2025-01-06- KSR - Hour 1

Summary

Podcast Summary: KSR - Hour 1 | January 6, 2025

Podcast Information:

• Title: KSR
• Host/Author: iHeartPodcasts and Sports Talk 790 (WKRD-AM)
• Description: Matt Jones and the KSR crew bring you the latest in UK news and views Mon.-Fri. from 10 to noon.
• Episode: 2025-01-06- KSR - Hour 1
• Release Date: January 6, 2025

---

1. Extreme Weather Conditions Across Kentucky

Timestamp: 01:07 - 08:10

Matt Jones opens the episode by addressing the severe snowstorm affecting large parts of Kentucky. With significant snowfall in Louisville—reportedly 9 inches with ongoing ice—and lighter but still substantial snow in Lexington, the crew discusses the widespread impact on daily life.

• Matt Jones [01:07]: "Kentucky is experiencing a major snow day with parts of the state engulfed in snow and ice. Most of us are home, hunkered down for the day."

Brian notes the near-total shutdown in Louisville, describing the streets as "dead silent," highlighting the unusual tranquility brought by the heavy snow.

Notable Quote:

• Matt Jones [01:30]: "Louisville is completely shut down. I walked the streets last night and it was one of those eerily quiet scenes that only happens during a heavy snow."

2. Community Support and Neighborly Acts

Timestamp: 02:21 - 09:35

Amidst the snowstorm, Matt shares a personal experience about struggling to find food due to the storm. With delivery services like DoorDash shut down, he resorted to visiting the only open restaurant in his vicinity.

• Matt Jones [03:13]: "There was one Indian restaurant open within six blocks of where I lived. I felt compelled to leave a big tip because I was the only customer."

This act of kindness extends to his interaction with a new neighbor who, upon hearing that Matt can't cook, graciously offers him extra vegetable soup.

• Matt Jones [03:31]: "My new neighbor brought me vegetable soup because her dad listens to my show and knows I can't cook. It's incredibly kind, though a bit pitiful."

The crew discusses the balance between appreciating such gestures and maintaining personal independence, with Ryan suggesting that relying on neighbors for daily meals isn’t sustainable.

3. Kentucky Basketball Triumph and Team Dynamics

Timestamp: 09:35 - 26:32

A significant portion of the discussion centers around Kentucky's recent basketball victory. Kentucky secured a thrilling win with a score of 106-100, marking only the fourth time since 1992 that both teams scored over 100 points in a game.

• Matt Jones [10:00]: "It’s a huge win for the team. 106 to 100 was an excellent display of offensive prowess from both sides."

Ryan praises the team's performance, emphasizing the collective effort required for such victories.

• Ryan [11:22]: "This game was the best of college basketball. The atmosphere, the crowd, the high-level offensive play—it was all top-notch."

Matt highlights the consistency of key players, noting that every one of the six main contributors scored in double digits, emphasizing the team's depth and teamwork.

• Matt Jones [12:02]: "If any of those six guys don't have their moment, we don't win. They each played one of their best games of the season."

The conversation shifts to individual player performances, particularly praising Brandon Braya's exceptional three-point shooting, which has become a cornerstone of Kentucky's strategy.

• Matt Jones [13:07]: "Braya’s shooting was unbelievable—seven out of nine from beyond the arc. He’s potentially the best three-point shooter we've ever had."

The hosts also discuss the positive feedback from industry professionals like Dan Schulman, who lauded the game atmosphere and quality of play as a top-five sports experience.

• Matt Jones [19:30]: "Dan Schulman said that combining atmosphere and quality of play at our games ranks as a top-five sports experience. That's some strong endorsement."

4. Community Heroes and Acts of Kindness

Timestamp: 35:05 - 35:49

Matt commends local leaders and volunteers who go above and beyond during the storm. He highlights Mayor Craig's efforts in Louisville to help the homeless by bringing them to warm shelters amidst the harsh weather.

• Matt Jones [35:29]: "It takes a special kind of person to volunteer their time in such conditions. These individuals are true community heroes."

Ryan echoes the sentiment, referring to these volunteers as "angels" and emphasizing the importance of recognizing and publicizing such positive actions.

5. Controversial News: Casey County Cockfighting Charges

Timestamp: 36:06 - 39:04

Shifting gears, Matt introduces a shocking news story about 54 individuals being charged with cockfighting in Casey County. The event took place at 11 AM on a Saturday—a time typically reserved for family activities and youth sports.

• Matt Jones [36:07]: "54 people were charged with cockfighting at 11 in the morning on a Saturday. It’s perplexing how something like this continues to occur openly."

The discussion delves into the cultural underpinnings of such events, referencing historical instances like Matt Bevin's controversial remarks on cockfighting during his political campaigns.

• Matt Jones [38:00]: "When Matt Bevin mentioned legalizing cockfighting, it was a bizarre statement that revealed much about his voter base."

Ryan speculates whether this activity is a localized tradition or indicative of broader societal issues within certain communities in Kentucky.

6. Listener Engagement and Callers' Insights

Timestamp: 26:32 - 42:50

Throughout the episode, Matt and Ryan interact with callers, offering advice, sharing personal anecdotes, and discussing listeners' suggestions. Notably, Kyle recommends Factor Meals as a convenient solution for Matt's cooking challenges.

• Caller Kyle [26:51]: "I recommend Factor Meals. They deliver chef-made meals straight to your doorstep—just microwave them and enjoy."

Matt reflects on his past experience with similar services, expressing skepticism about the taste and nutritional value compared to homemade meals.

• Matt Jones [27:16]: "I tried those once. It felt like eating gourmet TV dinners—good, but not for me."

Another caller, Russ from Eastern Kentucky, inquires about the availability of Waffle Houses during the storm, to which Matt responds that most establishments were closed, reinforcing the extent of the weather's impact.

7. Future Outlook and Closing Thoughts

Timestamp: 42:50 - End

As the discussion winds down, Matt and Ryan emphasize the resilience of their community in the face of severe weather and commend the local sports teams for boosting morale through their performances.

• Matt Jones [25:56]: "Mark Pope has brought a fun brand of basketball to Kentucky. The team is greater than the sum of its parts, and that’s why people love them so much."

They conclude by encouraging listeners to stay safe, support local businesses and volunteers, and remain optimistic about the return to normalcy as the storm subsides.

---

Notable Quotes:

• Matt Jones [01:07]: "Kentucky is experiencing a major snow day with parts of the state engulfed in snow and ice."
• Matt Jones [03:13]: "I felt compelled to leave a big tip because I was the only customer."
• Ryan [11:22]: "This game was the best of college basketball."
• Matt Jones [13:07]: "Braya’s shooting was unbelievable—seven out of nine from beyond the arc."
• Matt Jones [35:29]: "These individuals are true community heroes."
• Matt Jones [36:07]: "54 people were charged with cockfighting at 11 in the morning on a Saturday."

---

Conclusion: In this episode of KSR, Matt Jones and the crew navigate through the challenges posed by a severe snowstorm in Kentucky, celebrating community support and the triumph of Kentucky's basketball team. They also confront unsettling local news, all while engaging with their listeners to provide a comprehensive and relatable broadcast.

Transcript

[T-Mobile Representative]

If you love your phone but not your carrier, just switch to T Mobile. You can keep your phone, keep your number and we'll help pay it off up to $800 per line. You can also use our savings calculator to compare our plans and streaming benefits against Verizon and AT&T. So switch and keep your phone, keep your number and keep more of your moolah. @t mobile.com up to four lines via virtual prepaid card.

[T-Mobile Terms and Conditions Announcer]

Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device credit service port in 90 plus days with device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required. Card has no cash access and expires in six months.

[Comedy Off Broadway Announcer]

Comedy Off Broadway in Lexington welcomes Derek Stroup December 19th through the 21st. Then catch Lexington native Lee Kimbrell for two hilarious shows on New Year's Eve. And don't miss Brian Bates January 3rd and 4th. Comedy Off Broadway opened in downtown Lexington in 1987 and they're still bringing the best in stand up comedy to the area 37 years later. Call 859-271-joke or visit comedyoffbroadway.com comedy off Broadway.

[Matt Jones]

This is Kentucky Sports Radio presented by Stockton Mortgage. Now here's Matt Jones.

Welcome everyone. It is KENTUCKY Sports Radio, Monday, January 6th. I am Matt Jones in Kentucky. Snow day across a large part of the state. All across the state, we got parts that are engulfed in snow, parts that are snow and ice. And then some of y'all got away scot free. But we're all, most of us home for the day. And you can give us a shout on the Clark's Puppet Shop phone line, 859-280-2287. A Vision Auto Glass text machine, 772-774-5254. And this edition sponsored by the TJ Smith Law Office called TJ will make them pay. All right, so I'm in Louisville at my house. Shannon is in Louisville in the studio. Ryan is in Lexington in the house. Brian, I'll start with you, I guess. So Louisville, it looks like got yesterday 9 inches of snow and ice and then it's still snowing right now. I think Lexington maybe got a little bit less, but Louisville is for all intents and purposes, completely shut down. I walked the streets last night and it was dead silent, which is one of the cooler things I think happens when it snows. How are things in your neck of the woods?

[Ryan]

We probably only got about 6 inches of snow, so we didn't get near as much snow as I think they did in Louisville. But like my buddy Dante drove to work this Morning, his big four wheel drive truck. And he said the roads were awful. Awful. So he turned around and came back home.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, they're pretty bad. You know, yesterday, Shannon, it hit me about noon that if I didn't go sort of foraging for food, I might not eat for the next two days.

You didn't go out and get your bread and milk?

Well, I mean, I was doing my ESPN show and I was like, you know what? I'm gonna get doordash for lunch. And while I was ordering, doordash shut down. And then I went, oh, yeah, you know, if doordash says, they're not gonna even let those people on the road. So when my show was over, I just want. There was one restaurant open within six blocks of where I lived.

[Ryan]

You're lucky.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, One Indian restaurant. So I went in there and you want to talk about sharing a big tip? I gave that guy a big tip because I was the only person in there. I felt like he had opened his building just for.

Yeah. Private opening.

And then how about this? You know how I talk about how I don't have any. Like, I don't talk to any of my neighbors.

Yeah.

I have a new neighbor who knocked on my door and asked if I wanted vegetable soup last night. I don't know if she. She said her dad listened to the show and knows I can't cook. Well, you know, what, is it that pitiful like? It is.

It's also very kind.

It is very kind, but it's also a little pitiful. Like, she was like, my dad says you can't cook. I have extra vegetable soup and that was my dinner last night.

I think you should just start doing this every day. Like, why even have to go out and get anything? Just rely on your neighbor to bring over the leftovers.

Neighbors whose parents know that I can't cook and just have them bring food.

Let the. Let the entire neighborhood know I can't cook. I need food. You know, I'm pitiful.

I'm going to. When this show's over, I'm putting on all the gear because I love Ryan. I love walking in the snow, that we have a layer of ice on top of our snow now. So it's not. It's not quite as, you know, yesterday it was fluffy. Right. Like, it's fluffy and fun and happy. Now it's a little crunchy. But I do love. I love being in a city when it's mostly silence. And that's what it's going to be. Kind of like today in Louisville.

[Ryan]

Well, Be careful, man, because there's ice everywhere. And it looks like with the way the temperatures, it's not melting anytime soon. It's going to be around for a while.

[Matt Jones]

Does this mean I'm going to get another Matt Jones bruised butt picture sent to me? Got enough of those.

I don't think we have as much, like, I see pictures, Shannon, from around the state. I don't think we have as much ice as everybody else. I think we have more snow.

Yeah.

And I think the ice maybe was, well, just like what Chris Bailey said, a little bit south of us, because I see that, like, just south of us. It seems like it's kind brutal with the ice, like hanging off the power lines and stuff. Shannon, we don't really have that right here.

Right. But I can tell you, though, just driving in yesterday at 12:30. I don't know, man. Maybe I should have came in earlier. I was driving down the middle of Gene Snyder Freeway. I didn't know if I was on the road or not. I just drove down what I thought was the middle of the road. Couldn't see in front of me, Nobody behind me, nobody in front of me.

