John Clay Archives - Walter's Wildcat World

The most important part of next season for Kentucky has already begun. It’s transfer portal season.

On March 31, 1975, Coach John Wooden closed out his coaching career by leading the Bruins over Kentucky for their 10th NCAA title in 12 years.

On March 31, 1984, Georgetown outscores UK 23-2 at the start of the second half to defeat the Wildcats, 53-40, in the NCAA semifinal game in Seattle.

On March 31, 1997, despite losing its star, Derek Anderson, to a knee injury on Jan. 18, UK returns to defend its NCAA title in the National Championship game, trying to become the second team in 24 years to repeat as national champion, falling in overtime to Arizona, 84-79. Ron Mercer and Anthony Epps nailed three-pointers inside the last minute to force overtime. But with four Wildcats fouling out, Arizona outscored UK by five in the extra period in Rick Pitino's final game as coach at Kentucky.

On March 31, 2008, long time Kentucky basketball manager Bill Keightley passed away at the age of 81 in Cincinnati. Affectionately known as “Mr. Wildcat”, he had been associated with the Wildcats’ basketball program since 1962. Keightley, who manned the “Bill Keightley Equipment Room” in Memorial Coliseum, was as much a fixture around UK basketball as the seven national championship trophies on display in the Joe Craft Center. A crowd of over 3,000 payed their respects at a tribute to Mr. Keightley held in Rupp Arena. Former players, coaches and managers traveled from across the country to eulogize him.

On March 31, 2012, Kentucky finally put away pesky Louisville, who outrebounded Kentucky 40-33, 69-61, in the Final Four to advance to the national championship game. Kentucky shot a dazzling 57 percent with Anthony Davis leading the way with 18 points and 14 rebounds. Darius Miller added 13 points, and Doron Lamb had 10. Kidd-Gilchrist had nine, all in the second half. Former Kentucky coach turned Louisville coach, Rick Pitino, congratulated Calipari and told him he'd be rooting for the Wildcats.

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.

Necessary

Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

Cookie	Duration	Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional	11 months	The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy	11 months	The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Category: John Clay

The most important part of Kentucky’s 2022-23 basketball season has already begun