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Men's Basketball

The Morning After: Kentucky vs. Houston

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Take a deep breath and check your heart rate.

Tyler Herro and PJ Washington entered Kentucky folklore as the Wildcats survived and advanced with a 62-58 victory over the Houston Cougars.

While the win wasn’t pretty, a win is a win. However, there are plenty of things to look at and learn from as we look forward to Sunday’s game against Auburn.

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Tyler Herro THE Hero

After Herro only scored 9 points on 2-11 shooting, it was a good sight to see Tyler “Bucket” Herro back in full swing as he scored 19 on 7-13 shooting. Including the three to give Kentucky the lead with 25.8 seconds left.

After missing a free throw earlier in the half, Mr. Clutch went on to sink two free throws to give Kentucky a comfortable four-point lead with 15 seconds to go.

Herro took Kentucky fans back to Aaron Harrison’s 2014 run with that shot and with that shot, he will always be remembered.

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PJ Washington, We Don’t Win Without Him

Before the game, there was still speculation on whether PJ Washington would play or not. On Friday, he was back in full form, and that foot didn’t look to bother him one bit.

In two games without PJ, Kentucky definitely missed his offense. In his return, PJ played one of his most efficient games of the year. Coming off the bench and in 26 minutes, PJ recorded 16 points (6-8), 2 rebounds, and 1 assist.

After the game, Calipari noted that PJ didn’t participate in pregame shootaround due to pain and was unsure if he was going to play. PJ wanted to play, played through the pain, and got two of the most critical plays of the game with the and-one and the block leading to Herro three.

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In Calipari’s postgame words, “we don’t win without him [PJ]”.

Great Defense

In three NCAA tournament games, the Wildcats have yet to give up more than sixty points or let a team shoot over 40% FG from the field.

After limiting Flethcer “Oofer” Magee to 0-12 on three point shooting last weekend, the focus shifted to Houston’s Corey Davis Jr. on Friday night.

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Davis came into the game averaging 23.5 points and five made three-pointers in two NCAA Tournament games. Tyler Herro had another great defensive performance limiting Davis Jr. to just 14 points (5-16) and 1-7 from three.

On Sunday, the Cats will face off against the Auburn Tigers for the third time this season and will have to limit their guards, Jared Harper and Bryce Brown who have both played great since SEC play.

Rebounding Battle

Coming into the game, Houston was top-10 in every rebounding category and many had anticipated the Cougars to put up a fight on the boards, but that just wasn’t the case.

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On Thursday, Houston’s Chris Harris, told Kyle Tucker of The Athletic:

“I believe that will be the game. Whoever wins the rebounding battle, that will be the game.”

In the end, it wasn’t too much of a battle and Harris’ comments rang true. Kentucky’s size was too much to handle for the Cougars as the Wildcats outrebounded Houston by 13 (36-23) and escaped with the win.

Offensive Struggles

Kentucky has played one and a half games of good offense in three tournament games and that needs to change in a hurry.

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After putting up 37 points in the first half, Kentucky only scored 12 points in just under 17 minutes which allowed Houston to regain the lead down the stretch. Kentucky went on to score 13 points in the final three minutes to win the game.

Simply. that just can’t happen again if the Cats want to win a national title.

On Sunday, the Cats will take on the Auburn Tigers for the third time this season and are playing their best basketball of the season. Auburn is a great offensive team, as they are ranked 6th in offensive efficiency and has scored 78 or more points in all three of their NCAA Tournament games.

Auburn truly lives and dies by the three. As we have seen in Kentucky’s two games against Auburn this year, they can lose by thirty or win the game, there’s no in between. Kentucky has to be ready for their best shot.

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Survive and advance. The Cats are one step closer to Minneapolis.

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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Men's Basketball

John Calipari Makes A Commitment to Kentucky Fans, “I’m Going to Work”

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John Calipari at Kentucky men’s basketball practice.
Photo by Chet White | UK Athletics

Since Kentucky’s upset loss to Oakland last week, there has been speculation on whether the program would move on from head coach John Calipari, who has failed to reach the second round of the NCAA Tournament since 2019.

Now four days later, there has still been no official statement from either Calipari or the Athletic Department. That said, Calipari spoke on his season-ending radio show on Monday and it certainly sounded like a man who expects and wants to be coaching at Kentucky next season.

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. Of course, to many, those are empty words when the results have not been there.

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Calipari closed his show by making a commitment to the fanbase. “That standard of national titles has been here from coach Rupp on,” Calipari said. “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.”

Calipari is expected to meet with Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart on Tuesday afternoon, as he does annually after the season. A lot still weighs on the meeting, but it is expected that Calipari will return. It seems to be heading for a be-all-end-all season for Calipari.

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