By LARRY VAUGHT

Melvin Kale didn’t like the recent story about John Wall not being recruited by North Carolina and says NC coach Roy Williams never told him why.

Here’s the e-mail I got from Kale today:

“Come on Larry tell the truth about the recruiting or are you someone who knows absolutely nothing about College Recruitment and especially the recruitment of Wall by UNC. He would have loved to been at UNC or Duke but these are two schools that aren’t going to mess around with a Wall type of person, player, or whatever. Don’t write junk that isn’t true get your facts straight.”

When I e-mailed back that what happened with Wall was a fact, he noted that he responded that it was “all about the baggage Wall was trying to bring along with him.”

Of course, not sure just how factual that is or whether that is the spin Williams — who did seem to have some baggage of his own when he left Kansas if memory serves me right — put on it.

All I know is how Wall has been at Kentucky. Teammates respect him. He’s apparently been great academically. He’s been humble with the media. He’s been gracious with fans. And he now loves being at Kentucky.

I just don’t see any reason for fans from other schools to trash this young man who I now firmly believe will be the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft. Let him enjoy his time at Kentucky. He did nothing to you.

And to put the attention back on the game, here is what Wall had to say today about Saturday’s game with North Carolina in Rupp Arena.

On North Carolina …
“They are good, they are pretty good. They’ve got key big men that score in the post for them and they look to get the ball to them as much as they can. Everybody just plays from there. If you can’t stop their big men, then it is going to be tough. Coach Roy Williams is doing a great job of coaching them and preparing them for the season.”

On the pace of the game …
“I think it is going to get up and down but at the end, like the last four or eight minutes it is going to be about who can get a key defensive stop. That is what I think the game is going to come down to. It is about getting key stops and scoring when you need to at the end. “

On what mindset coach Calipari is taking into the game …
“He is just saying that we need to be prepared. This is our first test. This is probably going to be the most talented team we are going to play this year. They have big men and guards that can play. We are just working on everything we can to prepare for them. We are still working on our stuff and getting better every day at practice. We have to take time to see what they are doing and see what we have to do to try and stop them.”

On if coach Calipari thinks the team is “overrated” …
“I think he does still think we are overrated and we do too. That is something that is still motivating us. People say we are overrated; we’ve just got to keep working harder in the gym and in the classroom.”

On where the team stands entering the game …
“We are nowhere near to where we are supposed to be. We are doing fine and winning games but we are not where coach wants us to be, we know that too. We have to keep coming and working hard every day.”

On if Saturday is an opportunity to make a statement …
“It is just another basketball game, but on a bigger stage and a bigger level. It is going to be great competition for us to see where we are at and where we stand this season.”

On playing his home-state school North Carolina …
“I think I might have a little bit of an edge but I can’t let it overwhelm me and try get out of control and do stuff that I’m not supposed to do or try to do too much while I’m playing on Saturday. I’ve got to keep doing what I’ve been doing and get my teammates involved. If I have the opportunity to score that’s what I do, but I think if I get out of control it’s going to mess us up.”

On the game with UNC …
“I am looking forward to it a lot. I think it is going to be a great game. It is going to be our first time really being challenged this year, but a great team that is coached by a great coach in Roy Williams. They have a great freshman class that came in and a lot of people that came back from last year.”

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