CalMack

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Let’s be honest: The Kentucky-Louisville basketball rivalry had become as stale as a 29-cent loaf of bread.

Didn’t matter if Rick Pitino, David Padgett, Chris Mack or the Cardinal Bird coached Louisville. Kentucky won.

Regular season game, NCAA Tournament game, recruiting game or mind game? Kentucky won.

Rupp Arena, KFC Yum! Center, Lucas Oil Stadium or the dark side of the Moon. Kentucky won.

Kentucky won. Kentucky won. Kentucky won.

That’s generally been the lead sentence of the Louisville vs. Kentucky game since John Calipari entered the rivalry against the Cardinals on Jan. 2, 2010.

I’ve always argued that Louisville vs. Kentucky, not Duke vs. North Carolina, was The Rivalry in college basketball.

But when one team, Kentucky, wins 11 of 13 games over the other team, Louisville, that’s not a rivalry. That’s a lecture. That’s a scolding. That’s bad for business, TV ratings and ticket sales.

Enter Chris Mack. And John Calipari.

On Tuesday afternoon, Mack pumped some extra-strength bile back in the rivalry. He played to his base.

On Tuesday evening, Calipari hissed right back — the way that Kentucky fans knew that he would.

Mack went to Twitter and essentially said Calipari was not a nice guy dealing with the scheduling of this game but that Mack would do anything (insert eye roll) Coach Cal wanted.

Why? Because Cal would not do what was right for Louisville and play the game under the terms that Mack wants.

Mack does not believe it’s fair that Louisville will likely have to play a home game against the Wildcats without fans this season because of the novel coronavirus and then report for duty in a packed Rupp Arena the following season.

Mack got U of L fans, UK fans, Indiana fans, Western Kentucky fans, Duke fans, Baltimore Ravens fans, Miami Heat fans and Manchester United fans talking about a college basketball game during a time when nobody is certain we will have a college basketball season. That's an achievement.

Mack did it by posting this icy 129-second video.

How did Calipari respond?

Essentially, he shrugged. Cal flicked some lint off his lapel.

Calipari said that scheduling and predicting the future was challenging in these difficult times — but he would see Mack and the Cardinals at Second and Main Street on Dec. 26.

Can you imagine Mike Krzyzewski and Roy Williams exchanging love letters like those.

Only 88 days and counting until Olivier Sarr and Terrence Clarke line up against Malik Williams and David Johnson.

Who’s right?

Not sure.

Who’s wrong?

Don’t care.

Who wins?

The rivalry.

I can’t remember this level of agitation since Denny Crum poked, jabbed and agitated Joe B. Hall and Kentucky for a series in the late '70s and early '80s.

Mack made Louisville fans as excited about the Kentucky game as they’ve been since Milt Wagner and Lancaster Gordon dunked on Dirk Minniefield and Jim Master during the March 26, 1983 Dream Game in Knoxville, Tenn.

Louisville won that game — and it won the political and public relations battle. Eight months later the programs began a regular-season series that has never taken a pause.

A decade later Kentucky and Louisville also started playing in football. The Cold War was over.

This year some people were starting to fear there would be a pause. Or even a fracture.

In the most troubled year we can remember, it would be a bad idea not to play the Kentucky-Louisville game. Work it out, fellas.

The record shows that Calipari has never been afraid to thumb his nose at tradition. All it required was one Christian Watford, buzzer-beating jump shot and the Kentucky-Indiana rivalry disappeared from the calendar.

Calipari made that move, even though he and former Indiana coach Tom Crean and current Hoosier coach Archie Miller are friends.

Let the record show that during the summer Western Kentucky fans were miffed that Calipari had time to play Marshall and UAB but not the Hilltoppers.

What, him worry? He doesn’t. Calipari plays who he wants, when he wants.

Mack and Calipari are not pals. The chatter that Top 40 recruit Bryce Hopkins was likely bound for Kentucky after he decommitted from Louisville several month ago gave the relationship another frosty talking point.

Remember this: Mack and Calipari are both trying to compete at the highest level of college basketball.

Calipari’s job is not to do anything to help Louisville’s program just as Mack has no responsibility to make life sweeter for Kentucky.

They do have a responsibility to play the game and get people talking about the rivalry.

On Tuesday, they accomplished that.

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