2023 spring semester, two students in separate incidents were hit by vehicles near campus.
Officials said they are looking
to increase safety measures near campus.
Monday morning, a student was struck by a vehicle when crossing the intersection of South Limestone Street and Prall Street. On Tuesday afternoon, another student was hit at the intersection
of Hilltop Avenue and University Avenue.
Both students were transported to UK Chandler Hospital.
UK spokesperson Jay Blanton told the Kernel the university will further its efforts with campus partners “to enhance the safety of
campus streets and intersections.”
Blanton said UK’s Office for Student Success is working with the Student Government Association (SGA) and Student Body President Andrew Laws to continue the efforts of SGA’s safety committee.
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PHOTOS BY JACK WEAVER, ABBEY CUTRER, DAVID FALADE AND ISABEL MCSWAIN | STAFF
This year, the commonwealth of Kentucky will hold its next gubernatorial election to determine its next governor and lieutenant governor.
Of the 15 candidates, three are Democrats and 12 are Republicans, according to the Kentucky Secretary of State’s website.
Primary elections will be held on May 16 to determine which candidate will represent each political party. The general election will be held Nov. 7 to determine the governor and lieutenant governor elects.
Winners of the general election will be sworn into office on Dec. 12.
Incumbent Gov. Andy Beshear will be running with incumbent Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman in the Democratic primary. So far, his campaign has raised $4.5 million, according to LEX18.
Beshear won the governorship in 2019, after a close race against Republican Matt Bevin, who held the position from 2015-2019.
Beshear held office throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, where he gained status as one of the most popular governors in the U.S. He boasts a 59% approval rating, according to WHAS11.
Beshear holds an advantage
with his incumbent status, since incumbent governors in the United States have around a 72% chance to continue their governorship, according to the Center on the American Governor.
Geoff Young is a UK graduate who has run and lost in the primaries of previous elections, like the 2015 gubernatorial race and bids for Congress in 2016 and 2018.
His political experience comes from Kentucky’s Energy and Environment Cabinet, where he worked for 15 years.
Josephine Ellen “Peppy” Martin ran as a Republican Party gubernatorial candidate in 1999, but lost the general election with only 22.2% of the vote, according to the Kentucky State Board of Elections. Martin switched to the Democratic Party in 2006.
During her 1999 campaign, Martin shared controversial comments, including one about U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and his wife, Elaine Chao, being his “Chinese connection.”
The Republican Party will face a more populated battle in the primary elections, with a total of 12 candidates.
Former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin is noticeably missing from the Republican candidates. Bevin
“I Voted” stickers are laid out for voters on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, at a polling place in Lexington, Kentucky.
teased a gubernatorial run on social media, but failed to file for the race.
Daniel Cameron, the current Kentucky attorney general, will run on the Republican ticket for a chance at the governor’s office.
Cameron is a graduate of the University of Louisville, where he received a scholarship sponsored by McConnell. Cameron served as McConnell’s legal counsel from 2015-2017.
Cameron has connections in the Republican Party, like McConnell and former President Donald Trump, who endorsed him for the position of attorney general.
As the attorney general, Cameron often disagreed with pandemic precautions set by Beshear, and had a controversial ruling on the case of Breonna Taylor af-
ter not charging officers after her death.
Cameron’s campaign has raised just shy of a million dollars.
Another Republican hopeful is Kelly Craft, a former U.S. ambassador.
Craft has raised a total of $1.3 million for her campaign, and has spent $1 million of it so far, according to the Kentucky Lantern.
She has also served in multiple federal political positions.
She first held the position of an alternate delegate to the United Nations in 2007, then United States ambassador to Canada in 2017 and most recently, United States ambassador to the United Nations from September 2019 to January 2021.
Craft is a Lexington native and graduate of UK, where she earned
her BA focusing on international law. She is married to philanthropist Joe Craft.
Ryan Quarles has served as the Kentucky commissioner of agriculture since 2016. Additionally, he served as a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives from 2010-2014.
