Total College Sports Video Preview with Melanie Collins and We highlight the tomorrow makers on the Louisville Cardinals as they prepare to face Kentucky in the Final Four. This marks Louisville’s first Final Four appearance since 2005. Former Kentucky Coach Rick Pitino leads Louisville into the Final Four game. The Louisville defense is anchored by 6’11″ center Gorgui Dieng and guard Peyton Siva “has been the catalyst behind the Cardinals late-season turnaround.” Louisville has its sights set on its first national championship since 1986.

Kentucky defeated Auburn in SEC basketball action. Watch these video highlights and below are game notes about Kentucky’s SEC basketball win.

Here are Game Notes Courtesy of UK Media Relations
Kentucky improves to 16-1, 2-0 in the Southeastern Conference, while Auburn fell to 10-6, 0-2.

The Wildcats are 86-17 all-time against Auburn and 28-13 in Auburn.

This was UK’s first game in the recently constructed Auburn Arena.

UK is now 890-246 in SEC regular season action.

Kentucky has won 13-straight in its series against Auburn, one short of the longest streak in the series.

UK returns to action on Saturday, traveling to Knoxville, Tenn. to take on the Tennessee Volunteers. Tip-off is scheduled for noon ET and the game will be live on ESPN.

Team game notes
The Wildcats used the starting combination of Darius Miller, Terrence Jones, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Marquis Teague and Anthony Davis for the first time this season.

Doron Lamb was the first sub off the bench for the first time this season.

Kentucky extended its streak of games with a 3-pointer to 804 games, the third-longest streak in the country.

The Wildcats led 32-28 at the half. Kentucky is 13-0 when leading or tied at halftime this season.

Darius Miller hit a 3-pointer with 3:28 left in the second half to give Kentucky an eight point lead (57-49), its largest lead of the game at the time.

The UK defense held Auburn to just two field goals over the final 11 minutes and outscored Auburn 23-6 during that time.

Kentucky held Auburn to just eight second-half field goals (33.3 pct.).

Kentucky finished with eight turnovers, the first time since Dec. 20 the Cats have had single-digit turnovers.

Kentucky forced 15 turnovers resulting in 24 points, outscoring the Tigers in points off turnovers 24-6.

The Cats tallied 10 steals, the most since recording 10 steals at Indiana.

Individual game notes
#1 Darius Miller
Scored nine points, pushing his career total to 1,023, tied for 54th on UK’s all-time scoring list.

#3 Terrence Jones
Scored in double-figures in three-straight games.

#14 Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Tied his career-best with three steals.

Tied his career-best with three blocks.

#20 Doron Lamb
Came off the bench for the first time this season and tied for the team lead in scoring with 14 points.

Tallied his 100th career 3-pointer.

#23 Anthony Davis
Scored in double-figures in six-straight games and seven of the last eight.

Has record three or more blocks in 16 of 17 games this season.

Tied his career-high with three steals.

With four blocks, has 78 blocks on the season, one shy of the UK freshman blocks record. He moved to fifth on UK’s single-season blocks list, one shy of fourth and he is now five blocks shy of the school record.

#25 Marquis Teague
Hit multiple 3s for the second time this season and the first time since knocking down three against Penn State on Nov. 19.

Has hit 21 of his last 24 free throws.

Has scored in double-figures in back-to-back games.

Alabama defeated Detroit 62-54 in basketball action. The Alabama Crimson Tide basketball team improved to 8-2 on the season with Sunday’s victory.

Alabama head basketball coach Anthony Grant said, “Obviously it’s good to be back in the win column. I thought tonight we came out with great energy and great focus. I think the first half, from a defensive stand point, was exactly what we needed. Going against a team as talented as Detroit was, coming off two great wins, we knew how they would come in and we had to do a great job on the defensive end. I thought our guys were really focused to start the game.”

On Tony’s dunks and Alley-oops tonight:
“Tony’s play above the rim tonight was certainly something I was impressed with and it’s fun to watch when he’s able to make those highlight plays. It definitely gets our team and the crowd more involved in the game.”