When you made your video, dude, that.

Was the scariest drive I've ever had. At one point, I had to pull over because my windshield was just frozen. I couldn't see it, like through my windshield. And. And I was driving maybe 25 miles an hour on 65 going north, which was.

I want to know who these people are that think they can drive their little tiny cars around.

They're the ones that end up in the ditch.

Yeah. Who are these people? Like, yesterday, you know the street I live on, Shannon, I had to, within five minutes, push two people in my street. Like, it's just a neighborhood street. They got stuck and one of them had this little tiny car, and I almost looked at him and go, where do you think you're going? Like, really, like, do you really think this car is going to make it wherever it is you're trying to go? Like, why do. Do people just, Ryan, think that they're invincible and that their cars can drive through anything?

[Ryan]

I don't know. I don't know. Maybe they're newbies. Maybe they moved it from Florida and don't understand how you're supposed to stay at home and not drive on the ice. But, you know, now I'm. I just saw some reports this morning. So many families and counties without power. I mean, it's.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. So there are some counties. I think it's like, what Ryan Henderson I think has a really bad power outage. Maybe. Is it like Bowling Green E Town area?

[Ryan]

Yeah, that's what I saw.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. Yeah. So prayers to all those people, because I do think there are areas just to the south of us that maybe didn't get much snow, but are having to now to deal with a lot of power correct issues. Yeah. So. But how about a shout out, Shannon, for our weather people? That, you know, there was the famous graphic that looked a little phallic, right? Yeah, The. The. The snow bang. You know, it got a little attention. It looks like that was kind of true, like, because it was like that area got the most snow.

Yeah.

And ice snow was north. I. South. It looked like the weather people, Shannon did. They kind of nail.

They nailed it.

We.

We. We definitely got screwed. I mean, it was crazy. The. The amount of snow that came down so quickly, like, 10 minutes after it started. I looked outside. My road is already covered within 10 minutes.

It was all during my ESPN show yesterday. It was like 10 to 1.

[Ryan]

Yes.

[Matt Jones]

That was when. That was when it hit. And I sit here at my desk and just watched it grow as it went. You hate weather people, Ryan. You think they all should be out on the street? Do they deserve a handshake for they.

[Ryan]

Feels like they called this 100%.

[Matt Jones]

Our boys.

[Ryan]

Bill Mack, Chris Bailey, TG Shock here in town. They all got it right. Every one of them got it right. So kudos to the weather guys.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, they kept breaking into the game. The game and giving us updates.

[Ryan]

I did. Like, how, you know, here in Lexington on kyt, they did usually wait till a commercial break before they came in with their weather update, so they didn't really cover the game.

[Matt Jones]

That was good because there was, you know, and I'll say this, Shannon, it was good vegetable soup.

Like, I'm glad you took her up on it.

It was. It was good. She brought it. It was in a big Tupperware thing. I'm gonna return the Tupperware because that's what neighbors do. Sure. You didn' return the Tupperware and ask.

For the recipe so you can make them something.

I mean, it had a lot of stuff I wouldn't buy, like, vegetables. Like, yeah, like, I'm not gonna buy any squash. Like, I don't know.

[Ryan]

Think about it, Shannon.

[Matt Jones]

This.

[Ryan]

This neighbor risk getting injured walking on icy sidewalks to make sure Matt wasn't gonna starve.

[Matt Jones]

It is a good neighbor. She's very nice. She just moved in recently, but, yeah. I don't know. What color is squash? Is that yellow?

[Ryan]

Yeah, yeah. Yellowish.

[Matt Jones]

Okay. Yeah. I'm not gonna buy that, but it was. Was good in the soup.

[Ryan]

So what are you eating today?

[Matt Jones]

Well, I'm gonna go walking. Somebody's gonna be open. I mean, I know he's gonna snow.

But he's gonna eat.

No, I mean, KS bar is closed in Lexington, and there's a lot more snow here in Louisville. I mean, you said five, and we have nine. That's a big difference, in my opinion.

[Ryan]

Yeah, it is.

[Matt Jones]

So it's gonna be hard. I don't know who's open, but somebody. Shannon is open.

Do you not have, like, just like, I don't know, maybe a frozen burrito?

Right now I have grapes for a.

Frozen pizza or something.

I have grapes, and then I have. You remember when the woman gives me the candy that's aerated or whatever? You know, the. The. The. The.

[Ryan]

The.

[Matt Jones]

I have that.

[Ryan]

But freeze dried candy.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, it's freeze dry candy.

You can't just sit around eating sugar all day like elves.

I'm not.

I'm not.

I'm not. Which is why, I mean, listen, I found a place open yesterday. I had someone give me soup. I just got, like, two more meals. I feel like by tomorrow, stuff. Some stuff will be open. Yeah. So I just got to get through today.

Shannon, It's a good day to fast. You know, you can start a diet today.

It's not. I'm not doing Ramadan. That's not me. I'm just. I'm just. I'm gonna. I'm gonna walk. Somebody's gonna be open around here. I have a feeling. If not, I bet my Indian friend will be open again. But. But it was. It's. It's been a great weekend. I enjoy. Feels like the world slows down with the snow. That's good. And it also allows us to celebrate the win on Saturday because that was a. What a great win. 106 to 100. Only the fourth time since 1992 that Kentucky's played a game where both teams scored 100 points. And it was, in my opinion, Ryan, if you were to sort of summarize the best of college basketball, that was that game. Great environment, great crowd, high level offensive play from both teams. Right. Both teams making contested shots, hitting big buckets. The game kind of. It didn't go back and forth. We had a lead the vast majority of the end of the first half, in the second half, but Florida was never out of it. They just kept coming, kept coming, and we made play after play, and then they would hit shots. I Just thought. And then we won. Which of course makes it better. I just thought it was. It was an excellent, excellent college basketball game.

[Ryan]

I think we should petition to have every game start at 11 o'clock because you're right.

[Matt Jones]

You think so? You think that time of day is what does it.

