A bit of a Flight of the Conchords feel on the Pinkie the past couple days, huh?

All joking aside though, since the Campbellsville game, I think everybody around the Kentucky program, from Coach Cal all the way down to the guys who still call into radio shows, has realized that the omnipresent buzz around the UK program is nothing but unfulfilled hype. The hype is based on some tremendous talent, but nothing has yet been accomplished, and nothing will be accomplished without some serious work.

John Calipari has been doing this too well for too long to think that Patterson, Wall, and company were going to jump right in, grasp the dribble drive, and dominate college basketball right way. However, a lackluster performance in a sloppy win over an overmatched opponent has given Calipari the ability to lay down the law and have his players understand why.

Two a day practices, in. Pre-6 am wake up calls, yup. Team curfew, yes, indeed.

During the first week of practice with a bunch of freshman that think they “poop ice cream”, that’s tough to pull off. Now, he’s got a team that is fully aware of its talent, but also fully aware that they just aren’t there yet. They have been completely willing listeners to this point. Patterson and Wall have established themselves as leaders. They are ready to make Coach Cal’s vision a reality.

This should be a reminder for us as fans that we are observing a work in progress. However, I think the final product will be well worth the wait. Besides, after 2 years of Billy Gillispie, I think we can wait a couple months for our ‘Cats to get their feet under them.

-The other piece of news today from Calipari’s session with media was that Eric Bledsoe could miss tomorrow’s exhibition against Clarion with the sprained ankle he sustained on Monday against Campbellsville. Calipari did not rule him out, but my guess is that they will play it cautiously in this case.

Sitting out tomorrow will give Bledsoe a full week and a half between the injury and UK’s first regular season game against Morehead State.

-Finally, a quick reminder to check out the running Tobias Harris recruiting journal on AllKYHoops.com. It’s a really cool inside access feature on one of the best prospects in the country who is preparing to make his college decision in the next 2 weeks. Anthony Wireman runs AllKYHoops.com and contributes to Strait Pinkie weekly with a recruiting article on Saturday’s, so we’re very happy for Anthony.