In a formal manner, I would like to send my deepest regards to any member of Big Blue Nation that missed today’s matchup between La Familia and Boeheim’s Army. Words can’t describe the type of feeling felt inside of Historic Memorial Coliseum today, but it was similar to that big-game buzz after the Wildcats get one at Rupp Arena.

Archie Goodwin showed the rest of the teams participating why he may be the best in TBT, dropping 30 points, six rebounds and five assists. The one time he missed (not actually) was for the Elam goal, and just like poetry, Kahlil Whitney had his moment and put back the shot in posterizing style.

We can have some fun in July right? Sure, they said.

La Familia (4-1) defeated Boeheim’s Army (2-2) by a score of 70-66 on Sunday, July 26, advancing to the alumni bracket championship and moving closer to the $2-million prize.

The rematch of the 1996 National Championship was one that had every generation intrigued, with former Wildcats Derek Anderson and Oscar Tshiebwe in attendance to watch the hot start from the Kentucky alumni.

Andrew Harrison dropped the first seven points of the game for La Familia, leading to an early 13-5 lead. The defense looked sharp, the ball was moving around effortlessly and the scoring was distributed quite evenly.

The second quarter was mostly all Boeheim’s Army, with guard Ty Nichols dropping 18 points in the first half. However, a late surge would maintain the lead and Kentucky would jog back into the locker room up three. Goodwin led the team with 17 points.

Syracuse’s energy would continue into the third, with a shocking disappearance from Harrison causing fans to lose interest and get a tad quiet. At one point, they were outscoring the Wildcats 12-3 in the quarter alone.

One big play was all it took for La Familia to get back into a winning mindset, and Whitney’s huge chase-down block would do just that. With Harrison confirmed to not be returning, everyone in the gym knew it was go time.

Kentucky would outscore Syracuse 22-14 in the final minutes of the fourth quarter and the Elam, surviving and advancing for one more shot at glory.

Up next, La Familia will host the winner of JHX Hoops (Kansas) and Aftershocks (Wichita State) on Wednesday, July 29 for the alumni bracket championship. The opponent-deciding matchup will take place on Monday, July 27 at 9:00 p.m. ET on FS1.

Regardless of their opponent, La Familia will host the championship at Historic Memorial Coliseum with a 7:00 p.m. tip time on FS1.

This spring, the NCAA passed a rule that allows men’s and women’s college basketball programs to participate in an international summer trip every year, rather than just one every four years.

These trips are important as they most importantly allow teams to have extra practice time, but they also allow teams to face true competition and aid in team bonding. For the fans, the trips allow the unique experience to travel with the team or watch them on TV, building excitement for the upcoming season.

In his first press conference of the summer, Mark Pope talked about his hope for an additional rule change to summer trips, allowing them to be done in the states.

“There is one of the things that we’re excited about, potentially coming down the pipeline that we’ve been pushing for, is now we’re allowed to take international trips every single year. We’d like to actually make that something that could be done domestically,” Pope said on Friday

Pope argues that this is a way to bring more attention to college basketball in the summer.

“We’re always trying to take up windows of time with college basketball, in terms of the way we are in the public sphere, and I hope that that change goes through,” he said. “The opportunities that we’re exploring right now with that would be game-changing. I’m hopeful.”

There is also a financial aspect to this.

Foreign trips cost money for the program and the fans. Typically, a program works with the resort or tour operator at a discounted rate, as they aim to make more money from fans’ travel. Yet, there is still a cost, and in a college landscape where money is at a premium and needed to be competitive, every dollar counts. Cost was even something mentioned when Mark Pope was asked about why Kentucky did not take a summer trip this offseason.

Whereas, if a summer trip can be done domestically, that first reduces the cost for the program, and second, eases the barrier of entry for fans.

Let’s say Kentucky is able to organize or join a multi-team event in Indianapolis. This is close enough for many Kentucky fans to travel at a lower cost than, let’s say, the Bahamas, increasing ticket sales. There is also potential for TV deals. In short, increased revenue and reduced costs.

At the end of the day, Pope is just asking for more freedom for summer trips. In turn, that would mean more accessible summer college basketball.

“If you talk to the guys on our team, they would like more time on the court together and with us. They like more opportunities to play more games,” Pope said. “Our staff feels the same way. I think that’s probably a common theme throughout college basketball. So the more freedom we have to actually get work done, I think the better.”

Also posted on A Sea of Blue.

Game three between La Familia and The Ville was everything you could ask for as a bystander in the middle of the summer. From vintage performances, to big-time plays, BBN had a variety of reasons to get loud and support their alumni.

On Wednesday, July 22, La Familia (2-1) took down The Ville (1-2) by a score of 63-57, eliminating the rival Louisville Cardinals from the alumni bracket. The Wildcats officially advanced to the alumni semifinals, now just three wins away for a shot at $2 million.

The main story of this one was the debut of Archie Goodwin, who was under the social media light heavily after the Kentucky alumni suffered a blowout loss on the road. Aaron Harrison, who is inactive this tournament run due to his newborn, took to Twitter (X) to express his feelings on Goodwin and the other players who pulled out of TBT this summer.

“I don’t see how you can say you will show up and committed …then don’t show up at all the week of??? We could’ve gotten different players that wanted to play and not play with ppl time. Sucka sh*t”

Seemingly though, business was handled before he made his debut, confirmed by Goodwin after the game. Families fight, and that’s ok, but having a good performance will certainly clear all the bad energy surrounding an issue. He did just that.

La Familia rolled out a new starting lineup, moving Chris Coffey to the bench in trade for Goodwin and starting Willie Cauley-Stein, who only played 24 total minutes in the first two games.

From a honest standpoint, La Familia came out extremely sloppy in the first half, shooting 10/27 from the field and 1/11 from deep. Montrezl Harrell had tallied 12 points and seven rebounds by the break, continuing his domination from the previous game.

Every Wildcat fan was thinking the same thought with their team trailing 30-25.

The second half was all Kentucky, and it sure was satisfying. Goodwin started hitting shots and getting into a rhythm, Darryl Morsell was hitting shots left and right and Cauley-Stein looked like his younger self after his injury.

Goodwin would call game in his debut, hitting the Elam score of 63 and finishing the night with 22 points. Morsell dropped 20 points and Cauley-Stein had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Up next, Kentucky will host the winner of Boeheim’s Army (Syracuse) and Hall In (Seton Hall) on Sunday, July 26. Tip is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. ET and will air live on FOX.