Get Away From Me, Alan Cutler

There are still reverberations from yesterday's Billy Gillispie firing, but there's nothing more telling about the misguided lunacy that is UK basketball than watching a television reporter chase Gillispie through the Joe Craft center.

The reporter in the video is WLEX 18's Alan Cutler, who, for whatever reason, felt that getting the former Kentucky head coach on the record immediately after he was canned was crucial and worthy of stalkerazzi-style reporting techniques. It's hilarious watching Gilliispie do the cellphone-to-the-ear trick ( a known TMZ repellent) in an attempt to ward off the two or three television reporters following him around the campus. When that fails, he goes into a swift jog, trying to shake the dogged Cutler who's cutting him off at every angle. " I can run all day, Billy!," Cutler says at one point. But, alas, he's finally stopped by a secretary as soon as Gillispie reaches the safety of his office.

Cutler's behavior is being criticized, but nothing can compare to the bashing Gillispie's getting, as most of the reports suggest that it wasn't his coaching record that was the problem, but his wild-eyed hillbillyness that ended his reign at UK. Or, as Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart put it, they had a " a difference in philosophies." :

"There is a clear gap in how the rules and responsibilities overseeing the program are viewed. It is a gap I do not believe can be solved by just winning games."

UK's now looking for a more polished, regal candidate, one that will restore the image of the school's program as one of the country's elite. Names like Izzo, Calipari and, yes, Pitino are being tossed around as potential candidates.(What's with Kentucky's obsession with Italians?) As for Gillispie, he stated he has no hard feelings about Kentucky, but does expect to be paid the $6 million of his contract. UK, on the other hand, says it has no intention of paying the buyout because they basically think Gillispie's the most heinous individual ever to step foot into Lexington.

Stalking Gillispie....[OnlineSportsGuys]