practice coverage...

[KY Bearcat]

Has anyone heard anything about the team since practice started Friday? Iknow its only been 4 days, but I've only seen one article that IMO wasn't very insightful.

Also, still no word on an open practice?

[Globe Trotting Cat Fan]

I attended the practice on the 15th, which was essentially a closed affair.

Armein Kirkland was there, as were a few other former cats. Many were in town (I believe) for the 50th of the back to back championship teams "gala" luncheon.

First quick impressions.

Yancy was certainly slimmer and quicker, as well as looked more intense and was certainly more vocal, as were Darnell and Cashmere (VERY vocal actually).

Biggie is the size of a small tank in his upper body. While he still couldn't jump, he was showing nice touch around the rim and was blocking everything within site.

Dion looks to have been working a LOT on his handle in the offseason, as did Larry.

Quon drained some beautiful looking shots from deep, and looked quicker and faster and stronger.

Thomas was concentrating on his rebounding and post up moves in the first practice, and he looked a little more intense and strong around the hoop.

I did not get to look at Jackson or Gaines too much before I had to leave, but I will say that Jackson is already ripped, and Gaines is not bad either.

Jackson is a legit 6'8, and Kelvin is closer (in my estimation) to 6'9, and is raw. He does look to be very focused.

All in all, a quiet start, but Mick looked focused and ready to teach, and the players in the upper class all looked amped up to be on the floor.

Here's a tip of my glass to hopefulness :-)

[Bearcat POE]

With Biggie, I get frustrated because when he does get in the game, the guards penetrate the dish the ball to him in the gut. He a 7 footer, put the ball up high and let him attempt a play.

[Mr. Bearcat]

I attended the practice on the 15th, which was essentially a closed affair.

Armein Kirkland was there, as were a few other former cats. Many were in town (I believe) for the 50th of the back to back championship teams "gala" luncheon.

First quick impressions.

Yancy was certainly slimmer and quicker, as well as looked more intense and was certainly more vocal, as were Darnell and Cashmere (VERY vocal actually).

Biggie is the size of a small tank in his upper body. While he still couldn't jump, he was showing nice touch around the rim and was blocking everything within site.

Dion looks to have been working a LOT on his handle in the offseason, as did Larry.

Quon drained some beautiful looking shots from deep, and looked quicker and faster and stronger.

Thomas was concentrating on his rebounding and post up moves in the first practice, and he looked a little more intense and strong around the hoop.

I did not get to look at Jackson or Gaines too much before I had to leave, but I will say that Jackson is already ripped, and Gaines is not bad either.

Jackson is a legit 6'8, and Kelvin is closer (in my estimation) to 6'9, and is raw. He does look to be very focused.

All in all, a quiet start, but Mick looked focused and ready to teach, and the players in the upper class all looked amped up to be on the floor.

Here's a tip of my glass to hopefulness :-)

Thanks for the update. All the news is sounding very promising and I'm hoping the stars are aligned for Bearcat Basketball finally. We need Mick and the team to both take the next step and get some success and stability back to this program. I think this is the year!

[KY Bearcat]

I attended the practice on the 15th, which was essentially a closed affair.

Armein Kirkland was there, as were a few other former cats. Many were in town (I believe) for the 50th of the back to back championship teams "gala" luncheon.

First quick impressions.

Yancy was certainly slimmer and quicker, as well as looked more intense and was certainly more vocal, as were Darnell and Cashmere (VERY vocal actually).

Biggie is the size of a small tank in his upper body. While he still couldn't jump, he was showing nice touch around the rim and was blocking everything within site.

Dion looks to have been working a LOT on his handle in the offseason, as did Larry.

Quon drained some beautiful looking shots from deep, and looked quicker and faster and stronger.

Thomas was concentrating on his rebounding and post up moves in the first practice, and he looked a little more intense and strong around the hoop.

I did not get to look at Jackson or Gaines too much before I had to leave, but I will say that Jackson is already ripped, and Gaines is not bad either.

Jackson is a legit 6'8, and Kelvin is closer (in my estimation) to 6'9, and is raw. He does look to be very focused.

All in all, a quiet start, but Mick looked focused and ready to teach, and the players in the upper class all looked amped up to be on the floor.

Here's a tip of my glass to hopefulness :-)

Excellent post...thanks for the info., it's much appreciated!

