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Men's Basketball

The Dreaded Day After: Auburn vs. Kentucky

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On Sunday afternoon, Kentucky fell to the Auburn Tigers 77-71 in the Elite Eight and PJ Washington’s tweet following the game sums up the feelings of the Big Blue Nation.

Kentucky can’t win it every year, but nothing hurts worse than Kentucky losing in the tournament and it never gets any easier.

It was a helluva season and I hate to see it come short, but lets look at why it did.

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Guard Play

Guards win games in the NCAA Tournament, and simply put Auburn’s guards were better on Sunday.

The Kentucky guards combined for 38 points on 13-38 (35% FG) shooting, 3-17 (18%) from three, and 9 turnovers.

Whereas Jared Harper and Bryce Brown combined for 50 points on 15-30 shooting including 5-13 from three, 6 steals, and 5 assists. Two players accounted for 65% of Auburns points and you can’t expect to win when that happens.

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Down the stretch, Jared Harper made the right plays and willed Auburn to that win and the Kentucky guards didn’t have an answer.

I would have liked to see Immanuel Quickley or even Jemarl Baker a little more, but it looked they were just playing scared. While Hagans turned it over 7 times, he wasn’t scared and made some crucial layups at the end.

Keldon Johnson and Tyler Herro were the two of the three best offensive options for this Kentucky team for a majority of the season and Kentucky was really hurt when they combined for just 21 points.

Dreadful Second Half

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While Kentucky still held Auburn to 30 points and 35% shooting in the second half, the offense was the problem.

If you were to combine the amount of points Kentucky scored from free throws and three-pointers in the second half, you would come up with a total of ONE point. With the way Kentucky plays, you can’t win like that.

PJ Washington scored 28 points and Reid Travis played 44 of minutes, and single-handedly kept the Cats in the game in the second half and they should be remembered in such a positive light in Kentucky history.

No team can win a game with two players.

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This is NOT on Calipari

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I respect that, and there are going to be fans blaming this loss on John Calipari and the “one-and-done” philosophy, but I just don’t see how one could say that.

I know 90-95% of Kentucky fans love Calipari and know how great of a job he has done at Kentucky. However, there is still that 5-10% that will NEVER be pleased.

In Calipari’s ten seasons at Kentucky

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In Calipari’s ten seasons at Kentucky

– 305 wins*, 2nd in UK history
– 31 Tournament wins*
– 5 SEC regular season titles
– 6 SEC Tournament titles
– 7 Elite Eights*
– 4 Final Fours*
– 2012 National title

*=Most in the Country in span

Yes, Kentucky has the highest expectations of any other school but it’s extremely unrealistic to expect a title or bust every season. Kentucky has won 8 titles in 116 seasons, for an average of one every 14.5 seasons, and Cal has brought us that.

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As for the one and done, it has only been used for a little over 10 years, so yes there is a bigger sample size of teams that are led by veterans and a larger number of teams doing that because they aren’t able to get elite talent.

Duke and Kentucky are really the only ones going all in on the one and done. Just by percentages of 66 teams vs 2 teams, most years the field will win it and that’s just the randomness of the tournament. Still, the “one-and-done” has brought a title to each team.

Enjoy Calipari and all his “swagginess” while you can because Kentucky will not always have it this good. Kentucky has won a title with five different coaches, but only Rupp was as dominant. Kentucky will not always be a national title contender every year, Kentucky will not always have the elite of the elite talent. Don’t take this for granted and trust the process.

This one is going to hurt for a while but what stings most about this loss is that this team was national championship good and they were stopped short by a team they had beaten twice this season in a winnable game.

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With that said, it’s been a heck of a heck of a season and while it might have been a mild disappointment, I have had so fun watching and covering this team. Thank you to all the players giving your all and thank you to all my readers for the support through this basketball season.

Kentucky will be back and reloaded next season. GO CATS!!

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Men's Basketball

Adou Thiero Enters Transfer Portal, Keeps Options Open

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© Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky’s first domino of the off-season has fallen. Adou Thiero has entered the transfer portal, according to On3’s Jamie Shaw. He has entered his name in the NBA Draft as well, while not ruling out a return to Kentucky, according to KSR’s Jack Pilgrim.

A big hit to Kentucky’s upcoming roster, as Thiero’s upside and growth will be missed. In the 2023-24 season, Thiero averaged 7.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game while missing 7 games due to injury. The 6-8 wing brought physicalness that Kentucky desperately needed this season, and something Calipari has been stressing for this upcoming season. Calipari harped on him numerous times this season, saying “He’s gotten so much better.”

Thiero has jumped in mock drafts all season, and his potential is sky high. ESPN’s Jonathan Givony even had Thiero going 27th in the 2025 NBA Draft. Now, he will get to add to his potential elsewhere.