On the players focusing on every game, and every play to be successful:
“Well, we consistently play four freshmen, so this is their first time going through everything. Obviously we also have some veterans but for four of our top seven, this is their first time going through it. So what we have to learn is about the focus and intensity that you need to bring every game, every possession and every half just to understand what it takes to be successful at this level. I think with every game there is a lesson that we can take from it. Tonight there were some lessons that we were trying to get across to the guys so they can see what it’s all about and what it takes. Not only the young guys but the veterans as well. The challenge now is how we grow from this. Where do we go next in terms of willingness to be on the same page and understanding that you have to value the ultimate goal; to win.”

Here is a tentative schedule of live events during SEC Championship Friday and Saturday.

Friday, Dec. 2 – 2011 SEC Coaches Luncheon
Join LSU head coach Les Miles and UGA head coach Mark Richt live from the Hyatt Regency in Atlanta. This popular event, which begins at noon EST, signifies the official start of the SEC Championship weekend festivities.

Friday, Dec. 2 – Championship Pre-Game Press Conference
Live coverage of the Les Miles and Mark Richt press conferences from the Georgia Dome, slated to begin at approximately 1:30 p.m. EST.

Saturday, Dec. 3 – Championship Post-Game Press Conference
Watch immediately following the game for instant player and coach reaction in the post-game press conferences with both teams.

The above video player features game highlights. (Warning: some mobile devices have trouble with video.)

The South Carolina Gamecocks improved to 10-2 on the season with a win over the Clemson Tigers Saturday in a night game at Williams-Brice Stadium. This marks the second 10-win season in South Carolina football history. South Carolina’s Connor Shaw made plays on the ground and through the air for the Gamecocks. Clemson fell to 9-3 on the season under coach Dabo Swinney.

Many of the highlights feature Connor Shaw making plays in the passing game and with his legs. He showed real moves in this video to get the ball into the end zone for a touchdown.

In the video player above, watch highlights of the game as Mississippi State defeats Ole Miss.

Following the game, Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen said:
“Obviously, it was a great win. I’m really proud of our guys – the way they battled; the way they fought. Three-straight Egg Bowl championships is something special. I’m really proud of how since we got here, everybody has bought into what we’re trying to do. It’s great for our seniors to go out that way; great for our young guys. They know how important it is for us and how important it is for our fans – the people of the state of Mississippi. I’m proud of the direction that the program is going. We don’t have a lot of time to enjoy, because we got to get out on the road for recruiting and hopefully all the kids in the state of Mississippi understand this is the place to come to win championships.”

Alabama humiliated Auburn in the annual Iron Bowl rivalry game. Auburn’s defense was dominated by Alabama’s rushing game powered by Trent Richardson and a sophisticated passing game from A.J. McCarron. Auburn’s offense was ineffectual throughout the day.

Highlights include A.J. McCarron’s spectacular touchdown pass off the flea flicker, McCarron throwing a touchdown pass to Alabama’s Brad Smelley who was behind the Auburn defense, Auburn’s defense stepping up to force a McCarron fumble recovered for a touchdown, Alabama star running back Trent Richardson catching a pass for a touchdown, Alabama’s defense getting a pick-six and Fowler scoring the final points of the 2011 Iron Bowl.

Alabama posted 397 yards of total offense with Trent Richardson gaining 203 yards rushing. Brad Smelley caught six passes for 86 yards for Alabama. Alabama held Auburn to only 140 yards of total offense, and the offensive guru Gus Malzahn was shutout with Auburn’s only scores coming on defense and special teams.

Tennessee fell to Kentucky and finished the season 1-7 in SEC play and 5-7 overall. Watch the highlights in the above video player. Below are a few nuggets from Tennessee coach Derek Dooley following the game.

Tennessee Volunteer Head Football Coach Derek Dooley said: “Well real bad ending to a real bad season. It’s hard to say much more than that, our biggest fears were realized. We were miserable in the first half on offense and had a chance in the second half but just couldn’t execute. Give Kentucky a lot of credit. They played a lot more inspired football than we did. Now we have to begin our climb up because I did believe we were going to hit a place that wasn’t good. We were headed in this direction all along and just couldn’t fight our way out of it. Real disappointing but we’re going to have to learn from it and begin our climb in the offseason when we get back.”

MORE: Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley was asked about the end of Tennessee’s winning streak over Kentucky. He said, “Certainly you don’t want it on your watch but it happened and there’s not much we can do about it now except try to start another one.”

