What might look like an ordinary scene in a gym where guys are practicing basketball is actually much more than that. This weekend at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York is set to showcase the best and brightest from high schools all over the world. The Jordan Brand Classic is now its 12^th year and puts a spotlight on these young men.

The game had previously been held in Charlotte, North Carolina, but now in Brooklyn will have three games played on Saturday. Jordan Brand, a division of NIKE, Inc., hand selected the best of the best to play. One game called the National game will have 12 of the top high school players in the country take on another team. The teams are East and West.

The East Team is coached by Rob Fulford who is the head coach at Huntington Prep in Huntington, West Virginia. On the East Team some notable players are Julius Randle, Andrew Harrison, and Aaron Harrison. All three players will be going to play in Kentucky later this year.

The West Team is led by head coach Chris Dyer from DeSoto High School in DeSoto, Texas. For that team some of the prominent high school players are Matt Jones and Jabari Parker. Jones and Parker will play for Duke University after they graduate high school.

Along with the National game, there will also be a Regional game that has the top prep players from the New York metropolitan area in a City vs. Suburbs showdown. Lastly is the sixth annual International Game featuring the top 16-and-under players from around the world.

If you have not seen the game in the past years than you missed out on watching Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James and Blake Griffin when they were in high school. Now the stars of tomorrow look to play on Saturday.

Today I was able to check out the guys practice and prepare for the bright lights of the Barclays Center, which is home to the Brooklyn Nets.

The players I was able to speak with was Julius Randle and Andrew Harrison. Randle and Harrison are both going to Kentucky.

Randle was very excited to be in New York. He hopes to run into Jay-Z and see the sites of the Big Apple. Randle who currently goes to Prestonwood Christian Academy in Dallas, Texas.

On building some chemistry at the Jordan Brand Classic with his future Kentucky teammates he said, “Oh yea definitely. Last week I played with Dekari Johnson and it was great. This week I am playing with the Harrison twins (Andrew and Aaron). It is crazy. I always used to play against them and now I am playing with them. It will be fun this weekend.”

On the Jay-Z front I wanted to know if Randle would let Jay-Z be his agent since the rapper is now looking to sell his Nets stock so he could represent players in the NBA.

Randle smiled but told me, “Sure. (Laughs) If that is the best for me and my future.”

I also spoke with Andrew Harrison who also will be playing at the University of Kentucky and he commented on why he choose to play at Kentucky. He told me, “It is the way that they play. They have a lot of great players there and I hope that we can win a championship there.”

I also asked Andrew what he expects out of this weekend and he replied, “I just want to have fun. Everyone here is a great player and I am looking forward to play with these guys.”

Kentucky head coach John Calipari met with Andrew Wiggins just last week, but still nothing much has been said about his college decision. He was wooed by Florida State coeds, how awesome to be a highly touted hoops star, a few months ago and his decision appears to be down to Kansas, North Carolina, the Wildcats, and the Seminoles.

But, Nick Wiggins, Andrew’s brother and member of the Final Four-bound Wichita State Shockers, has thrown a wrench into the fray, claiming that his little brother is going to “Shock the World” when he reveals where he will attend college.

Is it possible that Andrew is thinking about joining his brother, who is currently a junior, to play for Gregg Marshall at Wichita State? Passing up the royalty of college hoops to play for the Shockers of the Missouri Valley Conference, would definitely succeed in “shock”ing the world.

Wiggins attended Huntington Prep in West Virginia and averaged 23 points and 11 rebounds, to go along with nearly three blocks and three assists. He is the No. 1 recruit in the nation and was named Naismith and Gatorade Player of the Year.

While Noel probably does not harp on the fact that he’s following one of the most successful and decorated college basketball players of this era, everyone else does. Heck, I’m doing it right now. Like Davis, Noel was recruited to Kentucky as the #1 high school player in the nation. Both have similar body types being long and close to 7 ft. tall. Both were mostly revered for their defensive prowess and high upside. Besides the location of their infamous hairs, where can anyone separate these guys?

Through 10 games:

Anthony Davis averaged more points (+1.1 ppg), more rebounds (+1.0 rpg), more blocks (+0.5 bpg), and shot 13.7% better from the field than Noel.

Nerlens Noel averages more steals (+1.3 spg), more assists (+1.0 apg), more minutes (+2.4 mpg), and shoots 1.2% better from the free-throw line than Davis.