Quarles’s website said he wants to bring a message of “economic growth, investment in infrastructure and education, and less government intrusion in our lives, jobs, and schools to voters across the state.”
Jacob Clark is an engineer from Elizabethtown, Kentucky. He most recently lost the Republican primary for election to the Kentucky House of Representatives in May 2022, according to ballotpedia.org.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, he unsuccessfully petitioned to impeach Andy Beshear for alleged unconstitutional pandemic mandates, according to Clark’s Facebook.
David O. Cooper has over 22 years of service as a member of the Kentucky Army National Guard. An ordained minister and children’s book author, Cooper’s website says he seeks to have “the most transparent bipartisan administration in Frankfort.”
Since 2018, UK’s Energy Club has strived to bring renewable energy awareness to campus through various projects, their most recent being the installation of eight solar-powered charging umbrellas.
The umbrellas absorb energy from the sun, charging a battery in their picnic table’s base which then powers four USB ports, four USB-C ports and two wireless charging pads.
Each table can charge up to 10 devices. They are located on the sidewalks between The 90 and Lewis Honors College and in front of Jewell Hall.
Frontrunners of the project said it aims to excite and educate students about sustainable energy practices.
“I think when most people think of Kentucky, renewable energy is not the first thing that comes to mind,” Energy Club Vice President Ben Scott said. “We wanted to have a big green initiative that was very visible to everybody and that could actually be used practically by students on their day to day.”
Two years in the making, Energy Club’s initiative came to fruition at a ribbon-cutting event on Nov. 30, 2022.
Scott sparked the idea when he was working as Energy Club’s project director in 2020.
“We decided to explore solar options because that wasn’t a type
of renewable energy we pursued in the past,” Scott said. “We were doing research on possibilities of solar powered projects we could bring to campus and that’s how we stumbled across the solar umbrellas online.”
A Gainesville, Florida, native, Scott lives down the street from the University of Florida where he saw students find success with a similar project.
EnerFusion was the company behind the building and installation of the umbrellas on UK’s campus. The bulk of Energy Club’s work consisted of securing funding and troubleshooting details like color and location.
Club President Mason Wood worked to present the project to sponsors in a “Shark Tank-style” manner to secure the $40,000 needed to install the umbrellas.
The project’s sponsors include the Student Government Association, the College of Engineering, UK’s Student Sustainability Council and Coca-Cola.
According to Wood, part of the pitch to sponsors included how these umbrellas wouldn’t deplete UK’s main energy source, unlike the previously attempted project of installing electric car chargers.
“That’s another thing we thought would be good because it was completely off the grid and could easily impact campus,” Wood said.
Previous Energy Club projects have caused less impact on how students get their energy and fo-
cused mostly on education. They include a hydroelectric tank and a bike generator.
Wood and Scott are both seniors and have been involved with Energy Club since their freshman year. Scott said they are excited to see how the club has grown with each project.
“This is a club on campus that has the potential to do big projects and have a real impact,” he said. “People are charging their phones with solar energy as opposed to whatever’s burning at the power plant.”
Wood, an engineering major, said that his passion for the club comes from his career aspirations
in the energy field, but that there’s a place for everyone in Energy Club.
“We’re open to any students that want to learn more about energy, whether or not that’s the career they want to choose,” Wood said. “If that’s something they want to get involved in now, we want to provide them with that opportunity.”
Scott, a biology major and aspiring wildlife biologist, said his interest in Energy Club stemmed from a conservation standpoint.
“The reality is, there’s no getting around energy, and that’s probably gonna be the biggest determinant of Earth’s future when
it comes to everything including wildlife, so I definitely understand the importance of it,” he said.
Energy Club is already planning its next projects. Electric car chargers are expected to appear on campus in the next few months and a portable battery building workshop for students is in the works.
“Obviously this a huge breakthrough for Energy Club, but another motivation of ours is for this to be a breakthrough for green initiatives on campus in general,” Scott said. “We hope that this inspires other student organizations to do these real projects. It’s very achievable if you just spend the time and focus on it.”