[Ryan]

Man, it was awesome. I mean, how could you argue against it? The team. It was a great game to watch. The team played great. They shot great. The crowd was great. Our pregame at KS Bar at 9:00 was great. I mean, everything about it was great. And then we had the rest of the night to ourselves. I think we should play all our games.

[Matt Jones]

You always want the rest of the night to us himself. What is he doing, Shannon? Like, he's not doing it.

He's got these secret clubs he goes to.

Yeah, he wants to go to the, to the underground speakeasy. But I, I loved it and it was a. I think it's a huge win for the team.

[Ryan]

I mean, I do too.

[Matt Jones]

You know, you look at that SEC schedule, it. It's going to be hard for us to win the league. It's going to be hard for us to even lose, you know, four games or less. But it would have been almost impossible if we lost this game. If you just look at the schedule and to get out there and get that win and then have all six of our main guys. And I basically think this team is seven main guys. If you throw in in Garrison, that's really the team. They're good. They're guys that come in and do stuff. You know, Travis Perry played well. Almanor was plus 20. I'm not sure how that happened, but he was. But we had six dudes in double figures. They tend to be the six dudes that are. That are the big scores. And Ryan, they all had their moments that were key for the victory.

[Ryan]

Yeah, I listened to your postgame show and you kind of went down. What each guy did and each guy did just played one of their best games of the season all at the same time. It seemed like they all played great.

[Matt Jones]

We don't win if any of those six guys don't play well. You're right about that. They each had. And I won't go. If you listen to the postgame show, which. What else are you going to do today? You might as well listen on podcast. If you go through it. We don't win if each of those guys don't have their thing. Yeah, a couple things that amazes me. I didn't know this until yesterday. I saw it online. Ryan, did you know Ortega away has scored in double digits every game this year?

[Ryan]

I did not know that. Nope. I knew he was our leading scorer, but didn't know he had double digits.

[Matt Jones]

Is that amazing though? Would you have. I mean. I mean, I thought he was going to be the sixth man and he scored in double digits in every game this year.

[Ryan]

Yeah. When we kept talking about our starting lineup, we all had Kobe Bryant penciled in there. Didn't put him in there.

[Matt Jones]

And then Kobe Braya, Shannon, seven threes.

Forget about it.

Forget about it. Like the dude that play where Garrison does the pump fake, then gives it to him and he pump fakes the guy twice. That dude should just retire. That got pumped fake three times and then Braya hits the three. That, to me, was he. He was unbelievable.

Seven out of nine. And you know, I'd be fine with Kobe Braya taking nine or ten shots every game. Of course, you know, the game they lost against Clemson was because he only shot the ball like once or twice the entire game. Let him go, man. Let him cook. Let him do his thing.

Most important play of the game, an inbound play from underneath, right?

[Ryan]

Yeah, yeah.

[Matt Jones]

Two point game. They run an inbound play which if you watch, had three or four different options of guys who, if they had been open, got the ball. All of them got closed off. So the last option was the inbounder. And he. It's Lamont Butler, he hits the three and Ryan, that was the biggest shot of the game.

[Ryan]

Set that play up. During that call, that timeout, I think there was three seconds left, and Pope.

[Matt Jones]

Said they had never run it before. Pope said they had never run it. He drew it up in the huddle, man.

[Ryan]

That's something we haven't seen around here in a long time. Drawing up plays, the setup set out of bounds, plays for a bucket.

[Matt Jones]

You're allowed Shannon to draw up plays in the huddle. I didn't know. I forgot.

I didn't know you could either. It's.

[T-Mobile Terms and Conditions Announcer]

Wow.

[Matt Jones]

It's a great thing. It's great to see.

So a huge win. We want to talk to you about it. Also, if you're. If you're. If you. If you have vegetable soup, you want to bring over. 859-280-2287. Shannon is at summer camp in downtown. He and Vanetti apparently had, like, a pool party.

You know, I felt like for one night only, I brought back Tony Vanetti's circa 1998.

You mean he didn't rant about the vaccine?

No, we Were partying, we were having a great time. We were trading old radio war stories with each other. It was.

There's nothing better than the people who have become Internet like angry people to go back to normal for a day. Because it's like, you get them, get them back.

Makes everybody happy.

Yes, that's exactly right. We'll take a break. We'll be right back. Here it's KSR on a snow day in Kentucky. Welcome back. It is Kentucky Sports Radio A M 928-0-2287. I got people who've written from Henderson, it looks like from. For sales at E town, all of which have said they're out of power, but listening to the show either on radio or via generators. So be thinking about you guys. Hang, hang in there. Hopefully that'll get fixed. I mean, I think they pro. There's probably less people without power than they thought there was going to be. But there's still. I think I saw like 68,000 people in the state. So. Ryan, that's a lot of people. So hopefully that will get fixed as the day goes on.

[Ryan]

Man, you know, if you can't check on your neighbors, you know these areas that don't have power, man, go check on your neighbors. Make sure they have something to eat. Like your boy Matt. They may need a little vegetable.

[Matt Jones]

Speaking of checking on your neighbors, what person writes, Matt, that sounds like a Hallmark movie. How nice of the person to think of you. It is very nice. Like, you know, because I would have not had dinner last because you weren't.

Gonna check on them.

We know that I probably wasn't gonna check on them.

I gotta ask you a question. Somebody on Twitter wants to know, is there any chance that Matt actually washes the Tupperware bowl before he sends it back?

I did.

Oh, you did?

Yeah.

Dishwasher just rinsed it.

Well, first I just rinsed it out. Then I was like, oh, there's still this film.

[Ryan]

Yeah.

[Matt Jones]

So I got the, the soap at a boy. I got the soap and I got a little pad, you know, what do you call those things that you clean with with the. The pad and what are you laughing at?

You have no idea what you're talking about.

It's a pad.

It's a pad.

It's on my seat. And I went and I scrubbed it and I got all the little vegetable soup film and I put it back in the bag and it's on my porch and on. As I walk to lunch, I'm going to drop it off at their house.

It's very Nice.

[Ryan]

With a little note, please. Refill for tonight.

[Matt Jones]

Act like it's like a service.

Like a stray cat shows up.

