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Top-Ranked Kentucky Makes it 30-0 with Tight Win at Georgia

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Kentucky forward Marcus Lee (00) and Georgia forward Cameron Forte (11) battle for a rebound in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, March 3, 2015, in Athens, Ga. Kentucky won 72-64. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Kentucky forward Marcus Lee (00) and Georgia forward Cameron Forte (11) battle for a rebound in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, March 3, 2015, in Athens, Ga. Kentucky won 72-64. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

PAUL NEWBERRY, AP Sports Writer

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Kentucky has been in some close games.

This was a new predicament, however.

With just over 9 minutes to go, the top-ranked Wildcats found themselves down by nine points, facing an inspired Georgia team and a hostile crowd, their perfect season very much in jeopardy.

No problem.

Kentucky clamped down defensively and turned to freshman Karl-Anthony Towns to carry the offensive load, ripping off a 14-0 run that finally put away the pesky Bulldogs 72-64 on Tuesday night.

Did losing cross the Wildcats’ minds?

Not a chance.

“We think about what we need to do to win the game,” Towns said.

And now, the Wildcats are 30-0, just one win away from a perfect regular season. They’ll try to finish that off Saturday against Florida at Rupp Arena.

From there, it’s on to the Southeastern Conference tournament, where Kentucky will be a huge favorite.

Then comes the NCAA Tournament and an expected No. 1 seed.

At this point, there are not too many more chances for the Wildcats to lose and still reach their ultimate goal: a national championship.

“The championship is much more important than the perfect season,” said Aaron Harrison, who also made some huge plays in the closing minutes. “But we’re winding down.” Perhaps, he surmised, “We’re going to need to be undefeated to win the championship.”

The Wildcats, who improved to 17-0 in the SEC, had won their previous five games by an average of 24 points. They have become a college version of Showtime, drawing plenty of big names every time they take the court, everyone wanting to get a glimpse of a team that has a shot at college basketball’s first perfect season since 1976.

Among those who turned out in Athens: Super Bowl-winning coach Bill Belichick, former NBA star Charles Barkley, disgraced Atlanta Hawks general manager Danny Ferry, and actress Ashely Judd, hitting the road to watch her beloved Wildcats.

They were really challenged in this one by Georgia (19-10, 10-7), which had the sellout crowd roaring when Yante Maten tipped in a miss of his own shot on the second attempt to put the Bulldogs up 56-47 with 9:12 remaining.

Kentucky has survived a few tight finishes along the way, most notably consecutive overtime wins over Mississippi and Texas A&M at the start of SEC play back in January. Twice this season, they have trailed by as many as 11 points, but both of those deficits were in the first half, when the Wildcats still had plenty of time to seize control.

Georgia, using its quickness on the inside to offset Kentucky’s huge size advantage, had the Wildcats on the ropes after Maten’s hustle play capped a 17-4 spurt.

Andrew Harrison knocked down a 3-pointer from the corner to turn the tide, but Kentucky was still in some trouble when Nemanja Djurisic drove for a basket and Marcus Thornton hit two free throws to make it 62-56 with 5 1-2 minutes to go.

That was Georgia’s last gasp. The Wildcats began pounding the ball inside to the 6-foot-11 Towns, who managed to stay in the game until the closing seconds after picking up his fourth foul. He led the team with 19 points, all but two coming in the second half.

“You have kids here who have a will to win, they believe they’re going to win, and they made the plays they needed to make,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said.

Towns and Aaron Harrison were both huge down the stretch, combining for 12 of the 14 points during the decisive run. Towns had seven, including a three-point play with 2:53 left that put Kentucky ahead to stay. Harrison chipped in with five, and Willie Cauley-Stein came up with a massive dunk off a missed free throw to give the Wildcats a four-point play on one possession.

Georgia hurt its chances by missing three straight 1-and-1s.

“We did some good things, some really good things,” Thornton said. “We just didn’t play perfect enough to win.”

Still, this was a strong indication that Georgia deserves its first NCAA tournament bid since 2011. The Bulldogs haven’t been ranked all season, but they have a strong RPI and can still reach 20 wins in the regular season with a victory Saturday at Auburn.

“You’re seeing a team that, in my opinion, is a Top 20 team,” Calipari said. “We didn’t play that bad. They fought and played and made plays.”

