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John Calipari and Drake bring excitement to Big Blue Madness

John Calipari didn’t have much to say this year, throwing the crowd’s attention to a video of his speech at Big Blue Madness in 2009.

Walter Cornett and Drake - photo by Tammie Brown | WildcatWorld.com

Walter Cornett and – photo by Tammie Brown | WildcatWorld.com

The lights dimmed on a packed house inside Rupp Arena Friday night as mascots Scratch and The Wildcat repelled from the rafters, stopping midway to take selfies with the UK faithful.

As the 20-time National Champion UK Cheerleading squad wrapped up its routine, a number of recruits made their way along the sideline to their seats, receiving a large round of applause from the crowd.

Their gaze shifted to one side of the court as two screens placed about 10 yards apart ran footage of past UK teams.

The most audible cheers came as video of former UK player Anthony Davis blocking a last-second attempt from former North Carolina star John Henson flashed on the screen.

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On This Day In UK Basketball History

On March 28, 1992, in what many called the “best NCAA Tournament game ever,” Kentucky takes defending NCAA champion Duke into overtime before losing 104-103 in the East Regional finals in Philadelphia. A last-second shot by Christian Laettner sends Duke to the Final Four, and breaks the hearts of Wildcat fans everywhere. It is Cawood Ledford’s last game as the “Voice of the Wildcats.”

 

On March 28, 1998, against Stanford, Kentucky rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit, then grabbed a 5-point overtime lead, before fending off the Cardinals to advance to the title game for the third straight season. Jeff Sheppard canned three long-range three-pointers - two in the final three minutes and one in overtime - en route to a career-high 27 points.

 

On March 28, 2014, unranked Kentucky beat No. 5 Louisville 74-69, in the 2014 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.  Aaron Harrison buried a three-pointer from the left corner with 39 seconds left that put UK ahead to stay before 41,072 in Lucas Oil Stadium.

 

On March 28, 2015, No. 1 Kentucky defeated No. 8 Notre Dame, 68-66, in the 2015 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.  With its 37-0 record on the line, Kentucky trailed Notre Dame 59-53 with 6:14 left. UK rallied in front of 19,464 fans in Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena and preserved its perfect season thanks to a crucial blocked shot by Willie Cauley-Stein and two game-deciding free throws from Andrew Harrison in the final seconds.

 

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