Friday, Jan. 6, at 4 p.m., was the deadline for Kentucky’s gubernatorial hopefuls to formally file their candidacy for governor.
The state Capitol was lively, the first week of the General Assembly’s 2023 session underway. The quickly approaching deadline only served to heighten the excitement.
For days, journalists had been publishing predictions of who they believed would file as candidates. Some, like Republicans Kelly Craft and Daniel Cameron and Democratic incumbent Andy Beshear, had been advertising their intentions to run for months.
Some also expected Matt Bevin, who served as governor from 2015-2019, to run again, perhaps hoping to win a comeback after losing to Beshear during the last gubernatorial election. And the morning of Jan. 6, Bevin himself appeared to support those suspicions.
Taking to social media, Bevin sent a tweet at 8:08 a.m. on Friday, posting a photo of the sunrise while driving east with the caption, “A beautiful day dawning In Kentucky… Make it a great day!”
The rather cryptic tweet
piqued the interest of journalists, some of whom took it to mean that Bevin was planning to announce his candidacy later that day.
Their suspicions were strengthened when, at 12:52 Friday afternoon, Bevin again tweeted: “At 2:45pm in the Capitol rotunda (primarily for space reasons and because some of you are probably tired of sitting on the floor outside the SOS office), I will share a few thoughts before proceeding down the hall…”
When 2:45 p.m. arrived, Bevin delivered an approximately 22-minute speech to the throng of elected officials and journalists congregated in the rotunda, some of whom had been in the building all day.
Bevin’s rather unconventional, somewhat freewheeling monologue noted perceived issues in Jefferson County Public Schools, the foster care system, Kentucky’s infrastructure and pensions, calling on journalists and legislators to devote more attention to them.
“You should wear this out,” Bevin told his listeners, referring to the issues he was addressing. “Demand better.”
He concluded with a call to action for the candidates to “not bring each other down” and a
reminder for Kentuckians to be unified.
“And now, I’m going to head down the hall,” Bevin said at the end of his speech, subsequently walking out of the building and driving away without filing his candidacy.
Bevin’s actions are not the actions of someone who fully appreciates, perhaps even understands, the role journalists play.
My qualms are not with Bevin’s decision to not run for governor. That is his choice, and I support his freedom to make it.
Accordingly, I do not have an issue with his decision to speak to the media about problems that he has seen in Kentucky. Based solely on the contents of his speech, Bevin seemed passionate about the commonwealth and wanted to raise awareness of perceived “failings.”
My concern lies in the subversive nature of how he went about announcing his decision. While they never overtly said that he would be running for governor, Bevin’s teasing, cryptic tweets implied his intention.
Bevin seemed to view the whole thing as a big joke, a rather narcissistic “will he, won’t he” that ultimately culminated in a (somewhat anticlimactic)
platform speech raising issues and subsequently passing them off to legislators and journalists to figure out.
Bevin’s stunt took advantage of the journalists, stringing them along and compelling them to stay in Frankfort after an already long week of covering the General Assembly, some waiting hours for his speech.
Tweets with #Bevinwatch from political journalists posted updates hours in advance speculating about whether the wait would result in a legitimate announcement of his candidacy or an antic exploiting their time. In the end, it was the latter.
“He issued a challenge to the media to cover these issues (we are!) but yet wasted many man hours with this stunt. He could have gotten the same message across with a video on social media,” the Lexington Herald-Leader’s Frankfort bureau chief, Tessa Duvall, tweeted.
Duvall’s post points to the larger issue here. Any legitimate concerns Bevin raised were seriously undercut by the frankly immature and self-indulgent way he raised them.
Maybe next time, Mr. Bevin, rather than wasting their time, let the journalists do their jobs covering legitimate issues.
Who knows? If they’re spending less time waiting for meetings that, truly, could have been an email, they might even have more time to devote to “wear(ing)” these issues out and bringing about real change.
A line of residents with full shopping carts snaked through the lobby of Jewell Hall on Sunday afternoon. The eight-floor residence hall was filled with families helping their students
hurry to move into their dorms after winter break, given less than 24 hours to move in before UK’s first day of classes for the spring semester on Monday. Students and families alike were less than pleased.