As Kentucky exhaled after its first close call in a while, a Wildcats fan held up a sign that said it all:

“UK. The Unbeatables.”

___

Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Arts and Culture

Gov. Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom Host 2024 Hall of Fame Ceremony

Former Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and three other African Americans were among 10 luminaries inducted into the 2024 Class of the California Hall of Fame on Feb. 8. The 17th Annual California Hall of Fame ceremony was held at the California Museum.

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Willie Brown, Former California Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor, was proud to be among the Hall of Fame inductees. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey.
Willie Brown, Former California Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor, was proud to be among the Hall of Fame inductees. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey.

By California Black Media

Former Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown and three other African Americans were among 10 luminaries inducted into the 2024 Class of the California Hall of Fame on Feb. 8.

The 17th Annual California Hall of Fame ceremony was held at the California Museum.

“The California Hall of Fame is one of our families’ favorite traditions as it is a time to come together to celebrate remarkable Californians as well as their loved ones because we know that it is about partnerships,” Siebel Newsom said. “The governor likes to say that California is a dream factory because it doesn’t matter what zip code or background you come from, the California dream is alive and well to everyone who calls this state home.”

The other Black honorees were filmmaker Ava DuVernay; Federal Judge and civil rights leader, the Hon. Thelton Henderson; and basketball Hall of Fame player and broadcaster Cheryl Miller.

“It’s what I’ve been waiting for and to be among a great group of individuals that also deserve the honor,” Brown told California Black Media on the event’s red carpet before the ceremony began. “No, I never thought someone from Texas would be recognized this way. But here I am, and it all happened in the great state of California. It’s a fantastic feeling.”

Other 2024 inductees are: master chef and “mother of fusion cuisine” Helene An; computer scientist and “father of the internet” Vincent A. Cerf; all-female pop punk band The Go-Gos; Chicano Rock band Los Lobos; former U.S. Secretary of Defense and Congressman Leon E. Panetta; and artistic director and choreographer Brenda Way.

This year’s honorees join a history-making club with over 150 inspirational Californians previously inducted for their groundbreaking achievements and personifying the state’s innovative spirit.

“It’s just a humbling experience. I want to thank the Governor and First Partner. Who would have thought 100 years ago (that I would be inducted?) It’s incredible,” Miller said after her induction. “I want to thank the governor and First Partner for an incredible event.”

During his acceptance speech, Henderson said he was deeply honored.

“You know, it really would have been a really big deal to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in the area where I grew up, for example, South Central Hall of Fame, or the Watts Hall of Fame, or the Straight Out of Compton Hall of Fame,” he said. “But being inducted into the California Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame of the greatest state in the country in this great nation is something else.”

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Community

El Cerrito High Senior Jayvon Bolds Named to Blue-Grey All-American Bowl

El Cerrito High School senior Jayvon Bolds is set to play in the Blue-Grey All American Bowl game at Cowboy Stadium in Dallas on Jan. 8. Bolds, an 18-year-old scholar athlete whose favorite subject is history, was nominated for the honor by Rodney Alamo Brown, founder of Soulful Softball Sunday who also serves as an announcer for the Texas bowl game.

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Jayvon Bolds (No. 4) is headed to Cowboys Stadium to play in the Blue-Grey All American Bowl. (Photo courtesy of Rodney Alamo Brown).
Jayvon Bolds (No. 4) is headed to Cowboys Stadium to play in the Blue-Grey All American Bowl. (Photo courtesy of Rodney Alamo Brown).

By the Richmond Standard

El Cerrito High School senior Jayvon Bolds is set to play in the Blue-Grey All American Bowl game at Cowboy Stadium in Dallas on Jan. 8.

Bolds, an 18-year-old scholar athlete whose favorite subject is history, was nominated for the honor by Rodney Alamo Brown, founder of Soulful Softball Sunday who also serves as an announcer for the Texas bowl game.

“It’s a real honor,” Alamo Brown stated about Brown’s selection for the bowl game. “This makes him an All-American.”

Bolds will play three positions for the Eastern team: kr, slot back and special teams—i.e., kickoff and punt return.

“The plan is to line up Bolds all over the field and let him do his thing. He’ll be a weapon for our staff,” said NFL veteran Tampa Bay Buccaneers standout and All-American Bowl Coach Dick Bell. “In a game like this, with the platform being an NFL facility with former professionals as assistants and mentors, he’ll have a chance to shine on one of the biggest stages around.”

