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Flop or Flagrant Foul: Immanuel Quickley and Yves Pons

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For the first time ever, I attended Thompson-Boling Arena yesterday for the Kentucky vs. Tennessee game. The arena is nice, the fans I sat around were nice, and the game was fun. Some drunk Vol fans were chanting “f*** Kentucky!” and talking trash about Lexington when we left, but otherwise, it was a fun experience.

One thing that has been consistently terrible in college basketball this season, well other than North Carolina, is college officials.

I didn’t think they were terrible in yesterday’s slate of games, but there were two egregious no-calls. One in the UT/UK game and one in the Duke/UNC game. One cost a team the game, the other didn’t, but one was much worse than the other.

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I didn’t see the play happen live, all I saw was Immanuel Quickley lying on the ground and he appeared to be unconscious because he wasn’t moving. The refs didn’t even blow the play dead and finally John Calipari got the refs attention and walked out onto the floor. The refs wouldn’t let him on the floor at first but Cal won the battle as he walked out with Vol fans erupting in boo’s.

Should they have stopped play? Yes. Kentucky had possession and the ref was literally right there when it happened. Instead, all he did was shake his head.

I woke up this morning to see a lot of fans suggesting that Quickley flopped and that it was a good no-call. I couldn’t believe it. So let’s break it down.

Quickley isn’t even looking

It’s pretty clear that Kentucky is running a play to get Quickley open. No one else is moving besides him and Keion Brooks is setting a screen for him.

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The thing that makes this even weirder is that Tennessee is on defense. Why on earth is Pon trying to set a screen? If he is simply trying to keep Quickley from running the baseline, this isn’t the legal way to do it.

Not set and leans in

If you watch the video closely, Pons isn’t close to set. He’s moving before he gets in front of Quickley and he clearly leans his shoulder in Quickley’s direction before they make contact.

I know one photo doesn’t do the play justice, but here’s the moment of impact.

Shoulder

I pretty much already stated this above, but I need to emphasize it a little more. Pons clearly sticks his shoulder out toward Quickley before they make contact. I wouldn’t really have a problem if he just moved laterally to get in front of him, but he clearly swings his shoulder at Quickley, making it even worse, and a dirty play.

The Ref

To cap it all off, there’s a ref standing right there and he does nothing. In the background, Nick Richards sees the play and goes nuts, the refs simply shakes his head, suggesting there’s nothing. I don’t know how you can see that in live action and do nothing.

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Flagrant Two

This is clearly a Flagrant Two foul and Pons should’ve been thrown out of the game. He swung his shoulder at Quickley and made contact above the shoulder area. The play was completely unnecessary and wasn’t anywhere near the ball. Like I said, it looked like Quickley got knocked out because he went to the ground and didn’t move and was there for a lengthy amount of time.

For the ref not to even blow his whistle is absurd. There’s no way that’s a clean play in basketball. I would go as far as saying the ref should be suspended. He watches the play, doesn’t blow his whistle, shakes his head, and doesn’t stop play for an injured player on the team with possession of the ball (the rule).

After the game, Quickley tweeted this:

And to make it even better, the blind mouse that missed that made this call:

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Don’t get me wrong, the refs made some bad calls on both teams. But, like I said above, unless your a homer who hates UK, this is an obvious foul call and an ejectable foul. No way is this a play on.

Thanks SEC refs.

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Men's Basketball

CBS Sports: Kentucky Has “ended pursuits” in Transfer Portal Following Aberdeen Commitment

In the wake of yet another addition to Kentucky’s incoming roster, CBS Sports reports that Coach Pope and staff may have closed the portal.

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Mark Pope and staff may have everything they need from the transfer portal.
Chet White | UK Athletics

Following another flurry of transfer portal additions in his second year at the helm, it appears that Mark Pope and staff are satisfied with their sophomore haul. The portal in Lexington may be officially closed for the 2025-26′ season.

Right after Kentucky received the surprising commitment of Denzel Aberdeen, Matt Norlander, an analyst for CBS Sports, posted the following on X (Twitter):

“Barring any portal defections, Kentucky has ended its pursuits of all other portal targets, sources told CBS Sports. Getting Aberdeen today [April 21] meant they’ve moved off Andrej Stojakovic, Rylan Griffen, etc. Otega Oweh going through pre-draft process-but I expect him back in Lex”.