[JerseySean]

Hey Globe Trotting Cat Fan... I love your tag line at the bottom. Well done!

[Cpaw]

http://news.cincinnati.com/

Front page has pic's from practice. If you look at that last pic, I thought it was Yancy, but it is Ibrahima. It appears he put on quite a bit of weight and muscle!! Great to see and that will be huge if he can battle and be tougher in the post!!

[Bearcat Otto]

I think that is Biggie.

#30 right?

[BigDaddyCornHusker]

I love the thought of an intense Yancy.

[Joco45215]

I wish he would get mean on the court....I wish he had Art Longs demeanor (on the court not on the street beating horses) with his skill set and body size he could be a top 10 pick in the nba....with the attitude of former Cats

[CincyEngGrad02]

I attended the practice on the 15th, which was essentially a closed affair.

Armein Kirkland was there, as were a few other former cats. Many were in town (I believe) for the 50th of the back to back championship teams "gala" luncheon.

First quick impressions.

Yancy was certainly slimmer and quicker, as well as looked more intense and was certainly more vocal, as were Darnell and Cashmere (VERY vocal actually).

Biggie is the size of a small tank in his upper body. While he still couldn't jump, he was showing nice touch around the rim and was blocking everything within site.

Dion looks to have been working a LOT on his handle in the offseason, as did Larry.

Quon drained some beautiful looking shots from deep, and looked quicker and faster and stronger.

Thomas was concentrating on his rebounding and post up moves in the first practice, and he looked a little more intense and strong around the hoop.

I did not get to look at Jackson or Gaines too much before I had to leave, but I will say that Jackson is already ripped, and Gaines is not bad either.

Jackson is a legit 6'8, and Kelvin is closer (in my estimation) to 6'9, and is raw. He does look to be very focused.

All in all, a quiet start, but Mick looked focused and ready to teach, and the players in the upper class all looked amped up to be on the floor.

Here's a tip of my glass to hopefulness :-)

Thanks! This is exactly what I wanted to hear.

[bearcatbret]

http://www.gobearcats.com/blog/2010/10/bearcats-breakfast-101910.html

Is Kilpatrick and Gates now the spokesmen for UC Bball?

[catscratchfever]

I wish he would get mean on the court....I wish he had Art Longs demeanor (on the court not on the street beating horses) with his skill set and body size he could be a top 10 pick in the nba....with the attitude of former Cats

imagine if he had Eric Hick's demeanor and attitude!

[GoCats1994]

imagine if he had Eric Hick's demeanor and attitude!

Meaning what?

Imagine that he modeled Hicks' attitude as an underclassan and quit the team, walked out on his teammates, the fans, and his opportnity?

Or are you referring to Hicks' upperclassman years where he seemed to get it?

Let's not be too quick to judge Yancy. The body of work is not yet complete.

[Mr. Bearcat]

Can we please try to stay positive about this year's team without bashing our former players. In a thread discussing the start of practice, where Globe Trotting Cat Fan set a very positive tone, we manage to turn it negative by bashing Art Long once again for something that he was never convicted of, and somehow also bashing Eric Hicks because he remained home for a weekend as a freshman due to being homesick and a lack of playing time. Last week, it was bashing Deonta Vaughn once again.

This is a new season, and it is full of promise and anticipation and I think most of us would appreciate it if the nay-sayers could remain focused on what will be the return to prominence of our great program and let our former players rest in peace. How can we expect the national media to ever stop bringing up Art Long and the punching of a horse (for which he was acquitted), if our own fans can't stop reporting it incorrectly?

[catscratchfever]

Meaning what?

Imagine that he modeled Hicks' attitude as an underclassan and quit the team, walked out on his teammates, the fans, and his opportnity?

Or are you referring to Hicks' upperclassman years where he seemed to get it?

Let's not be too quick to judge Yancy. The body of work is not yet complete.

the latter years obviously

[CincyEngGrad02]

Can we please try to stay positive about this year's team without bashing our former players. In a thread discussing the start of practice, where Globe Trotting Cat Fan set a very positive tone, we manage to turn it negative by bashing Art Long once again for something that he was never convicted of, and somehow also bashing Eric Hicks because he remained home for a weekend as a freshman due to being homesick and a lack of playing time. Last week, it was bashing Deonta Vaughn once again.