As usual, UK closed most of its residence halls over this year’s win-
ter break; however, students were not allowed to begin the move-in process until noon the day before the semester began. Comparatively, during last winter break, movein started on the Friday prior to classes starting and extended over the weekend.
As a result, theoretically, all of the more than 7,800 students who live on campus had to move in on the same day.
In general, the move-in process is chaotic, to say the least. For me, the process started with parking a car full of Ikea bags and suitcases of clothes on the street next to the halls.
After walking into the hall, I checked in at the desk and got a large shopping cart. After pushing the cart to whatever street parking spot is closest, I loaded up the cart for the first trip.
Arriving as early as possible is wise, as the peak time for move-in is insanely crowded. Some families have to wait up to 30 minutes in line just to get on an elevator to get their cart to their room. Residents that live on the first few floors typically take the stairs, but even those get congested on move-in day.
parking garage, since students can’t leave their car parked on the street.
This move-in process is stressful in itself, but so is moving away from home, moving to a new place and getting settled with new neighbors and roommates. Then, trying to attend a class the next morning when your room is likely still in shambles from moving in is not the ideal scenario.
This schedule gives students an extremely poor amount of time to prepare for classes the next day. Some students are in their first semester of school and have to fully move into residence halls and then attend an 8 a.m. class the next morning.
There are plenty of complaints on the UK Wildcat Families Facebook page. One parent, Jamie Ross, commented, “There is not enough travel wiggle room for out-ofstate students.”
Parents are worried that there may be a struggle with academics for students without the chance to settle into their dorm.
MICHAEL SMALLWOOD| STAFFA student moves back into Holmes Hall for the spring semester on Sunday, Jan. 8, 2023, at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky.
After a few trips up to my floor and back down to my car, I returned the cart and drove my car to the South Limestone
With students traveling from out of state or even out of the country, this short window of turnaround time to move puts strains on university students that live on campus, and it makes an already busy and hectic time more stressful.
The winter months are considered by some to be the absolute peak of Kentucky’s athletic department.
With crucial early matchups of both mens and womens basketball, a potential bowl game journey and numerous other events, UK Athletics gives fans plenty of enjoyable moments over the holiday break.
This break, however, left many UK fans in a state of discontent, with nearly all of the high-profile teams being soundly defeated by their foes.
Entering his 14th season with the program with a lifetime contract to his name, mens basketball coach John Calipari led reigning national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe and his squad to attempt to repeat the glory of the 2011-12 season in which Kentucky won the national championship.
Despite losing to then No. 8 Gonzaga and No. 7 UCLA early on, the Cats showed promise, but ultimately lacked that definitive offensive edge that set them apart in seasons past.
Over the break, the Cats were slated to play Florida A&M, which they defeated 8868 in the second annual “Unity Series,” Louisville, which it also defeated 86-63, and SEC opponents Missouri, LSU and No. 7 Alabama.
Unfortunately for Kentucky, it did not shine in those match-
ups, falling in Columbia 89-75, narrowly edging out LSU 7471 at home and being run off the court in a 78-52 blowout against Alabama.
This poor form is relatively uncommon for a Kentucky team of this stature and has led many to criticize Calipari himself, with some particularly disgruntled fans even calling for personnel and tactical changes, while others call for Calipari himself to be changed.
The loss to Alabama was especially crushing, with the 26-point difference being the second highest margin of defeat in the SEC under Calipari.
The Cats currently sit at 10-6 overall, 1-3 in SEC play, placing them in 12th place, just above Florida and Ole Miss.
With it still being somewhat early in the season, Calipari still has time to alter his play calling schemes, but patience, especially from UK fans, is a hard commodity in the world of college basketball.
Kentucky womens basketball also had a busy winter break, taking on seven games and, like their male counterparts, left fans with much to be desired.
The women first faced off with Murray State, coming up short 51-44 inside Memorial Coliseum in the Racers’ first win over Kentucky since 1973.