One person writes, matt, I run a restaurant in Louisville. No one is open. I mean, no one. You can walk around all day. You're not gonna find any food. Well, I'm going to find it. Somebody's open. Shannon. Oh, somebody's gonna, like. Somebody will see this as an opportunity, right?

Somebody open? Yeah, somebody will call in and tell us they're open.

Well, I mean, I have to be able to walk to it. I'm not driving. Right. I try. Yesterday, I. I did the thing they tell you to do where you, like, start your car, clean it off, move it a little bit so you. You know what I mean? So I did that.

Yeah.

But I'm just gonna leave it. Why. Why try to get out today? What's the point?

[Ryan]

No, you don't want to be driving around today.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, what's the point? I mean, you know, there's already. There's people who have to go to work, like nurses and doctors.

Shannon. And Shannon.

I saw the libraries are open. Who knew that they kept. I mean, they. They're like, we gotta have the libraries today.

Essential workers, I guess.

Is a library an essential worker?

You wouldn't think so.

Well, they're open.

Like, restaurants are more essential than reading a book.

Well, they're not open, so. At least that I've seen. But if one of them is, they'll have a visitor because.

[Ryan]

Are you able to walk to a Walgreens or a CVS farm?

[Matt Jones]

There's a grocery store very close to my house, but I don't know if it was not open last night, it was open during the day, but. But then what am I going to do once I get that?

[Ryan]

Like, you know, at least they'd have something in there for you.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, I'll be all right. By tomorrow, I think most things will be. Will be back to normal. Um, one person writes. Matt, I loved watching our team, but I think our crowd. I think we got to stop saying the Rupp crowd won't bring it. They brought it all year. There's a lot of truth to that, Ryan. I mean, I don't know if the Pope, you know, that we've talked kind of about the Rupp crowd malaise here for a little while. Do you think Pope has cured it? I mean, are we just going to, like, all year, not have to worry about the crowd?

[Ryan]

I think so. Man, everybody's so excited about what he's doing with this program, you know, Drew talked about even how the Brown crowd on New Year's Eve at 2:00 in the afternoon was awesome. That crowd this past Saturday, then yesterday Saturday was incredible. I mean, even like Dan Schulman and. And Jay Billis were talking about how loud it was, we could hear.

[Matt Jones]

What about what Dan Schulman said? I mean, Dan Schulman said he's been doing games for 30 years. And for people who don't know his career, he does college basketball. He used to do college football. He doesn't do it anymore. And he does baseball. So he does the. The Blue Jays, I think are his baseball team. And he said in 30 years of going to these things, if you combine atmosphere and quality of play, a top five sports experience. Yeah, that's pretty strong words, don't you think?

[Ryan]

He has many games as he set courtside and witnessed. And I think it's because the crowd played a big part in why he said that.

[Matt Jones]

It was, it was exciting. And if you want to know. Okay, so Shane and I figured out the ESPN mic thing.

Okay.

All right. When they are talking, the crowd is turned down. But if you ever hear them shut up for a minute, I think they then have the crowd on the right level. Does that make sense?

Yeah, they've got one of those, I guess like the mic kind of dampens anything else around.

Yes.

Down.

But I don't feel like they do that at every school. Or maybe the announcers just don't talk as much at the other school. But there are a couple moments Saturday where you hear where Schulman and Billis are not talking and you hear the crowd and Ryan, that was when you kind of heard Rupp be like, oh, it's loud in there.

[Ryan]

That's what Rupp's all about. Exactly. You could, you could, you could feel it. And I had a friend of mine, actually, I went stop by KS Bar after the game and KS Bar was rocking and he was at the game and he goes. It was that way from like an hour before tip off. He said you could just feel it as it started to fill up you.

[Matt Jones]

I think people got there early. It was kind of exactly what you wanted. I just wish they would bill us is going to be doing a lot of our games this year because the sec.

Yeah.

Can we just one game not do the ice cream?

I knew you just one time.

Shannon, can we not do the ice cream?

Now he's got Shan doing the same thing.

But do we have to do it every game? Like every game we have to talk about the Ice cream.

[Ryan]

I got a suggestion how you can stop it. Put him on snack words cam one time and that may be like, okay, look, I'm not eating anymore in front of him.

[Matt Jones]

I want him to eat it. But do we have to always talk about it? Like it's like he. It's a special segment every game, Shannon. Every time they do it, they're making.

This like bigger than his 90ft segment that he does.

Is going to be the SEC is the conference this year.

[Ryan]

No doubt.

[Matt Jones]

And we play Saturday prime games against Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee and Arkansas. And there's a really good chance, Ryan, he'll be at all four of those games, right? No, I mean those games are.

[Ryan]

He'll probably number one guy. Yep.

[Matt Jones]

Four of those games and we're gonna have to watch him eat that ice cream, Shannon. Every time.

He doesn't just eat it though. He licks it like a dog. He laps it up. It's disgusting. I don't need to see it.

It's really gross. It's way too much tongue. There's. I like Jay, but like, you know, I don't need J. Bill his tongue on a Saturday. Do you?

I know. I don't. Two bald headed guys. Two bald headed guys sitting there looking on an ice cream. No, I don't. I don't want to see it.

I mean, that's like a. That's a YouTube video that you're not clicking on. Two bald headed guys licking on ice cream.

[Ryan]

But you know, I. I'm watching.

[Matt Jones]

See it. See it every single game.

[Ryan]

I watched the game with yoga girl and she said like half times and when are we going to see J. Billis eat the ice cream? Like she even knew.

[Matt Jones]

So now it's an event.

[Ryan]

An event.

[Matt Jones]

So she wanted to see it.

[Ryan]

Yeah.

[Matt Jones]

Okay, well, maybe that's why they do.

It for the women out there.

The women out. The women out there are like, oh, please show Dan Shulman licking the ice cube.

Needs to grow.

Oh, that's how you grow.

[Ryan]

They grow a lot.

[Matt Jones]

We'll take a break. Take your calls. Right after the break.

[Ryan]

KSI, they hit the wall.

[Matt Jones]

TJ Smith, personal injury attorney. Call tj. He'll make him pay.