This is a new season, and it is full of promise and anticipation and I think most of us would appreciate it if the nay-sayers could remain focused on what will be the return to prominence of our great program and let our former players rest in peace. How can we expect the national media to ever stop bringing up Art Long and the punching of a horse (for which he was acquitted), if our own fans can't stop reporting it incorrectly?

Agreed. The loyalty from this group is sometimes disturbing.

[ucat4]

Meaning what?

Imagine that he modeled Hicks' attitude as an underclassan and quit the team, walked out on his teammates, the fans, and his opportnity?


Very classy.....

[Joco45215]

Can we please try to stay positive about this year's team without bashing our former players. In a thread discussing the start of practice, where Globe Trotting Cat Fan set a very positive tone, we manage to turn it negative by bashing Art Long once again for something that he was never convicted of, and somehow also bashing Eric Hicks because he remained home for a weekend as a freshman due to being homesick and a lack of playing time. Last week, it was bashing Deonta Vaughn once again.

This is a new season, and it is full of promise and anticipation and I think most of us would appreciate it if the nay-sayers could remain focused on what will be the return to prominence of our great program and let our former players rest in peace. How can we expect the national media to ever stop bringing up Art Long and the punching of a horse (for which he was acquitted), if our own fans can't stop reporting it incorrectly?



Well when ever I post something about a former player on here I have to discredit any negative, or else others take it to the next level...Ive read this blog for many years....and really I Ill take another art long right now good with the bad...and who reported what incorrectly? All IM saying Yancy needs to put some BAD A55 into his game like he had at the Maui invintational last year......and Erik Hicks was a freshman every freshman gets home sick when they leave home....Ill take his heart and emotion over any play Ive seen come through the Shoe.......if the guy had Yancy's body he'd been the first pick in the nba draft after his junior year
Mr Bearcat no disrespect but i wasnt trying to bash any player, Art was one of my favorites

[Mr. Bearcat]

Well when ever I post something about a former player on here I have to discredit any negative, or else others take it to the next level...Ive read this blog for many years....and really I Ill take another art long right now good with the bad...and who reported what incorrectly? All IM saying Yancy needs to put some BAD A55 into his game like he had at the Maui invintational last year......and Erik Hicks was a freshman every freshman gets home sick when they leave home....Ill take his heart and emotion over any play Ive seen come through the Shoe.......if the guy had Yancy's body he'd been the first pick in the nba draft after his junior year
Mr Bearcat no disrespect but i wasnt trying to bash any player, Art was one of my favorites

"I wish he had Art Longs demeanor (on the court not on the street beating horses)"

You were fine until you made the comment about him beating horses. He was never convicted of this, therefore it is not a valid comment. I have heard national sports commentators bring up the horse punching incident a hundred times. I heard it again earlier this year. In this country, you are innocent until proven guilty and he was never proven guilty, so it needs to stop being said. As I said, how can we expect the national media to stop reporting it if our own fans keep bringing it up? You could have just left it at..."I wish he had Art Long's demeanor on the court." The rest was a negative comment and unnecessary.

[GoCats1994]

Very classy.....

Please read the whole post. The point was that Yancy's career is not yet finished. Yet people - on this board - tend to bash him for not being more like Hicks, or Kenyon, or whomever.

People tend to forget that Hicks, Kenyon, etc took time to develop.

[Mr. Bearcat]

Please read the whole post. The point was that Yancy's career is not yet finished. Yet people - on this board - tend to bash him for not being more like Hicks, or Kenyon, or whomever.

People tend to forget that Hicks, Kenyon, etc took time to develop.

There's a big difference in Yancy, Kenyon, and Eric. Nobody ever questioned Kenyon and Eric's hustle and desire. Their skills took a few years to develop, but they played with fire from day one. Yancy was far ahead of those two with his skills when he first stepped on the court, but he has underachieved and drawn the fan's ire because he doesn't hustle and play hard. It did not take Kenyon and Eric a few years for their attitudes to develop. I would much rather see a guy with underdeveloped skills busting his a$$, than watch a guy with good skills just going through the motions.

Yancy hasn't proven anything to any of us yet. When the games start next month, we'll see if he has changed.

