There's no love lost between Louisville fans and Kentucky fans when it comes to college hoops in the Bluegrass State, and as the teams prepare to meet Friday in Indianapolis with a spot in the Elite Eight at stake, even politicians are taking sides.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer was asked Monday about negative reaction from Wildcats fans in town after proclaiming Friday "Cardinal Red Day" in Louisville. His response, according to the Card Game blog, was straightforward and seemingly uninfluenced by the prospect of losing favor among the residents who elected him.
"They say they're never going to vote for me again," Fischer said, according to the site. "I'm willing to take that risk. I remind them I'm the mayor of Louisville and not the mayor of Lexington."
A Vanderbilt graduate, Fischer took over the mayor's office in 2010, replacing longtime Louisville mayor and current Kentucky Lt. Gov. Jerry Abramson. But while his anti-Kentucky sentiments may have been fostered in the SEC, it's pretty clear that it's his pro-Louisville stance taking the lead now.
After all, this isn't the first time Fischer has dissed UK since taking office.
"We have two very different approaches to running a program," Fischer told the Washington Post in 2012. "UK has a one-and-done approach. We don't. Plus, we have a new arena here, and the 'Cats have arena envy. We got the best arena in the world, and they can't handle that."
Kentucky beat Louisville 73-66 when the teams met in December and topped Louisville in a national semifinal in New Orleans in 2012. (Louisville, you'll recall, won last year's national title and beat Kentucky in the teams' 2012 regular-season meeting on New Year's Eve.) We'll see who is envying whom after the teams meet Friday night.
Now, for some links:
• Roger Goodell says Jim Irsay's recent arrest will leave him subject to discipline, but he has not yet penalized the Colts owner.
• As the Louisville hoops team returns this weekend to the site of Kevin Ware's gruesome injury from last year's tournament, some are wondering: Where is Ware?
• Urban Meyer says Tim Tebow is still hoping for an NFL job.
• Kobe Bryant and a friend have a running bet on whether Justin Bieber or Katy Perry will see their career implode first.
• Tom Izzo says he's happy at Michigan State, but he'll never say never to the possibility of an NBA job.
• The LA Kiss released a TV commercial, and, well, it's about what you'd expect:
• It's kind of nice to see an NBA official admit when he is wrong, as Courtney Kirkland did to Deron Williams after a bad call Monday:
• Robin Lopez, Seven Dwarves aficionado:
• Matt Harvey will get his wish and train in New York as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.
• Utah Jazz guard Trey Burke says fans are selfish if they root for tanking.
• Major League Baseball is cracking down on walk-up music, limiting it to 15 seconds.
• Andy Murray's mom has been trolling Yoko Ono on Twitter.
• So, uh, what is Rex Ryan going to do about that Mark Sanchez tattoo now that Sanchez is gone?
• The Durham Bulls unveiled their "Star Wars" uniforms, to be used in an upcoming game:
In the case of our #StarWars Night jerseys on May 4, these ARE the droids you're looking for. http://t.co/bjnVjm3Bhr pic.twitter.com/9dYF1kj8SZ
— Durham Bulls (@DurhamBulls) March 25, 2014
• Cleveland Indians broadcaster Tom Hamilton got choked up watching his son make his first big league plate appearance:
• You can't get much closer to scoring a goal without actually scoring one than Vinny Lecavalier did Monday:
• The fan who won a Twitter bet with Roddy White over the Duke-Mercer game reportedly got those season tickets, after all -- but not from White.
• Dunking over the goal posts will earn NFL players a penalty starting next season.
• Yu Darvish is being scratched from his Opening Day start with a neck injury.
• Texas Rangers GM Jon Daniels says he regrets the Matt Garza trade from last season.
• Boston Bruins forward Milan Lucic called Montreal Canadiens defenseman Alexei Emelin a chicken after Emelin wouldn't fight following a big hit.
• Virginia offensive linemen made snow angels during a rare spring storm in Charlottesville:
Snowy day in C-ville is perfect opportunity for the O-Line to make snow angels after #UVa’s am practice. #Wahoowa pic.twitter.com/7GtNmZqbnp
— Virginia Football (@UVa_Football) March 25, 2014
• Close, but not quite:
@darrenrovell Jersey being sold at a Foot Locker on Ohio State's campus pic.twitter.com/r2k4VNPKra
— Brett Spivack (@BrettSpivack) March 24, 2014
• A fan sitting courtside at Monday's Clippers game wouldn't give Blake Griffin the ball because she wanted to take a picture:
