If any team during the NCAA Tournament looked like it had a chance of being the dark horse that could eliminate Arizona, it was John Calipari’s Arkansas Razorbacks. In his second season in charge of the Fayetteville program, Calipari led the team to its second SEC Tournament title with a win over the Wildcats.
They also arrived at the Sweet 16 for the second year in a row, and fans were dreaming that this year they would be able to improve upon that and at least reach the Elite Eight. For it, Calipari had a plan: use the team’s athleticism to outrun the Wildcats on the court. He himself would be the first to admit it didn’t work.
He shared his thoughts on ESPN during the pregame coverage for today’s Final Four games.
“I said, ‘We are going to be, use our athleticism, we are going to spread the court. That worked out real well.’ So, if I had to do it all over again, I would say maybe back it up. But then I’m saying, their bigs will push us into the cheerleaders. Cause they’re big and they’re strong,” said Calipari.
In the end, Arizona whipped the floor with Arkansas in a game that never looked in doubt for the Wildcats. The final score was a confident 109-88 for Tommy Lloyd’s team, with Brayden Burries scoring 23 points. If there was any consolation for the Hogs, it was that Darius Acuff Jr. scored 28 points in what was likely his last game for Arkansas.
John Calipari believes Jon Scheyer shouldn’t be judged on Duke’s defeat to UConn
Speaking on ESPN’s “Get Up” this week, John Calipari shared his opinion that it would be unfair to judge Duke’s Jon Scheyer on his inability to take the Blue Devils to the Final Four this season.
He explained that Scheyer is following in the footsteps of one of the best coaches ever, Mike Krzyzewski, and that in the end, the fact that Dan Hurley and the Huskies advanced was as much luck as anything else.
“I feel bad for Jon Scheyer, because he’s following a legend, icon, and maybe one of the best to ever do it (Mike Krzyzewski). Following that man and doing what he’s doing at Duke, you can’t define him by that moment. But this stuff was crazy. UConn making that three from 40-feet… that’s what Madness is about. To be honest with you,” Calipari said.
Scheyer has already shown he can take Duke to the Final Four, as he did just last year. It’s the fact that the Blue Devils haven’t won a national title since 2015 that’s probably beginning to bother fans in Durham.
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