John Calipari

NEW ORLEANS - Despite numerous media reports this week about the rift between coaches John Calipari of Kentucky and Rick Pitino of Louisville, the Louisville coach said Thursday his relationship with the UK coach is no different from that with many other coaches. "I'm as close to John Calipari as I am to (Kansas coach) Bill Self and (Ohio State coach) Thad Matta," sai Pitino two days before the UK-Louisville Final Four meeting. "But they don't coach at Louisville or Kentucky, so you're not going to write or listen to it. " Matta and Self do both coach teams in the Final Four, but the spotlight has been on the Pitino-Calipari.

For those nationally who wonder why coach John Calipari is so popular in Kentucky and why UK fans are so passionate about him, just look at what the Kentucky coach did Thursday and Friday. He spent almost two full days traveling about 1,000 miles from Ashland to Paducah - with a lot of stops in between - with his staff showing off the national championship trophy to fans. Friday he rode into Frankfort on a train waving to a crowd of an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 fans that cheered as the Franklin County High School band played the Kentucky fight song.

He was just like a Baptist minister with a full congregation ready to shout amen after his every word. Brother - I mean coach - John Calipari delivered just the message the Big Blue faithful - and highly-touted recruits sitting on the front row of Rupp Arena - wanted to hear Friday night during Kentucky's Big Blue Madness. “We do more than move the needle. We are the needle. We are UK,” Calipari said during a passionate 10-minute talk to the 23,000-plus fans. “Tonight we begin to write the next chapter.

NEW ORLEANS - When he was coaching at Memphis, John Calipari had one of the nation's premier players in current NBA star Derrick Rose. Now the Kentucky coach says there is one big similarity with UK freshman Michael Kidd-Gilchrist. “He's like Derrick Rose in that he is harder on himself than anybody could be on him. I'll give you an example. After yesterday's game, he was like despondent, down. What? When I came to talk to you all, all you could talk about was the five points he got on his own to break open the game,” said Calipari Sunday.

LEXINGTON - Kentucky coach John Calipari believes his team is “improving in all areas.” He just worries that tonight it might not all show at No. 7 Florida. “This a worthy opponent, well-coached team, a tough team, a physical team. I'm watching them, they bang and bump and grind,” Calipari said Monday. “Their guards really attack. I mean, if you're in a cool mode, you're getting killed in this game. You've got to be trying to survive every bounce of the ball, every trip up and down.

LEXINGTON - Kentucky coach John Calipari has always said it is not easy to play point guard for his team. Freshman Marquis Teague is learning that in bunches the first two weeks of the season. “Yeah, I figure that out every day. He's harder on me than anybody, because I'm the point guard,” Teague said after Wednesday's Blue-White game. “He's telling me to figure my pace out. Sometime you can't always go as fast as you want to, I want to go fast all the time.” Teague, playing for the White squad, scored 19 points on 5 of 13 shooting, handed out a game-high eight assists with two steals, and had four turnovers in the Blue team's 126-104 win. “I think I played pretty well.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Even though he didn't watch Vanderbilt's win over Arkansas on Thursday night, Kentucky coach John Calipari knows his team faces a difficult task in tonight's Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinals. “Played them twice. They know us, we know them. They've won five out of their last six. Since we beat them, they win five of six, and the only game they lost was at Florida, where no one won. They make (12) 3's today. We're playing them in their hometown. We've got a challenge,” said Calipari late Thursday night at the UK team hotel.” Calipari said Vandy having to play a second straight night against a rested UK¿is not necessarily an advantage for Kentucky.

John Calipari did not mince words about his team after Kentucky lost 73-60 Saturday at Arkansas in a game where a win likely would all but have solidified UK's spot in the NCAA Tournament. Instead, Kentucky again finds itself on the NCAA bubble with a road game left at Georgia Thursday and home game with Florida Saturday before the start of Southeastern Conference Tournament play in Nashville. Kentucky got a taste at Arkansas of what Missouri felt when it came to UK a week earlier and a desperate Kentucky played with more passion, toughness and energy than it had been showing and won in overtime.At Arkansas, it was the Razorbacks who out-everythinged Kentucky from rebounding to intensity to defense to hustle to toughness.

It really should come as no surprise that Kentucky coach John Calipari has decided to coach the Dominican Republic’s national team  in the FIBA Americas Championship Olympic Qualifying Tournament Aug. 30-Sept. 11 in Argentina. Calipari had indicated several weeks ago that he was leaning to accepting the job and did not think it would have any impact on his coaching and recruiting at Kentucky. “Just an update to let you know that I have formally accepted the head coaching position with the Dominican Republic’s national team.

LEXINGTON - Kentucky coach John Calipari says it's not hard to understand why bringing former players back to UK is important for them and fans. Kentucky will have two exhibition games Saturday at Rupp Arena involving former players, who are also here to help with the John Calipari Fantasy Camp that includes a visit from ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale today. “When you are sitting in the seat I am in, you are the keeper of tradition. Being part of that means you reach out like I do with coach (Joe B.)