Since then, it defeated Ohio University 95-86 but lost to all other opponents, being conquered 69-63 by Florida Gulf
Coast and being winless in the SEC, losing 74-71 against Missouri, 71-50 against Arkansas, 64-60 against Georgia and most recently 67-48 against LSU.
Head coach Kyra Elzy and her team’s struggles have landed them in 13th in the SEC with a record of 8-8 overall and 0-4 in SEC play.
Kentucky football also finished up its season with a repeat matchup against Iowa in the Music City Bowl in Nashville.
Unlike the first matchup, the bowl did not hold as much weight for many fans with stars such as quarterback Will Levis and running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. deciding to sit out and continue to focus on the NFL combine and draft.
This left the Cats in a precarious situation.
Three backup quarterbacks, sophomore Deuce Hogan and two freshmen, Kaiya Sheron and Destin Wade, hoped to earn the starting role, but head coach Mark Stoops declined to name the starter until the team actually took the field on New Year’s Eve.
In the actual matchup the Cats were ultimately defeated by their own mistakes, with Wade, who was named the starter, throwing two pick-sixes that cost the team 14 points.
The lack of offensive momentum in the wake of offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello’s firing led the Cats to punt 10 times, the highest total
ever recorded in the Music City Bowl.
In the end, the Cats were shut out for the first time in program postseason history, losing 21-0 and falling to 2-4 in Music City Bowls, in which Kentucky holds the record for most appearances at six.
With the void left by Levis and Rodriguez Jr. seemingly solved by NC State transfer quarterback Devin Leary and Vanderbilt transfer rusher Re’Mahn Davis, as well as the reintroduction of offensive coordinator Liam Coen, the future of the Wildcat offense
looks far brighter than that of the unit on display in the bowl game.
Other notable sports that took place over break included track and field, gymnastics and swimming and diving of which all the aforementioned teams performed far better than the televised programs.
With the 2023 spring semester officially underway, both fans and student-athletes alike will hope to begin the new year with resounding victories as all teams still in play begin to look ahead toward their respective postseasons.
Kentucky mens basketball was stunned 71-68 inside Rupp Arena by the South Carolina Gamecocks on Tuesday, ending a 28-game home winning streak for the program.
The 2022-23 season has been nothing short of disappointing for Kentucky, which currently stands at 10-6 overall and 1-3 in the SEC, only ahead of Ole Miss and tied with Florida in the conference standings, despite starting the season ranked No. 4 overall.
That said, the loss to South Carolina felt like a new low for many as, despite the disappointing losses to the likes of Missouri and Michigan State, Kentucky had been able to maintain its home winning streak, standing at 9-0 inside Rupp Arena entering the matchup against the Gamecocks.
Losing inside Rupp, especially to a team like USC, seemed almost infeasible to many in attendance as the Cats had already conquered, albeit narrowly, LSU 74-71 for their only conference win of the season and also recorded what is rated by some metrics as their best win of the season over Yale inside the arena. The win over Yale also marks the only win this season Kentucky has over a team projected to make the NCAA Tournament in ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology.
In spite of all of that, the
Wildcat fans in attendance could only sit in stunned silence and head for the exits as Kentucky missed back-toback game tying 3-pointers to force overtime.
The loss was the first inside of the arena for Kentucky since the 2020-21 Cats, who notoriously missed the NCAA Tournament altogether for the second time under head coach John Calipari, were defeated 71-67 by the Florida Gators on Feb. 27, 2021.
Since then, the Cats won their final home game of that season, a 92-64 blowout over South Carolina, and completed the entire 2021-22 season undefeated at home.
That 2021-22 team, highlighted by NBA talent TyTy Washington Jr. and National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe, breezed through its home non-conference schedule, winning by an average of 26 points in the first seven games inside Rupp Arena.
Playing three more non-conference games inside Rupp Arena prior to the bulk of conference play, Kentucky then outscored Western Kentucky, Missouri and High Point by an average of over 35 points.