[Joco45215]

There's a big difference in Yancy, Kenyon, and Eric. Nobody ever questioned Kenyon and Eric's hustle and desire. Their skills took a few years to develop, but they played with fire from day one. Yancy was far ahead of those two with his skills when he first stepped on the court, but he has underachieved and drawn the fan's ire because he doesn't hustle and play hard. It did not take Kenyon and Eric a few years for their attitudes to develop. I would much rather see a guy with underdeveloped skills busting his a$$, than watch a guy with good skills just going through the motions.Yancy hasn't proven anything to any of us yet. When the games start next month, we'll see if he has changed.

I agree and he's a local guy I want him to be great....I wanted art long to be great I wanted hicks to be great...

[Joco45215]

]"I wish he had Art Longs demeanor (on the court not on the street beating horses)"[/[/COLOR]I]

You were fine until you made the comment about him beating horses. He was never convicted of this, therefore it is not a valid comment. I have heard national sports commentators bring up the horse punching incident a hundred times. I heard it again earlier this year. In this country, you are innocent until proven guilty and he was never proven guilty, so it needs to stop being said. As I said, how can we expect the national media to stop reporting it if our own fans keep bringing it up? You could have just left it at..."I wish he had Art Long's demeanor on the court." [I]The rest was a negative comment and unnecessary.

I will say what ever I want on this page as long as its respectful to the rules...Art long was cited for punching a horse. Just like OJ was cited for killing his wife, (he was not convicted either but pretty much everyone agrees that he did) Many comments on this board are unnecessary. Anyway Yancy Gates has a tremendous skill set and I would love to see it translate into an 18 pt and 10+ rebound average.....and alot more attacking the basket....with vengence

[Mr. Bearcat]

I will say what ever I want on this page as long as its respectful to the rules...Art long was cited for punching a horse. Just like OJ was cited for killing his wife, (he was not convicted either but pretty much everyone agrees that he did) Many comments on this board are unnecessary. Anyway Yancy Gates has a tremendous skill set and I would love to see it translate into an 18 pt and 10+ rebound average.....and alot more attacking the basket....with vengence

Art Long did not "punch" or "beat" a horse, therefore it shouldn't be said. Everything else, I agree with you.

[Joco45215]

Art Long did not "punch" or "beat" a horse, therefore it shouldn't be said. Everything else, I agree with you.

Lol Ok if it means that much to you I will retract the previous statment about Art Long. But can we agree on if he had the intensity of Art Long Yancey Gates could be a much better player and put the Bearcats back on the map in the land scape of College basketball?

[catscratchfever]

Art Long did not "punch" or "beat" a horse, therefore it shouldn't be said. Everything else, I agree with you.

O.J. didn't kill nicole either!:rolleyes:

[Mr. Bearcat]

Lol Ok if it means that much to you I will retract the previous statment about Art Long. But can we agree on if he had the intensity of Art Long Yancey Gates could be a much better player and put the Bearcats back on the map in the land scape of College basketball?

I already said I agree with everything else you said. You could have made your "excellent" points without dragging a former player through the mud once again. Good post for the most part!

[GoCats1994]

There's a big difference in Yancy, Kenyon, and Eric. Nobody ever questioned Kenyon and Eric's hustle and desire. Their skills took a few years to develop, but they played with fire from day one. Yancy was far ahead of those two with his skills when he first stepped on the court, but he has underachieved and drawn the fan's ire because he doesn't hustle and play hard. It did not take Kenyon and Eric a few years for their attitudes to develop. I would much rather see a guy with underdeveloped skills busting his a$$, than watch a guy with good skills just going through the motions.

Yancy hasn't proven anything to any of us yet. When the games start next month, we'll see if he has changed.

Not true. That was the point I was making earlier. Eric quit the team at one point...but later went on to be respected for his leadership. It took him time to develop.

Don't get too down on Yancy. Let's see his entire body of work once he is finished being a Bearcat.

[Mr. Bearcat]

Not true. That was the point I was making earlier. Eric quit the team at one point...but later went on to be respected for his leadership. It took him time to develop.

Don't get too down on Yancy. Let's see his entire body of work once he is finished being a Bearcat.

Yancy has two complete seasons of not hustling and not showing desire. Eric Hicks made a one time decision to stay home after a road game in his home state. Other than that one decision, he always showed hustle, effort, and desire. The two are not comparable. I have not given up on Yancy. I hope these reports of a new attitude and offseason hard work are accurate. We need him badly. His attitude and effort level could make or break this team. Let's hope it is a "make" and not a "break"!