Recently, Bolds received a scholarship offer to continue his higher education at Clarke University in Dubuque, Iowa.

Bolds maintains a 3.3 GPA and is heavily involved in leadership as he is the vice president of the Black Student Union.

Blue-Grey Football launched in 1989 by founders Gus and Erik Bell with the aim of helping prospects gain national exposure so that they can improve their chances to secure college scholarships.

Some of the nation’s most talented young football players compete in the annual game, with Fox Sports, CBS Sports and USA Today regularly providing coverage, as well as ESPN.comScout.comRivals.com and 247Sports.com.

Bolds’ family is planning on traveling to Dallas on Friday and is seeking donations from the community to offset the enormous cost. Those who are willing to donate may do so by sending their donations to this cash app, $Juanita Towns.

Rodney Alamo Brown contributed to this report.

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Book Reviews

Book Review: “Who Got Game? Basketball”

A little less than two feet. That’s how far you can get your two feet off the floor if you’re an average kid doing an average vertical jump. Not quite twenty-four inches, but don’t worry: the taller you grow, the higher you could be able to jump. Practice some, dribble a little, shoot more three-pointers, and you might jump right into a book like “Who Got Game? Basketball” by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Jez Tuya.

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“Who Got Game? Basketball” Author Derrick Barnes Courtesy of EyeSun Photography (Charlotte NC). Book Cover Courtesy of Workman Publishing c.2024.
“Who Got Game? Basketball” Author Derrick Barnes Courtesy of EyeSun Photography (Charlotte NC). Book Cover Courtesy of Workman Publishing c.2024.

A little less than two feet.

That’s how far you can get your two feet off the floor if you’re an average kid doing an average vertical jump. Not quite twenty-four inches, but don’t worry: the taller you grow, the higher you could be able to jump. Practice some, dribble a little, shoot more three-pointers, and you might jump right into a book like “Who Got Game? Basketball” by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Jez Tuya.

Here we are, football season’s almost over, and your mind has turned to other things – namely, hoops set high over your head, and a round bouncy basketball. Kids like you who “got game” have had it for more than a century. Yes, the game of basketball was created by Dr. James Naismith in 1891 in Massachusetts.

In the years since, basketball has changed a lot, thanks to what Derrick Barnes calls “pioneers.” Julius “Dr. J” Erving improved the dunk. Before that, in 1950, the NBA first allowed Black basketball players on the teams. There have been super-tall players (Manute Bol and Gheorghe Muregan were both seven feet, seven tall) and smaller b-ballers – five-three Muggsy Bogues had a vertical jump of nearly four feet! – and just two years after the game was invented, America had its first women’s team.

A lot of off-court people poured themselves into the game, too. Barnes writes, for example, about Pat Summitt, hoopster, leader, and “one of the greatest coaches in all of sports history.” Her record of 1,098 wins ranks her at first-place in coaching women’s basketball, and as the coach with the second-most wins overall.

You can probably guess that in a book about buckets, there are bucketfuls of stats. Barnes includes a list of NBA players who jumped to a team right out of high school. He writes about the greatest basketball park ever, he explains why winners cut down the net, how Title IX changed the game, why backboards rarely break into a zillion pieces anymore, high scores, bad injuries, “hoops movies,” and where in the world you can pick up a game today.

So, your 9-to-13-year-old loves basketball so much that they dribble a ball in their sleep? They think their favorite jersey is church wear? Then you’ll be the hero of the day when you bring home “Who Got Game? Basketball.”

But first, there’s one big thing you need to know: this is not a how-to book. There aren’t any instructions inside here, no rules or plays to follow. Instead, author Derrick Barnes makes young b-ballers happy by sharing little-known info about the game they love so much, short lists, great stories about great players, wins and losses, and phrases they should know to talk the talk. All this knowledge is supported by colorful illustrations by Jez Tuya that kids will enjoy alongside the facts.

This book is for die-hard young b-ballers, but don’t be surprised if an adult finds a thing or two to learn here. “Who Got Game? Basketball” is a book any fan will want to jump on.

“Who Got Game? Basketball” by Derrick Barnes, Illustrated by Jez Tuya, c.2023, Workman Publishing, $16.99, 172 pages.

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