Arkansas head football coach Bobby Petrino had this to say about the game: “Well, we got beat by a better football team. You know they have played better offensively. Defensively, we started out well, took the lead, but we made some crucial errors. We gave them a punt return, and then we didn’t play very well two-minute defense after we fumbled the ball when we were driving it. I think that was a huge turning point in the game.”

Here are game notes courtesy of University of Arkansas Media Relations:

Arkansas Team Notes
Arkansas was 2-of-2 (1.000) in the Critical Zone (inside the 20-yard line). Jarius Wright caught a 13-yard touchdown pass from Tyler Wilson in the second quarter and Zach Hocker made a 29-yard field goal in the third quarter. Arkansas is now 47-for-54 (.870) inside the Critical Zone this season with 34 touchdowns (.630).

The Razorbacks have forced at least one turnover in eight straight games and have forced 17 in that span. UA extended the streak in the second quarter when Alonzo Highsmith returned a fumble forced by Tramain Thomas 47 yards for a touchdown. Thomas also had an interception in the third quarter.

Arkansas scored its eighth non-offensive score of the season in the second quarter when Alonzo Highsmith returned a fumble forced by Tramain Thomas 47 yards for a touchdown. The Razorbacks have a non-offensive score in five of their last six games.

Arkansas scored 17 points to give the Razorbacks 449 points for the season, which ranks as the fourth-highest single-season total in school history.

Individual Notes
Jarius Wright broke the Arkansas single-season receiving yards record with a 13-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter. Wright had 27 yards in the game and now has 1,029 this season bettering the previous record of 1,004 set by Anthony Lucas in 1998.

Jarius Wright tied the Arkansas single-season receiving touchdowns record with a 13-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter. Wright now has 11 touchdown receptions this season, tied with Marcus Monk (2006).

Jarius Wright broke the Arkansas single-season receptions record with a 14-yard reception in the fourth quarter. Wright finished the game with two catches and now has 63 this season, passing J.J. Meadors (1995, 62).

Zach Hocker moved into second on Arkansas’ single-season kick scoring list and third on UA’s single-season scoring list. With five points in the game, Hocker now has 107 this season.

Tramain Thomas moved into a tie for third on Arkansas’ all-time career interceptions list. With his third-quarter interception, Thomas now has 12 in his career, tied with Orlando Watters (1991-93),

Louis Campbell (1970-72) and Tommy Trantham (1965-67). Thomas also tied a career-high with a team-high 14 tackles and forced a fumble.

Jerry Franklin had six tackles in the game to give him 374 for his career, which ranks third in school history, passing Sam Olajubutu (2003-06, 372).

Dylan Breeding booted a career-long 70-yard punt in the first quarter on his first punt of the day. It bettered his previous career long of 60 yards set vs. Texas A&M last season. Breeding dropped three of his punts in the game inside the 10-yard line.

Game Notes
Today’s captains for Arkansas were Jarius Wright, Knile Davis, Tyler Wilson, Jerico Nelson, Jerry Franklin and Jake Bequette.
The attendance for today’s game was 93,108.

USC Coach Lane Kiffin and his USC Trojans clarified the BCS picture with an upset win over Oregon.

USC’s offense move the ball almost at will with balance—running and passing at will on Oregon. The Ducks responded, but were slowed just enough by the Trojans. Once again, kickers played an important role.

The star of the night was USC’s Matt Barkely who threw for 323 yards and four touchdowns. Southern Cal receivers Marqise Lee and Robert Woods caught touchdown passes.

Watch the above embedded video and share your thoughts below on the impact this game has on the BCS picture. Does this help or hurt the BCS? Was this a great night for college football and the importance of the regular season? What does it say about the BCS?

Iowa State changed the world Friday night. Well, at least Iowa State changed the BCS world. The Cyclones defeated the #2 ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys in Friday night Big 12 action.

Who said the BCS isn’t interesting?

Now everyone will be campaigning for a slot in the BCS championship game. Does this mean Alabama has a chance for a rematch with LSU in New Orleans? What about Oregon? Will Oklahoma now make a statement? Oh, and we cannot forget Arkansas. The Razorbacks have the best quarterback in the SEC and are playing amazing football.

What do you think?

Watch the three minutes of video highlights and share your thoughts about this game and the BCS in the comments section.