Kentucky continued to breeze through its home games with 92-77 and 107-79 wins over Georgia and then No. 22 Tennessee respectively before it was truly tested on home court.
Overcoming its first major test, Kentucky defeated Missis-
sippi State 82-74 in overtime in a game that was notorious for being rumored to be the debut that would ultimately never come of Shaedon Sharpe.
Kentucky then finished out the year with wins over Vanderbilt, Florida, then No. 25 Alabama, LSU and finally Ole Miss, completing the season perfect
at home.
Now with the disastrous loss to South Carolina, the highs of that 2021-22 season seem so far away for many Kentucky fans.
Kentucky is set to travel to Knoxville to take on No. 5 Tennessee inside Thompson-Boling Arena this Saturday, Jan. 14, before returning home on Jan. 17 to
host Georgia.
While college basketball is unpredictable, with the likes of No. 2 Kansas, No. 21 Auburn and Tennessee still set to walk through the doors of Rupp Arena later this season, it’s hard to imagine Kentucky getting any substantial home win streak going this season.
Kentucky basketball is struggling, and it is struggling badly.
The Wildcats started out as the No. 4 team in the country in the AP Top 25 preseason poll but have quickly plummeted to the point of not even receiving a single vote.
Many are pointing fingers at players and trying to find someone to blame for this mess of a season thus far. Could it be the coaching?
For some Kentucky fans, it’s now become about doing their best to push head coach John Calipari out of Lexington.
Where did it all go wrong? Calipari took Kentucky to four final fours, one of which resulted in a national championship in 2012, and also has had numerous winning seasons.
The idea of moving on from Calipari really found its footing last March when Kentucky was stunned by the No. 15 seeded Saint Peter’s Peacocks. Even then, it seemed like an outrageous idea to many, but in the wake of the 2022-23 season and the struggles that have come with it, many on campus are hopping on board with that way of thinking.
“You go to Alabama on the road, get blown out and then
you lose to the worst team in the SEC at home. It is kind of a rough look,” Kentucky sophomore Landry Gray said. “I don’t want to lose confidence on the team yet, but it is kind of looking like we are going to have to if Cal can’t straighten them out.”
Kentucky was embarrassed by Alabama, being run off the court 78-52 in Tuscaloosa on Jan. 7. The team followed that up with a loss to the struggling South Carolina Gamecocks on Tuesday.
With those performanc-
es, some have chosen to look deeper into the coaching aspect of the sport and placed the blame on who has been playing.
One Kentucky fan and student, Conor Morrisard, simply said, “stop playing (Sahvir) Wheeler.”
Wheeler, the starting point guard, has struggled this season, turning the ball over numerous times and making questionable plays.
“The way he (Calipari) is coaching now is how he’s coached forever, and it is just not working anymore,”
sophomore Brady Stephenson said. “(Basketball has) evolved to where it’s more than just the paint play. If you don’t have shooters on the court, then it’s just going to be a cluster-mess.”
To add to Stephenson’s claim, five-star freshman Cason Wallace currently leads the Cats in 3-point percentage right now with 41.9%, yet he is still averaging less minutes than Wheeler, who has one of the lowest field goal percentages on the team with 41.5%.
As a result, there is much contention as to which of the
two truly deserves to be the starting point guard.
While the 2022-23 season has failed to live up to expectations, it may be safe to assume that, even with the struggles, the vitriol towards Calipari may not be as pronounced as it is had Kentucky been successful in recent seasons.
With the NCAA Tournament being canceled in 2020, and Kentucky following that up by missing the “big dance” entirely in 2021 for the second time under Calipari, many fans breathed a sigh of relief as the Cats finished the 2021-22 season as a No. 2 seed heading into the tournament.
Now though, with the aforementioned loss to Saint Peter’s, many fans feel as though they haven’t properly seen postseason basketball from Kentucky in three seasons.
Now, with the current team not on track to make the tournament barring a turnaround, four years may simply be too long to ask fans to be patient.
