LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – John Calipari felt just fine in his Old Kentucky Home. For the coach who has won more games in Rupp Arena than any other, it was just another W. But we all know it was more than that.
Only once will he enter Rupp Arena for the first time as the Hall of Fame coach who bolted from Kentucky, who decided the grass in Arkansas would be greener – though never as blue. All season, the contrast between Kentucky’s success and his own team’s struggles has been front and center, and if it wasn’t, columnists (like me) were happy to point it out.
From the minute Calipari walked into the arena – a bit earlier than was his custom – to a noticeable round of boos, he was center stage in a prodigal drama. Only this time, there was no fatted calf at the end. Instead, his Arkansas team of three former Kentucky standouts and a former Kentucky recruit, feasted on fatted Wildcat.
Arkansas 89, Kentucky 79. In front of an electric crowd of 21,266 in Rupp Arena. After 20 minutes of ESPN pregame hype (curious, since Seth Greenberg said on a Louisville radio show last week that “outside of Kentucky and Arkansas, nobody gives a blank.”)
This one is going to leave a mark.
Calipari came. He went to Dunkin’ Donuts. He conquered.
“It’s hard to win in here,” Calipari said. “And I got to be honest with you, and (former Wildcat) Adou (Thiero) said he did the same thing. I looked up a couple times and I thought we were losing because I kept looking at Kentucky instead of Arkansas. And I told him, ‘I did that.’ And Adou said, ‘Coach, I did the same thing.’ It was 15 years here, you know, I mean, great, great thing for me was I was able to get around and see all my dear friends. Today, I went and saw two guys that I knew weren’t going to be able to get out of the house, and one did. So, you know, coming back and playing this well. We played well. We did.”
In the grand scheme, the win perhaps hurts Kentucky more than it helps Arkansas. The Razorbacks, with only one win in SEC play, aren’t likely to put together a big run in the SEC at this point, without talented point guard Boogie Fland (himself a former UK commit).
In fact, you could say this game was Arkansas’ Super Bowl. But if you’re going to win one game, the Super Bowl isn’t a bad one.
Adding insult to injury, Kentucky was beaten by three players who used to wear its uniform. DJ Wagner played one of the best games of his career, operating nearly flawlessly at point guard, finishing with 17 points and eight assists.
Adou Thiero was the toughest player on the court, finishing with 21 points and eight rebounds. And Zvonimir Ivisic, “Big Z,” finished with 14 points, including 4 of 7 shooting from three-point range.
When the Razorbacks pushed their lead to 14 with 2:59 to play, Rupp Arena quietly started to empty out. An arena that had been packed an hour before the game started to head for the exits. They missed a bit of excitement, when the teams scuffled briefly in front of the Arkansas bench.
The result was two technical free throws and the ball for Kentucky down 12, but Jaxson Robinson missed both free throws,
But in the end, Arkansas shot it too well. They outshot Kentucky from the outside – 13 of 25 from the three-point line – and sprinted by Kentucky for a 18-5 edge on the break. They shot 55 percent for the game, and bettered their SEC scoring average by 25 points.
Calipari said the emotions of his return quickly gave way to his team’s need for a win.
“We needed to win a game, so it didn’t matter who it was against,” Calipari said. “I made it clear it was a privilege and an honor to coach here. We had 15 unbelievable years, a great run. Support, the fans supported us. The families that entrusted us with their sons — got a bunch of calls. I got 190 texts by the time the game ended, and I’m guessing a bunch of them are former players, not that they’re ever going to root against Kentucky. They went to school here, but they also have a relationship with me. But the only emotion I had was we got to win the game.”
For Kentucky, more questions. After responding in a big way for a win at No. 8-ranked Tennessee over the weekend, the Wildcats showed the effects of the pressure in playing against Calipari, whose team had been off all week.
Amari Williams was absolutely brilliant for Kentucky, for a second straight game. He finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Jaxson Robinson added 20.
But Kentucky couldn’t stop Arkansas’ Big Blue Three, and couldn’t make threes in the second half, shooting just 3 of 13 from beyond the arc.
After the game Pope questioned his own defensive approach. He said Arkansas has been much better against zone this season, but he thinks he could’ve been more aggressive in man-to-man.
“If I could run it back, I think I would have taken a more aggressive posture, probably taking some more risk defensively, maybe even rather than going zone,” Pope said. “It’s something that we’re going to have to continue to work on. We’re navigating some roster situations right now that that have me feeling a little constricted, and I probably need to be a little more bold regardless, and take some more shots of being aggressive.”
As Calipari left the court, “My Old Kentucky Home,” played on. For Calipari last night, it was a happy homecoming.
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