No. 1 Kentucky holds annual Big Blue Madness event

• Kentucky held its annual Big Blue Madness event on Friday night
• This year%27s Big Blue Madness was the most expensive ever%2C costing %27just north%27 of %24400%2C000
• No official stats were kept for the men%27s scrimmage

LEXINGTON, KY. — Let's just call this one Bigger Blue Madness. Yet again, the University of Kentucky outdid itself Friday night at the annual extravaganza that is the first public practice by both of the school's basketball programs.

There was a giant, spinning, firework-spewing video screen suspended above the court at Rupp Arena. As the men's players were introduced, they appeared to levitate from beneath a massive, temporary stage. They emerged through jets of smoke, wearing warm-up suits with buttons and jersey numbers that glowed in the dark. A "fan stunt" lit up the crowd's phones and synchronized their strobe with the music.

"We don't just play college basketball," coach John Calipari crowed – from his own separate stage, using a teleprompter fit for the President, with all eight of the program's national championship trophies at his feet. "We are college basketball."

This year's show cost "just north" of $400,000, a new record, said Jason Schlafer, UK's senior associate athletic director over marketing and advertising. The school spent about $300,000 on Madness last year, when the court was transformed into a huge, high-definition video screen.

This year's crowd included a host of NBA players and a heap of elite recruits – the people the event is really meant for these days. Per usual, Calipari delivered a rousing recruiting pitch, er, speech.

"Have I told you, you people are crazy?" he said as the capacity crowd roared. "We are borderless. We are everywhere. No corner is left untouched by the blue mist."

UK women's coach Matthew Mitchell, who has built a tradition of hilarious dance routines at Madness, also did not disappoint. He came out in an afro wig and did his best James Brown impersonation, even dropping into the splits, before a quick costume change – at which time he transitioned into a routine with backup dancers in schoolgirl outfits and shimmied to Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby One More Time."

Mitchell grabbed the microphone afterward and said, "It can't get any more stupid than that, can it?" Later, his team cut its 10-minute scrimmage short by abruptly breaking into a choreographed dance and step show on the court.

No official stats were kept for the men's scrimmage, although the presumed star, 6-foot-9, 250-pound forward Julius Randle, looked like it. He made moves that defied his size, sank spinning buckets, grabbed rebounds in traffic and led a fast break that he finished himself, dribbling behind his back to get into the lane and throw down a thundering dunk. Freshman guard James Young also hammered one high-flying dunk and rookie forward Marcus Lee was every bit as bouncy as advertised, blocking multiple shots and slamming one home.

Lee finished a between-the-legs jam in warm-ups, where Randle also crammed a 360-degree dunk and senior guard Jarrod Polson, who is only 6-foot-2, wowed the fans by catching his own bounce pass and completing a spinning slam.

In short, nothing happened to curb the hype about this year's Wildcats, who will begin the season ranked No. 1 after ending last season in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

"We were humbled. I was humbled. Tonight we put into action what we learned," Calipari told the crowd. "Every team we play will be more experienced than us, but if we become one unit, play with one heartbeat and a love for each, we will be unbreakable."

Former UK stars John Wall, Anthony Davis and Darius Miller were in the building – and drew roars from the crowd when they were introduced – along with most of the Washington Wizards and New Orleans Pelicans, who will play an NBA preseason game at Rupp Arena tonight. Calipari held a coin flip for use of the Cats' palatial locker room for that game. Davis and Miller's Pelicans won.

But the recruits were the most important visitors. Top 2014 UK targets Stanley Johnson, Trey Lyles and James Blackmon – plus Cats commits Karl Towns and Tyler Ulis – were in attendance. Eric Davis, a junior guard from Michigan, was also on the guest list.

Five top sophomore recruits also attended: Harry Giles, a power forward from North Carolina and the nation's No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2016, five-star St. Louis guard Jayson Tatum, four-star Alabama guard Josh Langford, four-star Georgia guard Kobi Simmons and four-star Taylor County guard Quentin Goodin, the state's top sophomore.

The recruits were paraded onto the court before the men's team was introduced and drew a standing ovation. Calipari might as well have been speaking directly to them during parts of his speech.

"Our biggest opponent? Ourselves," Calipari said. "At Kentucky we compete against ourselves every day and we cannot let the strain and spotlight of this program affect us. … We are the place to help you achieve your dreams. … If you want to be developed as an NBA player, if you want to be developed as a person of character, you come here."

Assuming that message was delivered, the night was worth every penny to Calipari and the Cats.

Kyle Tucker also writes for The Courier-Journal