The numbers are slightly more skewed for Anthony Davis due to the competition he faced compared to this year’s team. Davis had to face Kansas at a neutral site. Noel had to face Maryland and Duke at neutral sites. Last year’s team did not have their first true road test till they faced Indiana on December 10th. Noel and this group of ‘Cats had their first test at Notre Dame over two weeks earlier than last year’s team.

Perhaps the biggest difference between Anthony Davis and Nerlens Noel is the teams they played on. Davis had an overall better, and more experienced team than Noel walked into this year. Noel does not have a consistent point guard (yet), nor does he have returning players like Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb, and a senior like Darius Miller. While Alex Poythress, Kyle Wiltjer, and Julius Mays look to fill those roles, those comparisons are not fair either. Those three returners are trying to fill the voids filled by 2 first-round draft picks and a solid NBA reserve.

Perhaps following Anthony Davis makes Nerlens Noel’s year seem sub-par to the college basketball world. While Davis went on to set the UK and NCAA records for total blocks, Noel is on pace to be Top-10 in NCAA history and #2 at UK. A unique stat Noel can claim all on his own is in the steals category. He is currently on pace to steal at least 101 balls, breaking Rajon Rondo’s record of 87 and giving him the all-time steals leader title at UK. While the NCAA record is 138, Noel is on track to be at least in the Top-5 and possibly Top-3.

While we can all appreciate and respect what Anthony Davis did for UK last year, let’s not let his greatness outshine what Nerlens Noel is doing on the court this year. Noel has consistently improved throughout the year, and has been one of the most stable features of this year’s Wildcats. I hope everyone can realize, like I have, how Nerlens Noel is making his own mark on the college basketball world.

Mizzou QB James Franklin is listed as doubtful for Saturday’s game against UK, making Joker Phillips dance with glee.

No game reeks of desperation more than a matchup between a pair of teams winless halfway through their conference schedule. That’s the type of game that will go down Saturday at noon in Columbia, Missouri between the Kentucky Wildcats and Missouri Tigers. Let’s take a look at SEC Virgin Mizzou, who had their conference cherry popped in vulgar fashion, playing Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama in the season’s first half.

How Mizzou got to 3-4 (0-4)

SE Louisiana: W, 52-10:  Thorough shellacking, as expected, in every phase over the FCS program.
Georgia: L, 41-20: Led late in the 3rd quarter before the wheels fell off with two 4th quarter turnovers.
Arizona State: W, 24-20: Despite backup QB making his first career start, Mizzou hangs on w/2 late goal line stands.
at South Carolina: L, 31-10: 1st road test was a beat down, as Cocks D and special teams allows SC to cruise.
at Central Florida: W, 21-16: Long punt return TD keys Mizzou rally, and D holds late over C-USA favorite
Vanderbilt: L, 19-15: After two promising drives to start game, starting QB Franklin leaves with injury and offense can’t rally
Alabama: L, 42-10: Another victim of the Tide’s early season freight train. Only TD was a kickoff return.

DT Sheldon Richardson is strait beast, leading the Tigers in tackles despite being a defensive lineman.

Where Mizzou is Best

The Tiger defense has been solid all season long, especially considering the pressure that has been put on from an offense that has been inconsistent at best. Junior DT Sheldon Richardson is a beast in the trenches, leading the team in tackles, sacks, and tied for the team lead in TFL. The rest of the D-line has been solid in its own right, with three of the team’s defensive ends having at least three sacks and playing the run well against some good running teams.

An experienced linebacking corps rounds out a stout Mizzou front seven, as senior MLB Will Ebner is second on the team in tackles, and junior OLB Andrew Wilson has already forced four fumbles. Zaviar Gooden, the team’s other OLB, was preseason all-conference, but has been limited by injury. He should be in action, however, on Saturday. Junior cornerback EJ Gaines was a preseason all-conference selection, and has played up to the expectations. Gaines and senior Kip Edwards form a solid corner tandem.

After missing last year with injury, sophomore return man extraordinaire Marcus Murphy has already taken four kicks to the house in 2012. Look for him to try and get loose on the Cats’ punt team.

LT Elvis Fisher was supposed to be a bookend on the Tiger O-line, but injuries have derailed his final season. He will play, and hopes the bye week was kind to his bum knee.

Where Mizzou is Worst

The offensive line has been a revolving door thus far in 2012, and it has showed with an offense that has been somewhere between inept and inconsistent. The Tigers have started different O-line combinations in five of their six games, and the biggest facet that has suffered is pass protection. As impressive as the defense’s 17 sacks have been, they have also allowed 17.

