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From Charlotte: Kidd-Gilchrist’s success is hard-earned

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist

(AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

For Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, basketball may have been the easy part.  Before his third birthday, his father was shot to death in Camden, N.J. in 1996. As a young child, Kidd-Gilchrist and his father, Michael, had watched the movie “The Lion King” almost every day.  Now 18 years old – he will turn 19 on Sept. 26 – Kidd-Gilchrist still watches the movie once a week, its tale of young Simba growing into a lion after seeing his father die having become a part of his life.  Kidd-Gilchrist's father had gone to Benedict College in South Carolina to play basketball in the 1980s, but left school and joined the Army instead. His son grew into a 6-foot, 7-inch small forward who became an integral part of 's national championship team in his only college season.

 

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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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