It’s official: John Calipari can’t coach. No college basketball coach has done less with more than Calipari. And Thursday night’s loss to St. Peter’s in the opening round of March Madness had to seal the deal for many on the fence about Calipari’s career on the bench. Calipari’s Kentucky Wildcats were upset in overtime by the Peacocks, 85-79. Coming into the game, Kentucky (26-9) was seeded No. 2 in that Indianapolis region and the Peacocks (21-11) were seeded 15th. In Vegas, Kentucky had the second-best odds to cut down the net when the dust cleared. Hence, there’s no way to put it other than it was a historic, horrendous loss by Kentucky. And it ended ugly in OT where the Wildcats couldn’t make free throws, going 1-for-6 after actually taking a four-point lead in the extra period in the opening minutes. For sure, it was a meltdown for the ages. For St. Peter’s — a private school with roughly 3,500 students in Jersey City, New Jersey — it was the school’s first-ever NCAA Tournament victory. Coming into the Round of 64, Calipari had been perfect, never losing a matchup of the haves against have-nots. Given the number of studs he has coached, Calipari’s championship trophy case should be full. But he has only one title in his long career. In the process, Kentucky busted brackets all over College Basketball America. For sure, many had the Wildcats getting to the Final Four — at the very least. Others had them winning the whole ball of wax. Enter Can’t-Coach Cal. We get it. March is about upsets. Smaller schools with no business competing with the big boys, somehow, advance in the one-and-done format. Sounds nice. But a premature exit with a talented roster has happened to Can’t-Coach Cal too often. Given the number of studs he has coached, Calipari’s championship trophy case should be full. But he has only one title in his long career, a championship in 2012 with Kentucky. It’s nice that Calipari heaped five helpings of praise on the latest school to end his season too soon. “They backdoor us, they beat us off the dribble, they came off screens and hit 3s,” Calipari told the media after the game. “You have to give St. Peter’s credit.” This isn’t American Express. It’s college basketball. St. Peter’s has no business beating Kentucky. Not last night, not ever. Can’t-Coach Cal might be the best recruiter we’ve ever seen. The list of great college players he didn’t win with in college is embarrassingly long. There might not be enough room on the internet to list them all. In 2014-2015 alone, Can’t-Coach Cal lost with eight NBA players: Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Tre Lyles, Tyler Ulis, Willie Cauley-Stein, Dakari Johnson and the Harrison Twins, Aaron and Andrew. In fact, he currently has 25 former players in the NBA. That’s impressive. But what isn’t is that he isn’t able to rally the troops and win while they are under his watch. And this isn’t just about his tenure at Kentucky. It’s happened his entire career. Before coaching Kentucky to four Final Four appearances — the last time in 2015 — he also led UMass and Memphis to the Final Four in 1996 and 2008, respectively. But both appearances were vacated by the NCAA for violations, though Calipari was cleared of wrongdoing. (Yeah, right). One championship is ridiculous. Any coach can win once. Even Rollie Massimino won a title. All it takes is for the stars to align and some special kid comes your way and leads you on a run that delivers a title. Often, you can sit back and watch it happen. If you want to know why the Basketball Hall of Fame is phony, a fraud, Can’t-Coach Cal is Exhibit A. Somehow, Calipari is already in. Despite mostly under-achieving when it matters most, Calipari was inducted into Springfield, Mass in 2015. Can you say premature? Hopefully, Can’t-Coach’s plaque isn’t next to John Wooden’s, who didn’t waste talent at UCLA and won 10 championships in 12 seasons. As of March 5, 2022, with 767 official wins, Calipari ranks 17th on the NCAA Division I all-time winningest coaches list. A Calipari team has been to the championship game three times with just one title win. Sound ridiculous? It is. It could only happen if the guy leading the way can’t coach. It’s not harsh. It’s Calipari’s reality. Relatedfootball sportsbookbets on nflcollege football prop betsbetting nbamlb play offs bettingbet on nhl playoffssafe ufc betting sitesonline soccer betsonline copa america betting
Related Posts
Matthijs de Ligt scored his first Juventus goal as the Serie A champions earned a 1-0 win at rivals Torino in the Derby della Mole.
The start of De Ligt s Juve career has not been easy but the Netherlands centre-back had a moment to remember in the 70th minute of a bad-tempered clash on Saturday.
Juve had been unable to break the deadlock but when Gonzalo Higuain knocked a corner into his path, De Ligt showed a striker s instinct to break Salvatore Sirigu s resistance.
Victory moved Juve back to the top of the Serie A table above Inter, with the Bianconeri now having won on 10 of their past 11 league visits to Torino.
With Walter Mazzarri seeking his first win over Juventus since 2011, handball appeals were rejected in both penalty areas during a stodgy …
Las Vegas police have reopened an investigation into an alleged sexual assault, following claims made by a woman against Cristiano Ronaldo.
Kathryn Mayorga has reportedly accused Ronaldo of raping her in a hotel in the city in 2009.
German publication Der Spiegel reported the claims on Friday, prompting Ronaldo to dismiss the story as fake news in an Instagram video.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police have now released a statement confirming a sexual assault case from 2009 has been reopened, although they did not name the victim or any suspects.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department responded to a call of a sexual assault on June 13, 2009, read a statement released to Omnisport.
