Kentucky Native Josh Hutcherson of Hunger Games Welcomed by Wildcat Fans

Two of the leading characters in the 'Hunger Games' franchise are from Kentucky, one of which showed up at the Kentucky Wildcat, Louisville Cardinals Basketball game, getting a strong welcome from fans, along with the Mockingjay salute as well.

James Crisp/AP

Josh Hutcherson was dressed up in support of the Wildcats, who beat their interstate rival Louisville 73-66. Kentucky had been rated #18 in the nation, and Louisville #6 before the game.

The photos shown here are during halftime when Hutcherson made the familiar Kentucky 'Y' symbol while standing in the middle of the court. Fans responded with the Mockinjay salute, which was a symbol of solidarity in the film.

Mark Cornelison/LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER via Kentucky.com

Also from Kentucky is star of Hunger Games Jennifer Lawrence, who plays the lead role of Katniss Everdeen. Hutcherson plays her boyfriend Peeta Mallark.

Hutcherson and Kentucky fans were delighted in the moment.

Murray Close/Lionsgate

Cauley-Stein and Wiltjer staying at Big Blue, Goodwin leaving to enter draft

 

The news was mixed but unsurprising concerning players in the Kentucky Wildcat men's basketball
program, as two players -  Willie Cauley-Stein and Kyle Wiltjer - have announced they'll return for next season, and Archie Goodwin, the star freshman guard, has announced he'll be leaving to enter the NBA Draft.

After losing all five starters from last year's championship team, Kentucky has a chance to build for next year with a strong contingent of recruits coming in. Having some experience and leadership could help the team go a long way next year, as it was lacking in the disastrous (for Kentucky) season they went through.

As for leaving, Goodwin said this: "This is something I've dreamed about my entire life and I feel like the opportunity is there for me to play at the next level. I will stay in Lexington to finish my schoolwork this semester before continuing to pursue my dream. I've loved my time at UK and want to thank Coach Cal, the staff and my teammates for helping me get where I am. I especially want to thank the Big Blue Nation for all their support."

Goodwin led the Wildcats in scoring the last season, averaging 14.0 points a game. Of all University of Kentucky freshman in the history of the men's basketball program, Goodwin ranked 10th in scoring with 448 points.

Cauley-Stein said he was looking forward to improving next year and the attempt to bring the NCAA Basketball championship back to Lexington. He averaged 8.3 points and 6.3 rebounds during the 2012-13 season.

Echoing similar sentiments, Wiltjer, who was the top sixth man in the SEC the past season, said after talking with the UK coaching staff he understands what he needs to do next year and wants to be "part of another championship."

After winning the national championship last year Kentucky was only able to make it to the NIT tournament this year, where they were shockingly knocked out of the first round by Robert Morris. The Wildcats had been favored to win the NIT.

Kentucky Crushed by Vandy, Didn't Respond to Challenge

 

After watching this Kentucky Wildcat team throughout the year, it appears they were destined for frustration and underachievement from the time the players were recruited. That has been evident throughout the year, and the loss of Nerlens Noel isn't what made the season the disaster is is; it was that before Noel was injured.

Through the year Kentucky couldn't or wouldn't respond when they needed to, and that was evident again in the crushing defeat they suffered to Vanderbilt in the SEC quarterfinals, losing by a big margin of 64-48.

For a team with everything on the line, it simply reinforced what has been wrong with them all year long.

Knowing the quality of the coaching of the team, it definitely has to be traced back to recruiting specifically, as this team wasn't ever really a team because some of the players never bought into what Calipari gave them.

The result is one of the worst seasons for Kentucky in recent memory, which will almost assuredly land the team in the NIT, rather than even given a chance to defend its title.

If they are miraculously handed a birth in the big tournament, it would only be because of its past success and the national title it brought home last year.

As in many games during the season, the Wildcats didn't match the intensity of their opponent, which resulted in the lopsided defeat. The 48 points of the cold-shooting Wildcats was the lowest in the season, and the performance of the guards was terrible, to say the least.

It shows that talent alone can't produce a winner, as players must be coachable and be hungry to give it their best to produce the type of winning teams usually enjoyed at Kentucky.

There can be no doubt different metrics need to be used in the Kentucky recruiting program going forward, as this was one of the rare misses of Calipari, and is unlikely to be reproduced any time soon.

Kentucky Wildcats Basketball on Turner Sports Special

The history and tradition of Kentucky Wildcats basketball will be the subject of an upcoming documentary on the Turner Sports channel.

Named 'Bluegrass Kingdom: The Gospel of Kentucky Basketball,' it will be featured on March 17 on on TruTV. It will shown after the selection of the 68-team NCAA Tournament field.

Being explored in the documentary are the tenures of coaches like Rick Pitino, Eddie Sutton and Joe B. Hall, along with current coach John Calipari. It'll start with the time period of Adolph Rupp and include modern players like Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who was important part of the 2012 national championship team; the eighth time Kentucky has won the championship.

Even long-ago players such as Pat Riley, who is now the president of the Miami Heat will be part of the look at Kentucky men's basketball history.

Kentucky's Nerlens Noel Out for Rest of Season

At a time when the Kentucky men's basketball team was starting to find an identity and success, it was deal a major blow, as freshman Nerlens Noel will be out for the rest of the season from a torn ACL injury suffered in Florida.

Sometime in the next couple of weeks Noel will have surgery performed on him, according to UK medical staff. Recovery from this type of injury can be up to eight months.

Noel was a defensive dynamo for Kentucky, leading the nation with 106 blocked shots, averaging 4.4 a game. He also had 9.5 rebounds a game on average.

The injury was suffered when Noel ran after and leaped to block an attempted layup from Mike Rosario of Florida.

Before the injury Noel was thought to be a probable No. 1 pick in the NBA draft.