A Big Win for Hal Rogers

The Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Hal Rogers (R-Somerset), has to be one of the happiest folks in Washington when it comes to the new budget deal announced last night.  As Politico reports today:  "he (Rogers) would get more power and would be charged with writing spending bills."

Kentucky 70 - 55 Boise St. (No. 2,119)

Here's the score by quarters:

1st:  Kentucky 22, Boise St. 14
2d:  Kentucky 19, Boise St. 17 (UK led 41-31 at the half)
3d:  Kentucky 15, Boise St. 10 (UK led 56-41 with 10 minutes to go)
4th:  Kentucky 14, Boise St. 14 (Final score:  UK 70-55)

This was UK's first game ever against Boise State, and its first game against a team from Idaho since 1955.  The Wildcats are now 3-0 all-time against teams from the Gem State.

Ken Pom liked this result, as he bumped UK up from 11th to 7th.  But he gives UK only a 34 percent chance of beating UNC on Saturday, and only a 49 percent chance of beating U of L in a few weeks.  Losing those two games will not improve the mood in the Commonwealth.

The Ashes: Match Two

Australia cruised to another easy win in the second match of the Ashes competition taking place down under.  In Adelaide, Australia opened with 570 runs before declaring themselves to be out in the top of the first.  They then retired England after only 172 runs.  Leading 570-172, Australia tacked on 132 more runs before declaring themselves out again.  They then retired England after 312 runs in the second, and they had prevailed, 702-484.

So here are the scores so far:

Match 1:  Australia 696, England 315
Match 2:  Australia 702, England 484

So England has been blown out twice in a row.  Meanwhile, the British press is full of stories about how the English have been intimidated by Australia's Mitchell Johnson, a fast bowler who has been cruising through the English lineup.

Match 3 starts on December 13 in Perth, and another Australian victory will win them the series.

Basketball in the Commonwealth

Here is how Kentucky's seven D-1 men's basketball teams are doing so far.  The number beside each team is its ranking according to Ken Pomeroy.  The big question is whether U of L can bring a third consecutive title back to the Commonwealth.  So far, none of the smaller schools in the Commonwealth are having a banner year, although Murray has now won two straight, and Western doesn't really start playing until we get to the Sun Belt tournament:

1.  Louisville:  8-1
11.  Kentucky:  7-2
143.  E. Kentucky:  7-3
166.  Morehead St:  7-4
175.  W. Kentucky:  5-3
250.  Murray St:  4-5
322. No. Kentucky:  1-7

Man Shot When Gun Discharges in Restroom

From time to time, I'll see a headline and think to myself, "I wonder if that happened in Kentucky."

This story, from Elizabethtown, carried one of those headlines.

It's Almost Time for Kentuckian of the Year

Don't forget we will be naming our Kentuckian of the Year in the next few weeks.  Here are the last three winners of this prestigious award:

2010:  Rand Paul (Bowling Green)
2011:  John Calipari (Lexington)
2012:  Darius Miller (Maysville)

Who will it be this year?  I will say only that 2013 has been a banner year for Kentucky, and that we have many strong candidates.

AP NFL Poll: Week 14

Here is the current top 10 teams in the NFL, according to the AP's poll.  Seattle remains on top after crushing the Saints last week:

1.  Seattle Seahawks:  11-1
2.  Denver Broncos:  10-2
T3.  New England Patriots:  9-3
T3.  Carolina Panthers:  9-3
5.  New Orleans Saints:  9-3
6.  San Francisco 49ers: 8-4
7.  Kansas City Chiefs:  9-3
8.  Cincinnati Bengals:  8-4
9.  Indianapolis Colts:  8-4
10.  Philadelphia Eagles:  7-5

The 6-6 Dolphins move from 20th to 15th after their win over the Jets; the Redskins (3-9) have fallen all the way down to number 31.  Only the Texans (who just fired their coach) are ranked below the Redskins.  Ironically, the three lowest-rated teams in the NFL -- the Falcons, Redskins, and Texans -- all made the playoffs last year.

Three solid games are on tap today.  The best game, on paper, will be late this afternoon, with the number-1 Seahawks going down to San Francisco for a game against the number-6 Forty-Niners.  The Sunday night game is also good, with the Panthers going to New Orleans for a game with the Saints.  We even have a rare watchable game at noon Central today, with the number-9 Colts in Cincinnati for a game with the number-8 Bengals.  You don't often see two likely playoff teams meeting in the noon time slot this late in the year.  So bundle up and have a good day of professional football!