Random notes:
▪ If the accusations made against Sean Woods prove true, under no circumstances should the suspended Morehead State coach be allowed another job in the profession.
WKYT reported Tuesday that the former UK guard faces misdemeanor battery charges in Indiana after two players accused the coach of assaulting them during a game against Evansville. Woods is known to be passionate with a sometimes volatile temper, but there’s no place at any level of basketball for a coach who aggressively puts his hands on, much less strikes players in whatever fashion.
Adding to Woods’ problems, the father of a Morehead State player told ESPN on Wednesday that the coach head-butted his son last season.
▪ Western Kentucky football has made terrific hires in Willie Taggart, Bobby Petrino and Jeff Brohm. Mike Sanford Jr., the 34-year-old Notre Dame offensive coordinator hired to replace the Purdue-bound Brohm, should continue that streak.
▪ According to Fox’s Bruce Feldman, Sanford is the fifth assistant on Jim Harbaugh’s first staff at Stanford to become a head coach.
▪ Kentucky’s basketball game last Sunday against Hofstra in the Barclays Center did not create much of a New York buzz. Curtains were pulled over the empty seats in the arena’s upper deck. Attendance was announced at just 7,514.
It should be noted that figure included St. John’s and LIU-Brooklyn, which played the first game of the doubleheader. LIU-Brooklyn beat St. John’s 74-73.
▪ ESPN’s Zach Lowe on former UK guard Jamal Murray: “Murray is not shy, including demanding the ball when he’s open. But there is no Dion Waiters-esque greed in his requests, or shoulder-sagging despair if a Nugget teammate doesn’t oblige. Murray is just so damn excited to be open, he can’t help but express himself. He jumps, and claps, and hollers — and if no one sees him, he’ll zoom someplace else where he might spring open again.
“There is a caffeinated joy to Murray’s game. Mix in the brash confidence of a quick-release gunner, and you have the most exciting rookie outside of Philadelphia.”
▪ Staying on the subject of former Cats in the NBA, Phoenix’s Eric Bledsoe scored at least 30 points for the third consecutive game on Tuesday night.
▪ Colorado football coach Mike MacIntyre, who was a candidate for the Kentucky opening that went to Mark Stoops in 2013, is making good on a promise he made to his former Buffs players that he would buy them tickets when Colorado made it to a bowl. True to his word, MacIntyre is offering just that for Colorado’s Alamo Bowl game Dec. 29 against Oklahoma State.
▪ Take away Malik Monk (30-of-78 for 38.5 percent) and Kentucky is shooting 29.3 percent from three-point range.
▪ North Carolina Central’s Patrick Cole was just one assist away from a quadruple-double in his team’s 70-66 loss at LSU on Tuesday. The 6-foot-5 senior scored 19 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, dished nine assists and had 10 turnovers.
▪ Charlie Strong (South Florida) and Lane Kiffin (Florida Atlantic) should clean up in their new head coaching jobs.
▪ A stat that probably won’t surprise you: DeMarcus Cousins leads the NBA in technical fouls with nine. He’s played in 23 games this season.
▪ I didn’t realize Wake Forest was so good this season, opponents needed inside information to beat the Demon Deacons.
▪ Hope the college game never adopts the NFL’s 33-yard point after touchdown kick. Games decided by a missed extra point should be few and far between. (I think former Bengals kicker Mike Nugent agrees.)
John Clay: 859-231-3226, @johnclayiv
This story was originally published December 14, 2016 4:13 PM.