Untitled Document

CONCERNED FANS FOR

BASKETBALL

HOW HAVE COACH SMITH'S RANKINGS
COMPARED TO RUPP'S, HALL'S, AND
PITINO'S RANKINGS?

Press Release

Concerned Fans For UK Basketball

November 1, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

On Thursday, November 2, 2006 , the University of Kentucky Men 's Basketball Team begins a new season with an exhibition game against Lindsey-Wilson at Rupp Arena.

The anticipation among the Big Blue Nation is high as Kentucky fans across the nation wait to see this year's edition of Cat's against real, live opponents. Such pre-season talk invariably turns to national rankings.

Concerned Fans have compiled the historical ranking data for University of Kentucky Men 's Basketball from the 1948-49 season through the 2005-06 season. The University of Kentucky Athletics Association 2006-07 Men's Basketball Media Guide, at page 129, has provided the data for this compilation.

http://www.ukathletics.com/doc_lib/mbb_hi...nkings.pdf

Here are the results:

Coach Years Number of Number of Percentage of
Name From To Weeks, Total Week Top 10 Of Weeks Top 10

Rupp     1948     1972                 310                   222                               71.6
Hall      1973     1985                 204                   117                               57.4
Sutton 1986     1989                 47                   24                               51.1
Pitino    1990     1997                 118                   97                               82.2
Smith    1998     2006                 160                   91                               56.9

Other than the Sutton years, Tubby Smith has produced top 10 national rankings less frequently than Hall, Rupp, or Pitino. However, when we examine the Pitino and Smith Eras more closely, other relationships emerge from this data. Everyone is aware that Pitino and Smith inherited radically different situations upon their respective arrivals at the University of Kentucky . The impact of these initial conditions affected the first two seasons of each Coach's Era. When factor out the first two years of each Coach's results, we see the results for each of these coaches with their own recruited players and their own systems absent the influences of their respective predecessor.

Coach Years Number of Number of Percentage of
Name From To Weeks, Total Week Top 10 Of Weeks Top 10

Pitino 1992 1997 102 91 89.2
Smith 2000 2006 126 59 46.8

In addition to these data, we offer the following observations about the data. In his second season (the first year off probation), Pitino put UK back in the Top 10. In his second season, Tubby put UK out of the Top 10 for the first time in 7 years.

In week 15 of Pitino's third season (1991-92) UK again reached the Top 10 and remained there continuously for Pitino's remaining 5 years at UK (except for one week ranked 11th).

In week 15 of Tubby's second season UK fell from the top 10 and remained out of the Top 10 for the next two consecutive seasons. Only once before has UK failed to make the Top 10 for two straight years. That was 45 years ago (1960-1961 Seasons).

Questions and comments about this Press Release may directed to: ConcernedFans4UK@alltel.net

Submitted by Jack Hanbury

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