At the time the report was taken, the victim did not provide det…
With the FA Cup taking center stage this weekend, we have a string of interesting affairs from across England on Saturday. So, for those of you looking to place a weekend flutter, we have taken a look at a few showdowns that are worth keeping an eye out for.
Saturday January 7th
BST 15:00 Blyth vs King s Lynn
While King s Lynn might have lost their fifth-tier status last season, Saturday s guests have their sights firmly set on securing an immediate National League return this year. Last seen opening 2023 with another rugged display as they clinched a 2-1 victory at home against Boston, Tommy Widdrington s men now hold a commanding eight-point buffer from slipping out of the play-off spots. Collecting nine points from their last four National League South matchups an…
Paris Saint-Germain have closed an investigation into player recruitment practices after finding no discrimination, the Ligue 1 club announced.
PSG acknowledged earlier this month that forms with illegal contents were used by a recruitment section of the club s academy.
A report by Mediapart and television programme Envoye Special , on the back of recently released Football Leaks documents, claimed scouts documented the ethnicity of potential academy signings.
It was reported PSG signed only one black player for their academy between 2013 and 2018, while a promising French player was allegedly not given a contract because of his race.
PSG have been investigating the allegations against the club and on Thursday released a statement confirming no discrimin…
Market: Doncaster win
Odds: 4/5 @
Two sides who already find themselves scrapping it out at opposite ends of the League Two table, a high-flying Doncaster will travel to Harrogate on Thursday night.
Starting with the hosts, while some in Harrogate’s camp might have opened up the 2024/25 campaign with their sights set on mounting a genuine top-half charge this season, Simon Weaver’s men are at the heart of a real struggle. Last seen putting in another toothless display as they slumped to a 1-0 loss away at Cheltenham, the Yorkshire-based outfit have collected just a single victory from any of their opening five League Two appearances. Crashing out of the EFL Cup on August 27th following a woeful 5-0 drumming at home against Preston, Harrogate have also shown …
“I have belief in my ability and what I have done in my career as every player should,” Maguire said.
“Every player who is on the bench should believe they should be starting, otherwise they wouldn’t be playing at a high level. I am no different.
“Listen, it’s been tough. I want to play games. I want to feel important to the club and I want to feel important to the rest of the team.
“At the moment I haven’t been playing anywhere near as much as I’d like. It’s the bottom line of it.
“I’ve just got to make sure I am ready to take the opportunities when they come along.”
Asked when gametime becomes an issue and, given Euro 2024 is coming up, whether that could be sooner rather than later, said: “Yeah, of course.
�…
Rangers won a second straight Old Firm derby and moved four points ahead of Celtic in the Scottish Premiership as an unlikely double from Connor Goldson secured a 2-0 victory.
Defender Goldson struck in the ninth minute and added another after the break on Saturday as Steven Gerrard s men made it two straight away league wins over Celtic for the first time in 23 years.
Celtic were without key players like striker Odsonne Edouard but few would have expected Neil Lennon s team not to register a shot on target or have a second-half attempt of any nature until the 85th minute in a miserable outing.
Rangers now hold a decent lead over their fierce rivals at the summit and, while Celtic still have a game in hand, Garrard can reflect on a positive first quarter of t…
Aston Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez believes match-winner Jhon Duran can be “one of the best strikers in the world” after he scored a 30-yard screamer against Everton.
Duran completed Aston Villa’s comeback in a 3-2 win against Everton at Villa Park, having been two goals down to the visitors after 27 minutes.
The Colombian was subbed on after 69 minutes and scored just seven minutes later. All three of his goals this season have been winners from the bench, meaning he has now scored the most winners as a substitute in a Premier League season ever.
Having witnessed his decisive impact today, Martinez believes he can be one of the best in the game.
I have seen it from behind and I saw the ball moving it was unstoppable,” the Argentine told Sky Spo…
Zlatan Ibrahimovic said he cannot be tamed, while the evergreen Milan star insisted he is ageing better than Benjamin Button.
Ibrahimovic has shown no signs of slowing down this season, despite the 39-year-old s advancing years.
The former Manchester United, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward has scored 10 goals in six Serie A appearance in 2020-21 – a joint-high alongside Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and Inter s Romelu Lukaku.
Ibrahimovic s exploits have helped unbeaten Milan top the table in pursuit of their first Scudetto since 2010-11, the ex-Sweden international s first spell at the club.
Asked who is less likely to be tamed, Zlatan or a lion, Ibrahimovic told UEFA.com: Zlatan, 100 per cent.
You can tame a lion, but you cann…
Former Netherlands star Wesley Sneijder has retired from football after arranging a business deal with Eredivisie side Utrecht.
The 35-year-old has been without a club since his 18-month deal with Qatari side Al-Gharafa ended in July.
He has signed a contract with Utrecht s business arm and will be able to watch the team play from a private box this season.
I have a lot of love for this city. Now that I ve quit playing, I want a nice place to share my experiences, he told the club s TV channel.
Sneijder began his senior playing days with Ajax in 2002 and went on to play for Real Madrid, Inter, Galatasaray and Nice in a storied career in Europe.
Gefeliciteerd met je fantastische carrière, !
— OnsOranje (@OnsOranje)
He was a s…