FREEAGENT

Unfortunately, a tough draw for GRC in the Sweet 16 as they have to play Sacred Heart. They did play them, and lost by 12 earlier this season.

Another year Kentucky doesn't get past the first weekend in the NCAA Tournament.

Years ago, when Ryle High School first opened, and Boone Co. was a top 10 big school football program year in and year out, their late head football coach Owen Hauck told me that down the road, there would be another high school built in the county and Boone Co. High School would be more like an inner city school with a deeply declining football program. Coach Hauck must have had a crystal ball.

As will Kentucky.

No reason to believe that this Kentucky team will come close to winning their first game in the NCAA tourney, no matter who they play.

You never know from game to game with this year's Wildcat team. A team with a number of injury prone players that has you scratching your head with both the games they win, and the games that they lose.

Mel was an encyclopedia of Northern Ky. and Kentucky sports knowledge. I enjoyed my many conversations with him over the years. May he rest in peace.

A very "Cincinnati" like performance on prime time television.

This team, which had so much promise back when they were 7-1, has seemingly turned in to the many Music City bowl UK football teams of the past. Snell is almost a non-factor since the Wildcat passing game has disappeared. Yes, they could defeat Middle Tennessee and a horrible Louisville team to end the season at 9-3, but it's really hard to get fired up about this team now after beginning the season so successful. Hopefully, they can show some fight in the second half, but I got to believe that the Hail Mary TD at the end of the half has finished off Kentucky.

Campbell County defeated Harrison County 26-24, 25-19, 21-25, 25-18 to win the 10th Region championship.

3rd and one, you've got the best back in the country and you attempt to throw the ball? I think Gran is not ready for primetime. What a buffoon.

Yes.

Grant Jolly with a 1 yard TD run as time expired to give the Camels the victory.

This will go down as the darkest day in Cincinnati college basketball history. Cincinnati blows a 22 point 2nd half lead and Xavier a 12 point 2nd half lead. Incredible!

What does this say about the Horizon? The number one seed has failed to win a game in the tourney the last 3 years. It looks like it's a bad league with mediocre teams. As exciting as it was to see NKU run the table in the tourney in 2017, it was tremendously disappointing this year. Probably the toughest thing about being in a bottom end Div. I league is the fact that the regular season means absolutely nothing. Heck, in the Horizon, the lower the seed, the more success a team has had. At least that's been the case over the last couple of years, anyway. Geographically, it made perfect sense for NKU to join the Horizon, but, in reality, the Horizon is really no better than the Atlantic Sun in terms of the overall quality of teams in the league.

One of the tough things about being in a 1-bid conference. The regular season is meaningless as far as the NCAA tourney goes. Last year, it worked in NKU's favor, this year, not so much. Hopefully they can regroup for the NIT.

As a kid growing up in northern Kentucky, Dale was the one that got me interested in following high school sports, even in grade school. I listened to many of his high school and NKU basketball broadcasts of the years. He called the very first NKU basketball game in 1971 when they played Calvary at the old Newport High School gym. Then, in college, I did a weekly high school sports show on WHKK radio thanks to Dale. I think I remember the boy's state high school basketball tournament broadcasts the most, as he and Hardy Tribble provided many hours of entertainment as they broadcast all 15 games of the tourney each and every year. It's also interesting to note that Dale's Sports Line show which aired on Monday-Friday from 5:30-6:00, was the first radio sports talk show in greater Cincinnati. They had contests where if you answered a trivia question from Dale, you won 2 tickets to Kentucky Colonels basketball games when they played at UC's Armory Fieldhouse. Needless to say, Me and my dad got enjoy a number of ABA games thanks to Dale. Then, in college, I did a weekly high school sports show on WHKK radio thanks to Dale. After his WHKK days he was the voice of UC sports, and in 1981 called the UC-Bradley basketball game which the Bearcats won 75-73 in an NCAA record 7 overtimes which is still the longest game in NCAA history. I believe that an audio recording of that game is in the Basketball Hall of Fame. He was a great softball coach that had the respect of his players, opposing players and coaches as well as other media members. As Mustang stated, he was truly a legend and will be greatly missed.

Yes. I heard him say that. If you really looked at their wins in the first half of the season, most came against teams under 500. Good teams, like the Dodgers, Cubs, Brewers, have dominated them. Heck, now they're getting swept by bad teams as well like San Diego. I was really hoping they could finish this season anywhere from 10 under to playing 500 ball, but that was a pipe dream. I'm really expecting next to nothing from Bailey, Finnegan, etc. They're nothing but injury prone pitchers who will add nothing except more frustration.

Going to be a brutal second half of the season. Final record may be worse than 2016. No decent starting pitching, worn out bullpen which is becoming less effective as the season goes on, and hitting which, has been a strength up to now, seems to be more inconsistent. Also, coming to the realization that Billy Hamilton will never become a steady lead-off hitter. When you lose 12 out of 13, you're just plain bad.

A life well lived. RIP

Congratulations to coach Brannen! Now let's cap it off with a Horizon Tournament championship and a ticket to the dance.

Yes, Nancy Winstel took over as coach after the 13-14 season in 1982-83 and guided the Norse to 29 consecutive winning seasons before she retired after the 2011-12 season.

The NKU women's basketball team is currently 8-16 with 6 regular season games remaining. This will mark the first losing season for the Norse since Jane Meier's 1982-83 team went 13-14. That's 33 consecutive winning seasons! How many schools can claim that? In fact, this will be only the third losing season since the program began for the 1974-75 season. They had a 12-16 record in 1980-81 and were 13-13 for the 1977-78 season. Hopefully, the NKU ladies can get back on the winning track next season.

Way to go Tigers!!!

Way to go Camels!