Probably not coincidentally, Mizzou starting QB James Franklin has missed two whole games and most of a third due to injury. He’s doubtful to play this weekend after spraining his MCL against Vandy three weeks ago. Backup QB Corbin Berkstresser is a redshirt freshman who doesn’t have the mobility or experience of Franklin, and the offense has taken a step back with him on the field. His completion percentage is less than 50%, but we’ll see if the bye week has allowed the Tigers to put in a game plan that is more to his liking.

Other than Murphy’s explosive returns, special teams have also been a nightmare. Kicker Andrew Baggett has missed four field goals, and the punt unit has seen two blocked punts and a dropped snap for a safety. Big returns have also been a thorn in Mizzou’s side, an issue that has been magnified by the fact they haven’t consistently had touchbacks on kickoffs.

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Little boys are impressionable and before the age of 10 they may find they have lots of favorite teams in other sports but in college basketball, by that age, they have chosen. For many it’s genetic, you get your daddy’s eyes and his fervor for UL or UK. For others it’s the influence of one of their favorite people, and for me it was my grandmother. Mamaw was a baseball nut. She had season tickets to the Redbirds/Bats until the day she died. She kept a scorebook during World Series games on tv. She made it to every little league ball game she could and if you played at Prairie Village you knew where she lived. You could even find her out back joining in for a few swings during a whiffle ball game. As much as she loved baseball, she had one true passion…Louisville Cardinal basketball.

My parents divorced early and my dad always claimed my mom made me a Louisville fan out of spite…I think he was joking. Yet, my love for the Cardinals was forged in my grandmother’s passion. This church going woman full of joy and kindness did find time to talk bad about one group of people on a regular basis. I don’t think it was the actual basketball team that ruffled her feathers but rather those fans clad in blue. She would say the same things that we say today about either side, “you can’t be around them” , “you can’t talk any sense to them”, or just plainly “a bunch of idiots”. These are phrases that can be interchangeable no matter what side of the table you sit.

This week is something Mamaw never experienced. This week is something we have only imagined. Yet, the week leading up to the “Dream Game” is anything but a dream. From the time Kentucky finalized their victory over Baylor the upset stomach began. The tension as you see Wildcats shirts walk by is high. The winner will have a life time of bragging rights because now, more than ever, the stakes are high.

Friendships will be tested and families will be torn. If you care about someone then limit your conversations to things other than basketball. The only thing I have talked about with my friend is what time should we start the steaks on Saturday and if he was watching Tiger win for the first time in over 2 years….oh and he told me his boy was yelling at him, “Go Cards” and laughing (no worries Cats fans, his fate is sealed)! Being a real fan in the Bluegrass is so much more than buying a t-shirt or rooting for whoever your spouse likes, it’s a life-long journey rooted in love, hate, and usually a disappointed family member.

Dear Cinderellas and Johnny Come Latelys, not this year!

The four teams with reservations in the 2012 Final Four are not strangers to this time of the year. The teams have combined for 49 Final Fours. Kentucky’s 15 trips is tied for 2nd most with Duke, Kansas is one behind with 14, Ohio State is next on the list with 11, and Louisville follows the Buckeyes with 9.

Kentucky has made a Final Four in every decade except the 00′s, beginning in the 40′s. They are the winningest program in total wins, most tournament appearances, and most tournament victories. It’s 7 National Championships is second only to UCLA. Wildcats are making consecutive appearances in the FInal Four for the third time in school history (48-49, 96-98).

Kansas not only sits with the 3rd highest total of Final Fours but also has the longest active streak for NCAA Tournament appearances with 23. The Jayhawks only trail Kentucky in overall wins and rank 5th in all-time tournament victories with 91, including 3 titles. KU has only missed a Final Four in one decade, the 60′s since 1940. This is the schools fourth appearance since 2000.

Ohio State has had a less storied past than the previous schools, but still carry a long tradition. The Buckeyes total of 11 Final Fours include two sets of three peats (44-46 and 60-62). Their 51 tournament victories is the 10th highest total. The school has made a Final Four in every decade except the 80′s, including most recently in 2007.

The Cardinals of Louisville have only 6 teams ahead of them in most Final Fours with 9. The school is 6th with 64 tournament wins victories and ranks 5th with 38 tournament appearances. UL has the 9th highest winning percentage in all-time games. The team has 2 NCAA Tournament Championships in ’80 and ’86. This is the Cards first appearance in the Final Four since 2005.