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Now, Kentucky will look to find a good replacement for him as more things start happening throughout the off-season. Calipari is continuing to meet with players to discuss their future plans throughout the week.

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Men's Basketball

John Calipari Highlights Changes for Next Season

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John Calipari draws up a play at Kentucky's season opener. Said he made a "tweak".
UK Athletics

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” – Albert Einstein.

Many Kentucky fans have referred to this quote over the last few days, expressing a desire for a change from John Calipari. However, Calipari will be back on the sidelines for the Kentucky Wildcats next season for his 16th season, confirmed by Mitch Barnhart on Tuesday.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be any changes.

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On Monday, John Calipari went on his season-ending radio show, giving his first comments to fans since Kentucky’s upset loss to Oakland last Thursday. It was easy to see why is a good recruiter, as he said all the right things.

For the better part of an hour, Calipari spoke with humility, answered some direction questions from Tom Leach, and accepted criticism. The main takeaway was that he understands that he has not met the Kentucky standard or his own standard, and changes need to take place.

“We’ve got to evaluate everything,” Calipari said. Here are some changes that have been outlined.

Getting Back to “Grinding”

Kentucky basketball offseason has often consisted of international trips to the Bahamas, or Canada last season, but not this year. Calipari emphasized a desire to get back to what his early Kentucky teams were characterized by, defense and physicality.

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“What about in the summers, instead of the Bahmas or Toronto, we’re grinding,” Calipari proposed. “We’ve got to get back to where we’ve been defensively and with physicality. Your defense steadies you.”

Those trips are good for team bonding and chemistry, but it’s clear that time can be used better for getting into the weight room and instilling defensive principles. Calipari did note that he does not want to take a step back on offense.

Getting Older

Calipari is the coach who made the “one-and-done” approach popular, relying heavily on elite freshmen. However, with college basketball getting older, he has expressed a willingness to get older.

“We’re relying on freshmen too much. In those kinds of games, you better have some vets,” Calipari said of his takeaway from Oakland. “For us, we need to get older.”

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It should be noted that Calipari relied on transfers in 2022 and 2023, albeit most not being the elite transfers, but more supporting pieces (i.e. CJ Fredrick) and developmental players (i.e. Jacob Toppin). That said, two transfers have been the leading scorer for Kentucky in three straight seasons, Oscar Tshiebwe and Antonio Reeves.

Calipari is looking more for a middle ground between young talent and transfers. “I like the combination of both. We just got to get the right transfers.”

Program Changes

When you are winning, you have more freedom, but when you have just one NCAA Tournament win in the last four seasons, you’re not going to have that luxury. This was not publicly said by Calipari, but more oversight will come as a result of his meeting with Barnhart on Tuesday afternoon.

Expect 1-2 staff changes and likely a support staff change. One of the staff changes should be filled with a defensive mind, and the support staff should be (suggestion) filled with someone in a general manager-type role. There will also be some operation changes such as having a more definitive practice schedule, rather than getting a text the day before/of, and some changes with the NIL model.

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Men's Basketball

Mitch Barnhart Speaks On John Calipari Coming Back As Kentucky Basketball Coach, “He Will Return”

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Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart confirms that John Calipari will return as Kentucky Wildcats basketball coach.
Mike Weaver/Special to the Courier Journal

After days of speculation, Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart confirms that John Calipari will be back, coaching his 16th season for the Kentucky Wildcats. The two had a conversation at Barnhart’s farm on Tuesday afternoon.

“As we normally do at the end of every season, Coach Calipari and I have had conversations about the direction of our men’s basketball program and I can confirm that he will return for his 16th season as our head coach,” Barnhart said in a statement.

While there was some fan outcry for a head coaching change, there was no real indication that a change would be made.

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Barnhart was put in a difficult situation. Calipari has not led the Wildcats to the second round of the NCAA Tournament since 2019, but he is one of just a few active Hall of Fame coaches. With no clear option as a replacement, Barnhart decided to retain Calipari for another season.

Kentucky Insider has been told that Tuesday’s meeting between the two was “good”, despite some disagreement. As a result of the meeting, there will be some expected changes in the program, specifically some staff changes, and changes in day-to-day operations.

On Monday, Calipari recognized his shortcomings and closed out his show with a commitment to the Kentucky fans:

“That standard of national titles has been here from coach Rupp on. The only thing I am saying to all our fans. I’m going to work… That is a commitment that I give to the fans. I love it. This is what I want. This is it. Let’s come together and let’s do something.”

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Calipari is set to meet with players individually on Wednesday to discuss their stay/go decisions. The process of rebuilding next year’s roster (and staff) begins now.

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