The above video player contains highlights of Alabama’s win over Mississippi State in SEC action. Some mobile platforms can’t view the Adobe Flash player. Below is a game recap courtesy of UA.

Here is a game recap courtesy of UA Media Relations:

The Alabama Crimson Tide posted a 24-7 victory on Saturday night over the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium to move to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in the Southeastern Conference, while the Bulldogs dip to 5-5 on the season and 1-5 versus league foes.

Junior running back Trent Richardson notched his seventh 100-plus rushing yard game of the season, finishing with a game-high 127 yards on the ground. Richardson’s performance against the Bulldogs moved him into Alabama’s top 10 in career rushing attempts as well as its single-season rushing yards list. Sophomore running back Eddie Lacy also had a big game, finishing with 96 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns.

The Tide defense was led by junior linebacker Dont’a Hightower, who recorded 11 total tackles, including three for loss, and 1.5 sacks for a loss of nine yards. Senior safety Mark Barron added nine total tackles, five of which were solo.

It was a battle of the defenses in the opening quarter as both teams went three-and-out on their first two drives. Sophomore Cade Foster would attempt a 49-yard field goal on the Tide’s third drive of the game, which went wide right.

A fumble on the punt attempt by the Bulldogs gave Alabama prime field position heading into the second quarter with the line of scrimmage set at the Mississippi State 31. From there, the Tide drove the ball down to the 14 behind a 16-yard pass from sophomore quarterback AJ McCarron to sophomore wide receiver Kenny Bell, and a one-yard rush from Richardson, but a 31-yard field goal attempt by junior place kicker Jeremy Shelley was wide left, leaving the game scoreless with 14:45 remaining in the half.

Later in the quarter, Alabama would get on the board with a five play, 52-yard drive, capped off by a two-yard run by Lacy. Shelley would tack on the point-after attempt to give the Tide a 7-0 lead at the 9:59 mark of the quarter.

The Bulldogs first entered Alabama territory late in the second, stringing together a 62-yard drive over 11 plays to pull within field-goal range. But a 41-yard attempt was no good.

On the ensuing play, McCarron’s pass, intended for junior tight end Michael Williams, was intercepted by Mississippi State junior linebacker Cameron Lawrence and brought back to the Alabama 4-yard line. The Tide defense held strong, forcing the Bulldogs to settle for a field goal attempt, which sailed right of the uprights.

The shutout against Mississippi State in the first half marked the 13th time in the last 14 games that Alabama has allowed seven points or less over the opening 30 minutes of the game.

Following halftime, a 24-yard field goal by Shelley at the end of an eight play, 73-yard drive gave Alabama a 10-0 lead with 7:32 to play in the third quarter. The Tide added another touchdown at the 13:39 mark of the quarter on a two-yard run by Richardson.

Mississippi State put up its first points of the game with 12-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Tyler Russell to junior wide receiver Chris Smith to open the fourth quarter, setting the score at 17-7 with 11:54 remaining on the clock. Alabama would strike one final time with a 32-yard touchdown run from Lacy and a successful extra-point from Shelley to put the Tide on top 24-7.

Next up, Alabama will host its final home game of the 2011 season when it welcomes Georgia Southern to Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday, November 19. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. CT.

In what was a match between the two newest members of the SEC (pending official announcement for Mizzou), the Missouri Tigers defeated the Texas A&M Aggies. Watch these video highlights for a glimpse of what Alabama and other SEC schools are soon to face.

It was a dramatic overtime win for Mizzou on the road in College Station. This marks the three straight road wins over the Aggies.

In what has become the story of the season for the Aggies, Texas A&M lost another halftime lead. This time, the Aggies led Missouri 28-10 at intermission. Texas A&M managed just 3 points in the second half. However, Mizzou showed its strengths in the second half with strong play on offense and defense.

It is an interesting look at the soon-to-be members of the SEC (pending any legal hurdles.)

Arkansas quaterback Tyler Wilson shows once again he is the to quarterback in the SEC. Wilson threw for 316 yards in a win over Vanderbilt. Today’s game against Vandy illustrated the story for the Razorbacks—once Arkansas finds a defense, this will be a dangerous team in the SEC. You can watch the video in the above video player, and below find game notes from Arkansas.

