Firmly Planted in Louisville

Just by way of some "scene-setting" from the tourney site, I thought I'd share a few shots from the South Regional site.

After waking up at 4:30am, making a boatload of coffee, and rustling Konza Jr., we hit the road from northern Virginia to Louisville. It was a smooth, thankfully uneventful trip, and we hit our goal of arriving in Louisville just prior to the KU open practice at 3pm.



It was a very small crowd for the practice (not surprisingly, as it's a day prior to the games and Louisville isn't exactly a bastion of KU alumni). But it was a respectful, enthusiastic crowd. The KU players looked a bit tired or low energy, but I think these public practices are largely just stage shows and they aren't really "practicing" much. It's mainly just a shoot-around.



The KU band was on hand and provided some nice musical entertainment to accompany the shoot-around.



Once the players were done, they jogged off toward the tunnel, and many kids (my son included) got some nice autographs. In my son's case, he had them autograph his official KU sneakers that Naadir Tharpe gave him back in the day, at a KU winter clinic.



Coach Self stopped by, and chatted with the fans. Gracious as always... After that, we stuck around and my son got to talk with BoB Davis, Jim Nance, Bill Raftery, and Grant Hill. They were all super kind and patient with the kids. Bob was great--such a Hawk fan, through and through. Jim Nance gave my son some tips on broadcasting (smile) and Grant Hill took a picture with him--probably because Grant hailed from Reston (where we live) and went to the middle school and high school that my son will attend. Kinda cool on a personal level. (PS: I told Grant I was there for his '91 tomahawk jam against KU in the NC game, and never forgave him for that. He chuckled...)



http://imgur.com/JItaJmT





All told, an enjoyable time. But we're ready for the game! It's hard to believe that tip-off isn't until 9:40pm tomorrow night, local time here. I hope the KU team can bottle its energy and retain it for such a late hour. (Same problem for Maryland, of course, but I don't like these super late tips for the Sweet 16 round)

FWIW...not much, I know, but thought I'd post anyway.

PS: Sorry for the blurry nature of some of the shots. My iPhone is old and goes out of focus far too often.

GO HAWKS!

Rock Chalk...

Just remember:

We are the better team. We remain on a formidable roll (16 straight). We know how to bring it and close the deal. Our guys are very seasoned. We can break your back with killer shooting, athletic dribble penetration, and (increasingly) strong rim play. We have depth. Our guys practice daily against the best team in the country--KU. The boys are hungry and want to keep the party going. Self is the next college Hall of Fame coach.

And last but not least:



Onward and Upward for the KU Locomotive...

ROCK CHALK!!!