The coaches are no different. This is Rick Pitino’s 6 Final Four as a coach, which ties him with the Adolph Rupp and Denny Crum! John Calipari makes his 4th appearance as a head coach. This will be Thad Matta’s and Bill Self’s second appearance.

This Final Four may have the blood of college basketball royalty but it never takes away from the excitement and emotions of one of the most exciting times in the sports world.

If Laettner had missed that shot, or if Grant Hill hadn’t successfully made that amazing pass, the glory of the “greatest game ever played” would have belonged to Sean Woods. Seconds earlier, with everything on the line, he’d hit his own remarkable shot, giving his Wildcats the overtime lead with mere seconds to play. If Laettner’s impossible shot never happens, Sean Woods would have been a March Madness hero for years. Announcers would have yearly recalled the night he scored 21 points and hit the shot that mattered in a game that shocked Duke and the world in overtime. Instead, Laettner hit the shot, guaranteeing UK fans a yearly replay of painful memories and guaranteeing Sean Woods would fade into obscurity.

It’s ironic, then, that Sean Woods played for a Kentucky core known as the “Unforgettables”.  After all, how many casual basketball fans actually remember Richie Farmer, John Pelphrey, and Deron Feldhaus? But at the time, this was a team that defied the odds, and under the direction of Rick Pitino, had a magical run in 1992. This faithful team, which had stayed at the school despite having to sit through years of probation, endeared itself to the fans. The magic ended when Laettner drained that shot, but Woods will always remain a beloved Wildcat for being a vital member to one of its most famous teams.

In his UK career, Woods averaged 8.7 points and 5.3 assists per game. To this day, he still ranks in the top five of all time UK assist men. In 2005, his career at UK earned him a spot in the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame –forever saving a spot for his jersey in the rafters of Rupp Arena.

Beyond college, though, Woods has never exactly found himself in the limelight. He would never make an NBA roster, his career consisting of a brief stint trying out for the Indiana Pacers. Despite his career ending within the paint, Woods hasn’t left the court. To this day, he still finds himself on the sidelines, still as passionate for college basketball as he was nearly two decades ago.

After assistant coaching jobs at High Point, Texas A&M-Corpus Christie, and TCU, Sean Woods has found himself as a head coach in the NCAA. Though always a Wildcat, Woods now leads the Delta Devils of Mississippi Valley State University. Despite a less than stellar record of 30-76 as a head coach in his first four seasons, there are indications that he is taking the program in a new direction and building a foundation for the future.

This season, the team earned revenue and extreme experience with Woods’ non-conference schedule, playing nine games against opponents from the main conferences, including behemoths such as Florida and North Carolina. Though this schedule has added to Woods’ and the program’s loss total, it has also added to the visibility and income of the basketball program.

To the Wildcat fan, Woods will always be a member of the Unforgettables –the player that was 2.9 seconds from March Madness infamy. But, perhaps there is a glimmer of hope for Woods that he’ll have another chance to make history in the college basketball world. Who’s to say that, a few years from now, the Delta Devils from MVSU won’t find themselves as mid-major spoilers? Who’s to say that Woods won’t one day coach a team that will repay Duke, with a last second shot—a shot that shocks the world?

Wayne Turner was an integral piece and starting point guard on a UK dynasty that brought two championships back to Lexington (not to mention a runner-up finish as well). Turner was not a prolific scorer, but his all-around contributions, ability to spread the ball, and electric play allowed him to become a much-heralded part of a now legendary Wildcat team. In his stay at UK, he turned heads with his odd shooting style, which was especially displayed when he shot free throws. It often looked like he was shooting backwards. But something clearly worked, because he was also turning heads of the sport’s nation. Not many UK basketball players can say they appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated twice. Wayne Turner can.

After averaging 9.9 points, 4.2 assists, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game in his final two years as a Wildcat, Turner hoped to move his diverse games into the professional realm. He would spend the next decade as a basketball journeyman, putting more cities and countries on his résumé than Carmen San Diego.

Turner’s stint in the NBA was brief –he played only three games for the Boston Celtics. After scoring four points and dishing out five assists in his 41 minutes as an NBA player, Turner took his modest salary of $30,000 and moved on. It became a theme of his professional career. He would never stay in one place for more than a season. After the Celtics, Turner played for the IBL’s Cincinnati Stuff, and then joined the infamous Harlem Globetrotters in 2000. Sadly, Scooby-Doo wasn’t still around, or Wayne would have been born into cartoon infamy.