ARKANSAS FOOTBALL POSTGAME NOTES Oct. 29, 2011 at Vanderbilt – Vanderbilt Stadium (courtesy of UA Media Relations)

Team Notes
Arkansas improves to 7-1 on the season with the win. The 7-1 start is the best for Arkansas under head coach Bobby Petrino and the first 7-1 start for the Razorbacks since 2006. The only other times UA has started a season 7-1 since joining the SEC was 1998 and 2006.

The Razorbacks finished the month of October with a perfect 4-0 record, marking the first perfect October for Arkansas under Coach Petrino and fourth since joining the SEC.

Arkansas runs its winning streak to four games, matching the second-largest winning streak under Coach Petrino. Arkansas won six straight at the end of the regular season in 2010 and four straight in 2009.

The Razorbacks recorded their third double-digit comeback of the 2011 season and the eighth under Coach Petrino.
Arkansas outscored Vanderbilt 17-7 in the second half of today’s game. The Razorbacks have outscored their opponents 144-66 in the second half, including 67-17 in the fourth quarter.

Arkansas was 3-for-3 in the Critical Zone (inside the 20-yard line). Brandon Mitchell scored on a 4-yard touchdown rush in the first quarter and Tyler Wilson threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jarius Wright in the second. In the third quarter, Zach Hocker made a 36-yard field goal. This season, UA is 32-for-35 (.914) in the Critical Zone with 23 touchdowns (.657).

The Razorbacks were 2-for-2 on fourth-down conversion attempts in the game. This season, UA is 10-for-12 (.833) on fourth-down conversion attempts.

Arkansas’ second touchdown drive took 1 minute, 34 seconds for the 14th touchdown drive of less than two minutes this season. UA has 76 touchdown drives of less than two minutes under head coach Bobby Petrino.

Arkansas has recorded an interception in four straight games. Eric Bennett made an interception in the third quarter, his third straight game with an interception, to extend the streak.

Individual Notes
Tyler Wilson broke the Arkansas record for consecutive passes without an interception. He currently has a streak of 176 passes thrown without an interception dating back to the second quarter at Alabama, breaking the previous record of 141 set by Ryan Mallett in 2009. Wilson’s current streak ranks as tied for the sixth-longest streak in SEC history.

Jarius Wright moved into second on UA’s all-time career receiving yards list with 135 yards in the game. Wright now has 2,526 receiving yards in his career, passing Anthony Eubanks (2,440; 1994-97).

Jarius Wright moved into third on Arkansas’ career 100-yard receiving games with 135 yards in the game. Wright now has eight career 100-yard receiving games and his third of the season.

Joe Adams moved into a third on UA’s all-time career receptions list with six in the game. Adams now has 147 catches in his career.

Jarius Wright moved into fourth on UA’s all-time career receptions list with 10 in the game. Wright now has 146 catches in his career.

Jarius Wright moved into a tie for fifth on UA’s single-season touchdown receptions list with an 11-yard touchdown grab in the second quarter. Wright now has a career-high seven touchdown catches in 2011.

Tyler Wilson moved into sixth on UA’s single-season completions list with 27 in the game. Wilson now has 175 completions in 2011.

Tyler Wilson moved into sixth on UA’s single-season passing yards list with 316 in the game. Wilson now has 2,327 passing yards in 2011.

Tyler Wilson moved into a tie for 10th on UA’s single-season touchdown passes list with an 11-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. Wilson now has 13 touchdown passes in 2011, tied with Casey Dick (2008) and Robby Hampton (2000).

Jerry Franklin returned a fumble 94 yards for a touchdown. It was Franklin’s fifth fumble recovery of his career and the first time Arkansas has returned a fumble for a touchdown since Franklin had an 85-yard fumble return for a touchdown against Texas A&M in 2009.

Jerry Franklin led Arkansas with 10 tackles in the game, including seven solo stops. Franklin now has 349 tackles in his career, which ranks seventh in school history.

Jerico Nelson recovered a fumble in the fourth quarter, his third career fumble recovery.

Game Notes
Today’s captains for Arkansas were Jarius Wright, Knile Davis, Tyler Wilson, Jerico Nelson, Jerry Franklin and Jake Bequette.

The attendance for today’s game was 33,247.