Now more of Kentucky sports radio presented by Stockton Mortgage, here's Matt Jones.

Welcome back, techie Sports Radio. Apparently they did show Billis on the snackwards camp. That's awesome. So I'd like to see that. Is that video out anywhere? Apparently they showed Billis on the snackwards cam during the game Saturday. He and Schulman and it Looked like they were like throwing up ice cream out of there.

And he's unfazed. He probably doesn't care one bit. He's gonna keep eating that ice cream.

I've told you. I. He did one of the smoother things I've ever seen anybody do. Have I told this story before on here about what he did in the Bahamas?

[Ryan]

Yeah, you just told it not too long ago, I think.

[Matt Jones]

Okay. About the. The phone thing.

[Ryan]

It's a good story, though.

[Matt Jones]

He does. He is funny, and I like Jay a lot. I just. Maybe a little less ice cream. Okay, we're gonna go to the phones here in just a second. A couple things. First of all, on the post game show, I ended the first segment with sort of a what Kentucky basketball is about sort of thing. Did you hear that, Ryan?

[Ryan]

I heard it. Yeah.

[Matt Jones]

What did you think? I mean, I've had a lot of people say nice things about it. It's on. Mario put it on all the social media. But my point of it was I won't be as poetic as I tried to be on the thing, but basically that I hope people now realize Kentucky basketball is bigger than any Coach, any player, etc. What did you think of that?

[Ryan]

I thought you nailed it. I think you, you know, said a lot of things. We've all been thinking and all believe, truly believe, especially when there. Our old regime was like, after. There's. There's no way we would be. What are we now, 12 and 2? Going into the thick of our conference play, this basketball team got everybody believing again. You go to the games and you're not anxious about struggling through and maybe pulling out a win. You go into the games knowing you're going to win because the excitement's back.

[Matt Jones]

But it also seems like, Shannon, that it's just like the wins are even happier because it's almost like we want 106 to 100. And it's. And it's.

It's the way they're winning.

It's the way they're winning. And I also think it's that these guys and some people are pushing back on me on this. And that's fine. I hope I'm wrong, but I keep saying I don't know that any of these dudes are going to play in the NBA. And I think it's the fact that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Shannon is part of why we like it so much.

Yep. It's just a fun brand of basketball that Mark Pope has brought to Kentucky. I mean, guys just Knocking down threes. I mean, I've never seen anybody shoot like Kobe, bra.

Who would have thought these guys that none of us knew when they got here. I mean, there's never been a more anonymous UK team ever than what this one was. Who would have thought everybody would love these guys like they do. All of them. Like, people love this team. And we didn't know who any of these dudes were three months ago. It's kind of amazing. I mean, they were at the first football game of the year and my buddy stood next to him during that whole Southern Miss Lightning, all that. You remember that?

[Ryan]

Yeah.

[Matt Jones]

And they were standing outside and fans didn't know who they were. Like, they were just standing with fans and nobody was bothering because they didn't know who they were. And now, like, everybody knows who they are and everybody loves them. I just think it's very cool. Who's up first?

Kyle.

Kyle. Go ahead, Kyle.

[Caller]

Hey, Matt.

[Matt Jones]

What's up?

[Caller]

I just wanted to tell you I gotta. I gotta fix for your cooking. And it's factor meals. That's what I've been doing. You just order them and they bring them. And delivery box. All you do is just put it in the microwave and chef made meals. So I think that's the best way for your thanks for the meal factor.

[Matt Jones]

Is that, like, you get it in the mail.

[Caller]

Yep. They deliver it to your doorstep and it's all chef made meals. And you just put it in the microwave.

[Matt Jones]

I don't know about that. I did one of those once. Shannon, you remember? We did. I appreciate the call. We did an ad thing for it. Yeah. And it was like, it was fine, but it's like, I still there have to be. In order to mail you a meal, they have to put like, something in it that can't be good.

Preservatives. Yeah. And at the end of the day, it's still a microwave meal. You're eating every day if you're doing it the way this guy's talking about.

Yeah. I mean, I had it and it was fine. I just. It wasn't. It just wasn't for me. I don't know what. I don't know how I felt like I was just eating TV dinner.

Well, you essentially are gourmet TV dinners.

Yeah. I mean, I guess I was. Somebody said, matt, you're order. Trying to order delivery. Everyone knows that ordering delivery during the snow is a jerk move. I don't think that's true, is it?

No. Because they'll probably get even better tips. I would hope.

I Know, personally, I tip the guy at the Indian restaurant, like, double. I gave him an obscene. Because I was like, he's open. You know what I mean? So for me, like, Ryan, if someone were to deliver me food, this. I'm giving them a massive tip.

[Ryan]

Yeah, yeah. They're. They're risking their own lives and to deliver you your food.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. I mean, now, if you just expect it and you don't acknowledge it with a big tip, then I do think that's a jerk move. But if you were to give a big one, I feel like that's fine.

[Ryan]

I think a lot of businesses in this situation, though, they don't even want to put their own. No, I'm always in danger. You know, we're closed.

[Matt Jones]

At KS Bar, we were closed yesterday and today. I don't even know about tomorrow. I mean, like, I get that completely. But if somebody's going to do it, Shannon, I want to acknowledge what they're doing.

Oh, absolutely. Yeah.

Right. And then a number of you have pointed out, and this is good for. Point out, that the libraries can be like, a heating center for people.

Right.

I should have thought of that. That makes complete sense to me. And that's good that we're. That they're open. I know they're open here in Louisville. I assume they probably are in Lexington, too. Who's next?

Russ.

Russ, Go ahead, Russell. Hey, good morning, guys.

[Caller]

Greetings from Vanderburg County. Hey, are the Waffle Houses open? I mean, because that's, you know, that's essential workers.

[Matt Jones]

I don't live close to a Waffle House, so I don't know. I know that I think you. Last night, Shannon. I think last night everything was closed, wasn't it?

Just about everything. Yeah.

I. I mean, there were a few bars downtown. There were bars downtown.

A couple. Yeah. They were closing early, but they were open.