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With the addition of Aberdeen, the Wildcats’ roster ballooned to near-max capacity for next season. Seeing two of the team’s walk-on players, Grant Darbyshire and Walker Horn, enter the transfer portal seemed to all but confirm this suspicion, too.

Losing One of Our Own

That is, until last night. With less than two hours remaining for players to do so, Travis Perry shocked much of the Big Blue Nation by throwing his name into the hat. This came just weeks after a string of comments from the Kentucky-native point guard seemed to confirm his return for a sophomore season.

Though all the same, given Kentucky’s bulk of back-court additions this offseason, his departure makes sense for the sake of playing time alone. The Lyon King will be sorely missed.

So while the Kentucky staff may still be very much content with their current roster, with hundreds of players remaining in the portal and an unexpected spot on the roster coming open, another grab is far from out of the question.

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Who Coach Pope and company would go after is entirely unclear, as that potential player would likely have to accept a minimized role off the bench for a stretch of his time in Lexington. If anything, the logical replacement would be a direct fill-in at the PG2/PG3 spot in Perry’s absence.

Either way, the ‘Cats are set to come into next season as one of the most exciting teams in college basketball with a ceiling far out of view. Mark Pope continues to prove his prowess in the transfer market, too, easing the worries of Wildcats fans and closing the door on many supposed “insiders” who’ve spent the last month suggesting otherwise.

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REPORT: Travis Perry Enters Transfer Portal

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Kentucky basketball Travis Perry talks about growing more comfortable on the court.
Jordan Prather | IMAGN

The transfer portal has been kind to Kentucky in the Mark Pope era. Last season, the staff was able to build a Sweet Sixteen roster almost exclusively from the portal, and this offseason have put together a top-five portal class.

While the portal giveth, it also taketh. Just hours before the deadline to enter, Kentucky native and fan favorite Travis Perry has entered the transfer portal, per multiple reports.

Coming to Kentucky as the state’s all-time high-school scoring record holder, fans were excited to see how his career would unfold in Lexington.

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Not expecting to play much freshman, he was called upon due to injuries and played some key minutes for the Wildcats into the postseason. He averaged 2.7 PPG and .6 APG on 32% shooting from three.

Looking at the depth chart, it was difficult to see where Perry would get much playing time next season, leading to his decision to enter the portal.

Perry has yet to release an official statement, but all the best to him in his future.

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Men's Basketball

Top Transfer Guard Denzel Aberdeen Commits to Kentucky

Former Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen commits to Kentucky, likely closing the transfer portal for next year’s roster.

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Denzel Aberdeen commits to Kentucky.
UF Athletics

Another day, another “boom.” Denzel Aberdeen has officially committed to Kentucky for the 2025-26’ season.

A soon-to-be senior guard fresh off his championship win with Florida, Aberdeen spent his first three years of eligibility in Gainesville. Now, following an apparent conflict in the Gators’ rotation, he’s swapped teams in the southeast.

At 6 ‘5”, 190, Aberdeen spent much of this past season beating defenders off the dribble and making them pay at the rim. His speed and size made him a nightmare off the bench for opposing teams, and for the short stretch of play that he started during the year, Florida didn’t miss a beat. 

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In 19 minutes, Aberdeen averaged 8 points, two rebounds and one assist per game. His consistent contribution to the Gators’ title run made him one of the most coveted transfers in the cycle this season, and given his big blue commitment just days after entering the portal, Mark Pope clearly wasted no time in Kentucky’s pursuit.

Aberdeen slots in as yet another addition to what was already one of the strongest portal classes going into next season. His SEC experience and combo-guard intangibles make Aberdeen one of the most exciting portal players to come through Lexington in a long while, reinforcing Kentucky’s back court to what may be the final degree.

Whether or not Mark Pope is officially done for next season, nobody is sure, but this commitment only further cements the fact that he knows exactly what he’s doing. Just like the  fanbase behind him, Coach Pope seems to never sleep.

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