“For the potential we have, we usually don’t live up to it,” Kentucky senior Caleb Smith said. “We haven’t in the last, I’d say two or three years possibly. I know we have a good recruiting class coming in next year so I hope it goes good, but I don’t know.”
While the majority was critical, Calipari does still have his supporters on campus.
“I think he’s a good coach,” freshman Conor Morrisard said. “You shouldn’t take him for granted even though we’ve had some bad losses. He’s better than most coaches you’ll find out there.”
Several others like Morrisard still have faith in Calipari to turn this year’s team around, but regardless of how many are still in his corner, it’s increasingly clear that more and more fans are becoming frustrated with the state of the basketball program.
With rumors swirling about Texas potentially hoping to poach the Hall of Fame coach, it’s no stretch to say there’s a large portion of the Kentucky faithful actively hoping the Longhorns do so.
Whether or not Calipari and Kentucky are on a downward spiral that the pair will be unable to overcome is uncertain, but each passing game sees more and more fans reach their breaking point.
With a matchup against No. 5 Tennessee scheduled for Saturday, Kentucky has a pivotal opportunity to get back within the good graces of some fans, but it also has just as much of an opportunity to be embarrassed in rival territory all over again.
Tipoff against the Volunteers is scheduled for noon EST and can be viewed live on ESPN.
Kentucky womens basketball is currently in a position it did not expect to be in thus far into the SEC season.
With four conference games played and zero wins, the Wildcats have not had the best of showings in the early stages of league play.
After a 19-point loss against LSU at Rupp Arena on Sunday saw Ken -
tucky fail to grab its first conference win yet again, the Wildcats stand without a win since their 9586 victory against Ohio in December.
Unfortunately for Kentucky, things do not get any easier as it welcomes not just the best team in the SEC, but the No. 1 team in the nation, as the South Carolina Gamecocks are set to travel to Memorial Coliseum on Thursday.
South Carolina will enter Lexington with a perfect
16-0 record that includes road wins at No. 2 Stanford and No. 17 Maryland. The Gamecocks are currently averaging 80.9 points per game with opponents only managing to score 44 a game. USC is also currently shooting 47% from the field while hitting 31% from beyond the arc.
Zia Cooke is the biggest offensive threat on the floor for Dawn Staley’s squad, averaging 15 points per game on 41% shooting from the field. The 2022 NCAA Tournament MVP and Naismith College Player of the Year Aliyah Boston is also a danger to Kentucky as she averages 11.5 points per game. Kamilla Cardoso is also very capable of causing issues against the Cats averaging 9.3 points per game.
Making 66% of her field goal attempts, Syracuse transfer Sania Feagin, a 2021 All-ACC First Team member, is another addition to the list of highly talented players that Kyra Elzy’s squad are going to have to face on Thursday night.
Not only are South Carolina the best team in the country, but the Gamecocks also are coming into Lexington with revenge on their minds. After having won 14 of its last 15 matchups against Kentucky prior to the SEC Tournament Championship last March, the
Gamecocks were stunned by Kentucky as the Cats claimed their second SEC Tournament title in school history after a game-winning 3-pointer courtesy of Dre’una Edwards.
To make matters more impressive, the win saw the Cats take the lead after trailing for nearly the entirety of the game after entering the game 0-2 against USC on the season, including a 7454 loss that marked the beginning of a stretch that saw Kentucky go 1-7.
Kentucky, on the other hand, is hoping to recreate some of that same magic again on Thursday with a similar level of desperation.
With 2023 already here, tournament resumes are quickly becoming something teams are getting wary of, and Kentucky, standing at 8-8, certainly does not have a tournament resume.
Much like in March last season, head coach Kyra Elzy’s squad are huge underdogs as it prepares to face a team with National Championship ambitions, with the Gamecocks going on to win the 2022 NCAA Championship.
Tipoff against the Gamecocks is currently set for Thursday, Jan. 12, at 7 p.m. EST and can be viewed live on the SEC Network.