Wow. See, everything around me was closed. Like, it was just complete. No one was out. It was like. It reminded me of when I would walk the streets of New York City during COVID During that covet. And during the. The protest, and I would walk, and you'd be in the middle of New York City, and there wouldn't be anyone there, and it was really crazy. That's kind of how it was last night, at least for me. In Louisville.

[Ryan]

Yeah. They even closed.

[Caller]

Hey, I got a quick question.

[Ryan]

Closed yesterday.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, go ahead, sir.

[Caller]

I was just gonna say. So, first of all, Herm Edwards on your show is awesome, but my question is Kenny Brooks, Mark Pope.

[Matt Jones]

What's.

[Caller]

What's the chances that we've got two SEC coaches of the year and who goes farther in the NCAA tournament. I'll hang up and listen. Be safe.

[Matt Jones]

Kenny Brooks has. Appreciate the call. Really good chance to be SEC coach of the year, Ryan, if they continue to be this good. I mean they went to Vanderbilt yesterday and Vanderbilt had only had one loss, right? And we beat, we destroyed him. We beat him by like 25 points on the road. Kenny Brooks, when you consider that we were like the worst team in the SEC last year and who knows, maybe we'll be the second, third, fourth, whatever. Best team this year. Kenny Brooks is. If they keep up with this, he's going to be coach of the year, Ryan.

[Ryan]

Yeah, I think, yeah, you could, you could make the argument that Kenny Brooks is doing maybe a more miraculous job with that program than even Mark Pope's doing with the guys team right now. Because you're right. The UK women's team, when they were in the.

[Matt Jones]

I mean we were terrible. I mean like the UK men's team was disappointing, but they weren't terrible. The UK women's team was terrible. And they are good. Like I highly encourage you all. I'm not just saying this to watch. They are fun. The point guard, Georgia Amore, Ryan, she is a blast to watch. She's like three, three girls. Three women who are very tall can shoot. You got the Clara is it stack. You got the girl from forgetting their names. There's the tall kind of redheaded woman who's. She was awesome like yesterday. You got Deja Lawrence, like that group. They all can shoot. They all can take it like they are fun to watch. And I, you know, I don't know how they're going to do when they play South Carolina or one of those teams, but they are pounding teams right now, right?

[Ryan]

And Vanderbilt, historically one of the best team programs in, in SEC women's basketball for many, many years. You go into their place and basically ran them off the floor yesterday.

[Matt Jones]

I mean they were. They were up 30 at one point. I mean it was just. I watched a lot of it. It was a beat down. Who's next?

Bluegrass.

Bluegrass. How are you?

[Caller]

Greetings from Eastern Kentucky. Matt, how we doing?

[Matt Jones]

Doing good.

[Caller]

Hey, you remember I had the Thanksgiving dilemma where we had. I had to go into the Caliper household fan club and bring my Mark Pope fans.

[Matt Jones]

Yes.

[Caller]

Well, I sort of flipped. I sort of flipped the switch on him. I remember when I was growing up during the Eddie Sutton and then the. And Dobie and then Rick, he said he always had a. He Always had three things that he went with being a good coach.

[Matt Jones]

All right, we gotta go quick. Bluegrass. I just got a few seconds.

[Caller]

Number one, can you recruit a good job? Can you handle. Number two, can you handle Big Blue Nation? Can you handle the fish bowl? And number three, can you coach? And I think he checked all those boxes. How about it, fellas?

[Matt Jones]

Oh, I do, too. I mean, he's. I. You know, my only question about Pope was recruiting, and he's done a great job at that. And the fact that he built both the transfer portal roster and the guys they've got committed for next year, I'm not sure how you can be anything but excited. The NFL is ready for the playoffs, and so is DraftKings. Now you can bet next week. Six games in the playoffs next week. And scoring touchdowns is the key to winning DraftKings, the number one place to bet touchdowns. New customers can bet $5 to get 200 in bonus bets. Use my code KSR at DraftKings. DraftKings sportsbook ready for the College Football Playoff and the NFL playoffs. The crown is yours if you have a gaming problem called 1-800-GAMBLER Kentucky only eligibility restrictions apply for additional terms. Responsible Gaming Resources DKNG Co/Audio. We'll take a break. Be right back. KSR, welcome back. It is Kentucky sports Radio on a snowy day. Still snowing here in Louisville. So how long is it supposed to snow? You said, Shane.

I think until around noon in Louisville.

Okay. Well, it's still coming down out there, so everybody be careful. I do. We were talking about, like, first responders and people doing that. Let me give a shout out to. You know, I tend to follow. I like a lot of people. I probably didn't follow. Follow the city services of Lexington and Louisville for a long time. You take a lot of that stuff for granted. But since Craig has become the mayor of Louisville, he's a friend of mine, so I follow him online and I like to see what he's doing. And he put out a picture of a group of people yesterday who were going around Louisville. Shannon. Right, right. During, like, lunchtime. Right?

Yeah.

And looking for homeless people to bring them to somewhere to, like, stay through this. Right. I was just sitting there thinking, what kind of a kind soul do you have to be to volunteer your time when snow is coming down? To go out in the snow and get homeless people to help bring them into warmth.

Takes a special kind of person to want to do that.

Kind of person. It takes to do that. That isn't. I mean, I'm just That is an amazing person to do so. I don't know who those people were. He had a picture of one person doing it on his Twitter account. But whoever does that, Ryan, like, it's just like, you have to be a different special kind of person to do that.

[Ryan]

Those people are angels, man. And that's why we hear all these bad things that people do all the time. And we need to publicize stories like this more often. That's a great story.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah. Now, quite a transition here to Shannon, to my next story, which is the cock fighting in Casey County.

Saw that.

All right, so 54 people, I said arrested, apparently they weren't arrested. They were just charged. I guess they didn't take them into the. Into the pokey, but they. They charged them. 54 people charged with cockfighting in Casey County. The details of this story are amazing to me. First of all, 54 people, that's a lot of people. Shannon people. Yeah, that's a lot of people. 54 people. And they got them because somebody in town goes, hey, there's cockfight today. You should go down there they went. 54 people were there. But this is the part that's crazy to me. It was at 11 in the morning on a Saturday when most of you are out there taking your kids to, like, youth basketball. 54 people were like, you know what? It's 11 in the morning on a Saturday. Let's go to the cockfight.

