by LARRY VAUGHT
Due to a Southeastern Conference mandate, the UK Radio Network team of Tom Leach and Mike Pratt will be calling the away games from a studio in Lexington much like ESPN and SEC Network announcers have been doing during football.
“I will really miss going to the shoot arounds before games. I picked up a lot of things I could use and others I couldn’t but could still find a way to use in my own words,” said Pratt, a former UK All-American and the network analyst.
“It’s going to be really different. I honestly do not know how hard it will be because I have never experienced anything like that but apparently all the leagues are going to that. The SEC has the affiliation with the SEC Network obviously so we can get what we need to call the game.”
To get ready for the UK-Kansas game he would be calling virtually, Pratt reached out to former UK All-American Kyle Macy who did games for ESPN several years ago from a remote location.
“Macy said it was actually kind of neat and if you have enough televisions you can see a lot of different angles,” Pratt said. “Sometimes you go through life wishing you could have done things, so now I get this chance. I will still be in the same room with Tom, just watching while we are social distancing. Others are doing it so I am sure we can do it also.”
Pratt and Leach are still calling games from court side at Rupp Arena, just in a different spot than previous years.
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