Randle breaks leg in NBA opener; Davis shines

 The Courier Journal

The 2014-15 NBA season started Tuesday night and, as far as Kentucky fans are concerned, there were two major headlines: Anthony Davis is, in fact, the next big thing and Julius Randle's rookie season might be over before it really even got started.

Davis went off for 26 points, 17 rebounds and nine blocked shots in the New Orleans Pelicans' rout of the Orlando Magic. His near triple-double on opening night lends some immediate credibility to all the preseason hype that the 21-year-old former Wildcat might just be the third-biggest star in the league this year behind LeBron James and Kevin Durant.

Davis tied his own franchise record with the nine blocks and, per Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com, became the first NBA player since Dwight Howard in 2008 to have at least that many points, rebounds and blocks in a game.

Now for the bad news: Randle, drafted No. 7 overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in June, suffered a broken right tibia in the fourth quarter of his first NBA game. He had two points in 14 minutes against the Houston Rockets before driving, jumping and crumpling under the basket. Randle stayed down for several minutes, grimacing every time trainers tried to move his leg.

Lakers star Kobe Bryant consoled him as Randle's leg was placed in an air cast and he was carted off on a stretcher. TNT's Rachel Nichols reported late Tuesday night that the team confirmed it was a fractured tibia and Randle was being transported to a hospital to determine whether he needed surgery. His mother, Carolyn Kyles, was by his side and in tears.

Randle's injury overshadowed everything else in a blowout victory for the Rockets, including former UK star Terrence Jones' big night: 16 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals. Like Davis, he's embarking on his third NBA season and appears to be coming into his own in Houston.