Charles Oran Little, 87, husband of Myrtle Marie Billeck Little, passed away peacefully at home on December 17, 2022, in Lexington, KY. He was born on July 21, 1935 in Schulenburg, TX to the late Hubert L. and Louise Rabner Little. In addition to his loving wife of 67 years, he is survived by their three daughters, Linda Jo Little, Donna Little (Tommy) Griggs and Sandy Little (Phillip) Copher; three grandchildren, Madison Marie Copher, Megan Elizabeth Griggs, and McKaylee Linn Copher; and one brother, Louis Edward Little.
He served the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment as Dean and Director of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station and the Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service from 1988-2000. He leaves behind a legacy of numerous footprints on agriculture in Kentucky and across the country.
After graduation from Schulenburg High School in 1953, he earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Houston in 1957 and master’s and doctoral degrees in animal nutrition and biochemistry from Iowa State University in 1959 and 1960. In 1960 he began his career at the University of Kentucky, becoming a full professor in 1967. From 1969-1985 he served as Associate Dean for Research and Associate Director of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station. In 1985, he became Vice Chancellor for Research at the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center and Director of the Louisiana Agriculture Experiment Station until his return to the University of Kentucky in 1988.
He was a longtime devoted member of Southern Hills United Methodist Church where he served in many leadership roles during the past 62 years. In addition, he was a member of the
tion of sports gambling.
Cooper runs on the platforms of pro-life, protecting the Second Amendment and being cautious with government funds.
Deters is a retired lawyer who practiced in both Ohio and Kentucky. Deters’s website said he is running as a Republican with conservative and libertarian views.
His website also detailed a number of platforms he supports, including issues like no vaccination mandates, legalization of marijuana and legaliza-
Deters said he is the leader of the Trump movement in northern Kentucky, and if he wins the primary with their vote, he will win the general election with them as well.
According to ballotpedia.org DeVore has served as a member of the McCreary County School Board and boasts 25 years of service in the U.S. Navy.
DeVore recently lost the election for Jefferson County Clerk in May 2022.
Harmon is the current Kentucky state auditor, a position he has held since 2015. He also
Kentucky State Fair Board, The Kentucky Cattlemen’s Association, Kentucky Farm Bureau, and The Lexington Rotary Club.
Visitation will be held Tuesday, January 3, 4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. at Milward- Man O’ War, Lexington, with the funeral services on Wednesday, January 4, 1:00 p.m. at Southern Hills United Methodist Church, Lexington. A private burial will follow at Lexington Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Southern Hills United Methodist Church, 2356 Harrodsburg Road, Lexington, KY 40503 (https://southernhillsumc.org/) or the C. Oran & Myrtle Little Scholarship Fund at the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment. Make checks payable to the University of Kentucky and send to the UK CAFE Philanthropy Office; ATTN: Little Scholarship, 1451 University Drive, Lexington, KY 40546.
served in the Kentucky House of Representatives for 15 years.
Harmon’s website said he promotes the message of “Freedom Over Fear” and is in disagreement with Beshear’s COVID response.
Keck is the current mayor of Somerset, Kentucky. Previously, he was an entrepreneur.
According to his website, the issues most important to Keck include solving the Kentucky workforce crisis, reinvesting in Kentuckian communities through tax incentives and eliminating income tax towards a consumption based model.
Keck has raised $200,000
since his announcement to run around 50 days ago, according to his website.
Robbie C. SmithSmith is a high school math teacher from Madison county.
Smith’s website for candidacy includes many of his positions on issues, such as less government spending, legalizing marijuana and supporting the coal industry.
His website also said he is “a pro-life Chrisitan, a proud father, and an absolutely lovestruck husband.”
Ormerod is a candidate for Kentucky governor from
Louisville. Ormerod does not currently have a live campaign website.
Johnny Ray RiceHarrison County resident Rice has mostly promoted his run for governor on social media.
His Facebook group for candidacy said he helped organize the Jan. 9, 2021, “Patriot Rally” outside of the Kentucky capitol. The rally involved around 100 heavily armed protestors just days after the Jan. 6 U.S. capitol riot.
The Facebook group also said he has not raised any money as of Jan. 7, 2023.