About 2,500 fans greeted the Final Four-bound Kentucky Wildcats at Blue Grass Airport on Sunday night, hours after they beat North Carolina in the East Regional final.
Fans started lining up outside the general aviation runway around 9 p.m., waiting for the team to arrive from Newark, N.J. The chartered plane landed just before midnight and, after about 15 minutes, the team loaded on buses and drove through the crowd to head to campus.
''We did expect some parties and celebrations, which happen, and we also expected some people to come greet the team here at the airport but nothing of this magnitude,'' Lexington Police Lt. Rodney Sherrod said.
''There really weren't any problems whatsoever. On the street, we had a few minor problems, but nothing out of the ordinary, not for this size of crowd.''
Many fans brought signs to support the team, with one reading, ''Oh holy Knight, our Jorts are brightly shining!'' It referenced point guard Brandon Knight and center Josh Harrellson, who earned the nickname ''Jorts'' because of his taste for wearing jean shorts.
One fan, also playing on Harrellson's sense of fashion, hung a pair of jean shorts on a long wooden pole and waved it like a flag.
''We're proud of Harrellson and what he's done,'' said Brandon McBreyer of Lexington. ''I have worn these in support of him this year but not to a game, sadly. I thought about wearing them tonight but it's really cold, so I figured I'd just throw them up on a stick.''
Jody Sturgill walked around dressed as an all-blue ''Star Wars'' stormtrooper, complete with a blue helmet and light saber. ''I wore it to the SEC Tournament last year in Nashville but this is the first time this year,'' Sturgill said. ''It's been a great day and a great week. It's just been such a long time since we experienced this so I'm having a blast.''