After being a Globetrotter in Harlem, Turner became a real-life globetrotter. Between 2001 and 2008, Turner played for Andrea Costa Imola (Italy), the Dakota Wizards of the CBA, the Townsville Crocodiles (Australia), Spirou Basket (Belgium), the Boston Frenzy of the ABA, the New Zealand Breakers, and the East Kentucky Miners of the CBA. After over a decade of extensive travel as a professional basketball player, his ultimate destination came full circle. In 2010, he returned to Rupp Arena, where he served as one of Calipari’s assistants. He also returned to the classroom, where he worked to finish the undergraduate degree he had started in an era when NSYNC was still popular and Tubby Smith was the new face in town.

Apparently, Turner has found some solace in coaching. This year, he joined the Visionary Basketball Group (VBG), a year-round basketball development organization, as a coach and mentor for youth that aspire to do what he did –play high-level ball and hoist the hardware. Wayne Turner, once the young UK point guard with the quirky shot and the championship rings, is now hoping to inspire the next generation of basketball legends.

If the talent level at VBG is high, I’m guessing Turner hasn’t seen the last of Calipari. He’ll be recruiting the next class of stars, hoping to bring to Kentucky what hasn’t been seen since the Wayne Turner Era –a championship banner and a floor full of Wildcat blue on the last day of the college basketball season.

Patrick Sparks was never a star, by any means. After a successful two years at Western Kentucky University, he transferred, and spent his final two years of eligibility being a serviceable Division-I point guard. In his two years with Tubby Smith’s wildcats, he averaged 10.4 points, 3.5 assists, and 2 rebounds per game. While these stats are admirable, nothing about the Sparks’ numbers had NBA agents or scouts clamoring for his phone number. But there was something about Patrick Sparks that endeared him to the Wildcats’ fans.

For one, he was simply a Kentucky boy. Tubby Smith didn’t exactly recruit in-house, either, so it was a rare commodity when the Kentucky faithful got to see one of their own in the spotlight. Hailing from Central City, Sparks was a local hero with a story of hard work and daring to dream paying dividends. This attitude of never giving up was reflected in his game play. He was scrappy. He played the game with the ferocity of an angry Chihuahua, hustling after loose balls and never fearing to stand up to men who were taller, more athletic, and “better” than he was. Sparks was the underdog. As much as UK fans love to win, they also love to root for the underdog. Sparks was the best of both worlds. And then, he gave his fans one of the most memorable tournament moments from the past decade.

Nothing personifies March Madness like Patrick Sparks’ buzzer beater in 2005. Kentucky faced Michigan State in the Elite Eight, and when all seemed impossible, Sparks found a way to get behind the line and sink the shot that sent the game into overtime. The entire state of Kentucky was rendered breathless as the ball cruelly lingered on the rim, and when it finally succumbed to gravity and fell through the net, they jumped in unison. It was unbelievable –so unbelievable that CBS and the referees had to replay the play upwards of one hundred times, zooming in with what looked like FBI precision. The basket was good. Even with Kentucky going on to lose in overtime, Sparks solidified his place in Kentucky infamy within 1.5 seconds, a rebound, and an implausible shot.

Since leaving UK, Sparks has never returned to that stage of fame or audience. But basketball is still his life. 6’0 and scrappy was not enough for the NBA, so he ended up, instead, being drafted by the CBA’s Indiana Alley Cats in 2006. His CBA stint was brief, and coupled with a time away from basketball and a DUI arrest in 2008, it looked as if Sparks’ basketball career was facing an early and anti-climactic end.

Not so fast. Sparks’ career has had a resurgence in the unlikeliest of places. No longer is he the local boy endearing himself to fans. Sparks has taken his hard-nose brand of basketball across the pond –to Ukraine. In a short European career, he’s already played in Greece, Germany, and Portugal, but he seems to have found a level of success and stability in the Ukrainian Basketball League. In 2009, he officially became a professional all-star, making the UBL’s team in 2009. Currently a member of BC Odessa, Sparks finished last season averaging 9.3 points, 4.8 assists, and 3 rebounds per game, while shooting an astounding 87.5% from the free throw line.

The stats, once again, may not look amazing. But I can’t help but find myself imagining a Ukrainian crowd finding something impressive about this point guard who goes hard in the paint. The Kentucky faithful shouldn’t be surprised if, someday in the near future, Sparks shows up on YouTube, nailing an odds-defying buzzer-beater to bring BC Odessa a victory.

Then, Wildcats’ fans can once again relive 2005’s most exciting shot, when a 6’0 boy from Kentucky stood upon the biggest stage, and took their breath away.