Now, was it this past Saturday because they should have been watching the Kentucky game at 11 o'clock?

It was. That's another thing. Was during the Kentucky game.

Maybe that's why I thought they weren't gonna get called.

Like, that's exactly. That's probably why they did it. They were like, it's during the Kentucky game. Nobody's going to care.

Do they always run during the Kentucky game? Whatever time that is? Maybe. Maybe. So who has a.

Can you imagine getting up on a Saturday morning and going, let's go cock fighting?

No, no. Like, who does that? I mean, 54 people obviously do.

54 people in Casey County. I have to tell you, I grew up in the mountains. I would hear kind of about fighting, that it existed, but it was like, well, actually, I saw snake handling. So I can't say it was like something mysterious. I saw that, but I never saw it. But I am still amazed. Right. How much fighting happens in this state.

[Ryan]

And this is not the first time. I think Casey County's been involved with this. I think every time we bring up.

[Matt Jones]

These stories, somebody county was like, all Black bread of life.

[Ryan]

Like, everybody, Apple festival.

[Matt Jones]

Apple festival. They. They. They're fighting.

Cockfighting festival.

So you remember when. When Matt Bevin ran the first time, when he ran against Jack Conway. You may remember one time he did a speech and goes, and one of the things I believe is we should legalize cockfighting. And I remember saying on this show, Ryan.

[Ryan]

Yep.

[Matt Jones]

Why would he bring that up like, what a bizarre thing to make one of your tenants.

He got 54 votes.

But what now he knew. He knew that there were a lot of these people.

[Ryan]

Yep.

[Matt Jones]

He there. I mean, he must have known, like, there's a lot of these people doing this. And he was like, that's going to be my end. But 54 people at 11am in Casey County.

You talk about bloodthirsty. You wake up on a weekend morning and go, I want to go watch some fighting.

Yeah. I've been working all week, honey. It's been tough. I'm gonna blow off some steam at the fights before noon.

[Ryan]

You gotta think they.

[Matt Jones]

Noon.

[Ryan]

You gotta think they do this every Saturday morning at this. Probably this or they did.

[Matt Jones]

I don't think they're going now.

[Ryan]

Nope.

[Matt Jones]

Unbelievable. When I saw that story, blew my mind. Who's next?

Tasha.

Tasha. Go ahead, Tasha.

[Caller]

Good morning. First time in a long time.

[Matt Jones]

All right, what's up?

[Caller]

I have two comments and a question, and I'll go quick. I've been to your show, but I've never been to a remote. I plan on being at the remote that you are doing this summer at Sulphur Creek. If you all have not made plans to rent a boat and go out on the lake, you must do that. If you don't, My husband's name's Timmy and you can come with us.

[Matt Jones]

Go on.

[Caller]

Timmy Tours. Second comment. Second comment. Season ticket holder. I'm sure you'll talk about this more as the game gets closer, but I'll be at the Arkansas game and chances that Cal gets booed or cheered. I know I'm booing. And I got a question. I want you to tell us about how Cal tried to get you fired. I know you couldn't tell us before. Can you tell us now and I'll hang up and listen?

[Matt Jones]

Well, I got a meeting this afternoon, so let's hold off.

[Ryan]

I didn't want to bring this up, but are we going to have a show tomorrow?

[Matt Jones]

You know, I mean, I don't know how the stuff. Snow affects all this, but I got. We got a zoom meeting tomorrow, so we'll see, you know, but we're going to proceed as if we're on. Right?

[Ryan]

Okay. All right.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah, but, but sign here quickly. The. The cows that we. We're going to talk about. I mean, that's a second hour thing. I don't want to. I want to get through the first hour. But that was something as well that occurred. Who's next?

Let's go to Steve.

Steve, Go ahead, Steve.

[Caller]

Hey, good morning, guys. Just want to say I've got a hack for everybody to help melt the ice. I know people might be skeptical of this, but it does work. What you need to do, take your phone out, put it on top of the ice, pull up YouTube and start watching Kobe Braya videos and the ice will melt away.

[Matt Jones]

I thought he was serious for a minute maybe. I mean, he doesn't even hit the rim. I appreciate the call, Shannon. He doesn't hit the rim.

I know it's crazy.

Like if he hits the rim, we're missing. But most of the time it is just money. I mean, he's the best shooter in the country. I know he's got a half a year left. Like, we're not even to the halfway point of the season yet, so I'm not trying to like go too quickly, but could he be the best three point shooter we've ever had?

[Ryan]

Which is crazy because last season we just had three of the best three point shooters we ever had. And this guy may be better.

[Matt Jones]

If you're looking at the best we've ever had, you have to say, like Daron Lamb, Travis Ford, Antonio Reeves, Reed Meeks, Jody Meeks. I mean, percentage wise, you have to put Rob in my mind, I don't put him there, but his percentage is there. So you have to put him there. You know, maybe Jamal Murray.

[Ryan]

Yep. But it's going to be better than all of them.

[Matt Jones]

Bray is probably. Now those guys, everyone I just mentioned probably could do more things than Brea can do outside of the three point shoot all those guys. But for just three point shooting, Ryan, he might be the best.

[Ryan]

And he's got to be more selfish. He's got to take five, six, seven, nine threes a game. He can't have those games where only takes two or three because he's too good. He can help this team so many ways by just shooting the basketball a little more.

[Matt Jones]

I'm with you, Shannon. He needs to shoot more.

Yeah. 10 shots a game. Let's go. I mean, the average is going to fall around what, at least six or seven at worst.

He's. Is he over 50% now? Did yesterday, put him over. Saturday, put him.

[Ryan]

Gotta be seven out of nine.

[Matt Jones]

48 or 49 coming in. So. Just unbelievable. He. We just had three dynamic three point shooters last year and he might be better than all three of them, which is crazy. All right, we'll take a break. Come back, our number two. This is Kentucky Sports Radio.