Good morning, Big Blue Nation. We have a significant summer basketball game to watch tonight in The Basketball Tournament as Kentucky‘s team of alums, La Familia, heads to historic Freedom Hall to play The Ville. Monday also brings more Olympic events from Paris, plus the college football season draws closer with the start of fall camp in Lexington later this week. It’s also KSR’s last week without Matt Jones, who will return to the KSR airwaves a week from today. Let’s go over all of those things and more.
La Familia vs. The Ville in Freedom Hall
The Kentucky-Louisville basketball rivalry has been slipping in recent years due to Louisville’s inability to produce a worthy basketball team. Remember last season when Kentucky fans took over the Yum Center in downtown Louisville to watch the Wildcats pummel the Cards by 19 points? The year before that, a 23-point win in Rupp Arena. On the gridiron, fans can barely remember the last time Louisville won the Governor’s Cup.
So, due to Louisville’s extreme levels of suck lately, the rivalry lost a lot of its fire. But tonight’s TBT game reignited that old flame as some of the best players of the John Calipari era of Kentucky teamed up to play the best Louisville’s had in the last decade. It’s feeling like old times, back when Louisville mattered, as the rival alums compete to advance in the TBT. The winner will move on to the semifinals in Philadelphia, where the $1 million prize awaits. The loser will hopefully be Louisville, per tradition.
HOW TO WATCH: FS1 and FoxSports.com
POINT SPREAD: La Familia -4.5
On Sunday, head coach Tyler Ulis and several La Familia players previewed the game.
Lexington’s own Lee Kiefer won Olympic gold (again)
Lee Kiefer will bring a gold medal back home to Lexington, Kentucky, after winning the gold in women’s foil fencing on Sunday. Kiefer, a Lexington native and UK College of Medicine student, edged out her American teammate, Lauren Scruggs, in the final. Kiefer’s second straight Olympic gold, she is only the second American to win the event twice. Congratulations to Lee on going back-to-back.
Kevin Durant and LeBron James led Team USA past Serbia
USA Basketball won its debut game in Paris, defeating Nikola Jokić and Serbia, 110-84, on Sunday. Kevin Durant and LeBron James were the stars of the game. The former checked in with a hot hand late in the first half to hit his first eight shot attempts, five of which were from beyond the 3-point arc. Durant finished with a game-high 23 points in his return from a calf injury, his debut appearance with Team USA this summer.
39-year-old LeBron James, the oldest player to ever suit up for Team USA, also shined as “Captain LeMerica.” James had 21 points, hitting his first six shots from the field, plus nine assists and six rebounds. Serbia had no answer for The King.
The former Kentucky guys combined for 23 points, led by Devin Booker‘s 12 on 4-for-5 shooting from outside. Anthony Davis, whose eight rebounds led Team USA, and Bam Adebayo scored seven and four points off the bench, respectively. The Americans connected on 18 of 32 3-pointers as a team in the win.
Tennis and Women’s Basketball headline Monday’s Olympics schedule
Monday in Paris is headlined by Novak Djokovic versus Rafael Nadal in Roland Garros, the 60th career meeting between the longtime tennis greats. Monday will also feature the beginning of USA Women’s Basketball’s run for an eighth straight gold medal. Team USA will face Japan at 3 p.m. ET, riding a 55-game winning streak in the Olympics. They haven’t lost since 1992.
Here’s Monday’s full schedule.
It’s almost football time in the Bluegrass. Later this week, the Kentucky Wildcats will start preseason camp on campus as they count down to the season opener against Southern Miss on Saturday, August 31.
This coming Saturday, August 3, the team will hold its annual Fan Day at the Joe Craft Football Training Center. Fan Day fun begins at 11 a.m. and will wrap up with the conclusion of the team’s practice around 12:45 p.m. ET.
More Fan Day details are here.
This week’s KSR schedule
It’s the last week of KSR’s summer schedule before Matt Jones returns from his 10-week break on Monday, August 5.
Monday, July 29 – Myron Medcalf’s final show of the summer
Tuesday, July 30 – Lexington Challenger Tennis Championships
Wednesday, July 31 – Tom Hart’s final show of the summer
Thursday, August 1 – Woodford County Day, the last of the counties
Friday, August 2 – UK Football Media Day
