Recalibrate the mind – critical mass free throws become critical finish exacta, furlong times, the jockey and mile-and-a-quarter.

Names on our mind’s marquee change too. Julius, Cauley-Stein, Russ and Luke give way to horse owner imaginations – Vicar’s In Trouble, Chitu, We Miss Artie and Uncle Sigh.

Most exquisite element in sports that draws us back as calendar rolls over, that changes too. What if and If only.

Question/suspense: “Who’s comin’ back?” and “What’s the recruiting news?” and maybe “What episode of NBA As The World Turns is on this week?”

More May calendar queries: “What ball coach job jumped today?” … “What player got arrested for DUI after the party?” and “Who’s Calvin (Borel) ridin’ in the seventh on Sat-dee?”

At the track, at the ball park on to hoops series against the Hoosiers, the sporting possibilities here in Kentucky keep us on this side of the highway’s yellow line. Sane and buffered from hateful politics, pollen counts, what country USA pledges to protect this week, and of course, Vladimir Putin’s latest mischief.

This week, in front of us, the heralded most exciting two minutes in sports. In truth, this hoss race is two minutes bubble-wrapped in layers enough of televised show-off pomp and pretend, dress-up and “bring me another drink, but not that green thing!” to make one gag.

Derby day has morphed into a week of pageant then Saturday night that begs for a Patti Page epilogue: “Is that all there is?”

Today though, let us take pause for a first-week-in-May look back.

–

This week, a retrospective.

1. Who’s coming back to Kentucky’s 5-star hotel? Everybody almost. Aaron and Andrew Harrison were last of eight to tweet Big Blue Nation, they will return.

Twins return leaves us to wonder if NBA draft guru Chad Ford made this call: “Both are borderline first round picks right now. If the twins declare this year, they are playing in the D-League.”

2. Julius Randle and James Young? Bye. And, for UK’s fund for legitimate student-athletes, send money.

3. What could be new at Kentucky: When 40-0 is mentioned, nobody laughs.

4. Ghost of 40-0. With arguably the best assemblage of talent in college hoops ever, the pressure’s on. John Calipari may as well have a 40-0 tattoo when hoops magazines arrive in July. With this roster, Calipari has chance to prove he’s an extraordinary coach instead of a “gonna make ya rich in seven months” flim-flam man with a good hair cut.

5. Kentucky will be back atop the ratings and cast anew as New York Yankees of college hoops.

6. Best of it: Alex Poythress. Excellent student makes right decision and considering his play in March, a $unny-Side future during and beyond the NBA black hole.

7. Football. Spring games are now in the film room. Video to be hashed over, broken down and synthesized with the fine comb scrutiny allotted Donald Sterling cell phone calls.

8. Best of it for Big Blue Nation? UK could be quarterback-rich. Cream-to-top come autumn – Reese Phillips and Patrick Towles.

9. Best of it II, Mark Stoops said this: “… (last year) we just weren’t very good. (This year) we’re better. We’re still not where we need to be but we’re better.”

10. Worst of it. Defensive secondary. Was awful a season ago and didn’t look appreciably better against Towles, Phillips and Drew Barker. Leaving BBN to wonder, “If ya can’t solve QBs you see at practice every day, how’re you gonna handle an afternoon in Gainesville or Baton Rouge?”

11. Kentucky spring game analysis from here: With an eye on first half of a 2014 schedule (five of first six at home, and road game at rebuilding instead of reload Florida) huge opportunity.

12. Chance of a football surge at UK hasn’t been so reasonable since 1997 when Hal Mumme got hold of Tim Couch’s coattails, and media swooned over bandwagoned both.

13. By way of his girlfriend cell phone record button, Donald Sterling crammed both feet and a 747 into his mouth without so much as a press conference last week.

CNN and Don Lemon would have us skip the legal preliminaries, do a poll, then crucify the NBA Los Angeles Clippers owner at halftime of a Lakers game.

Sterling’s ugly racist cell phone rant became on Friday. Presto, CNN News and Lemon took a weekend away from Malaysian Flight 370, called in the heavy artillery for a weekend of talking-head righteousness. It amounted to knee jerk overkill, but presumably a boatload of teevee ratings.

WORTH REPEATING DEPT.

ESPN president John Skipper wants the NBA’s one-and-done rule abolished.

“I think it’s the single worst violation of student-athlete relationships,” he told football bowl game officials recently.

“Kids don’t go to class the second semester. They come in and play basketball a year and leave. I have no quarrel with kids wanting to go play basketball, [but] I think they should have to stay a couple or three years.”

“I don’t know anybody who does [like it] There’s one small set of people who are against that. Agents, representatives for NBA players.”

PARTING SHOT

Television comic Steven Colbert had an idea for one-and-done John Calipari last week. “If you could get them to stay for two years, this might help you. Here’s another rhyme: ‘Two and Toodaloo.’”