LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – The best coaches, when their teams are down, make an effort to lift the pressure off of their players -- and sometimes in doing that take it upon themselves.
Maybe that was behind John Calipari's comments before Saturday's game against No. 3-ranked Louisville in Rupp Arena. The No. 19 Wildcats have lost two straight, and clearly still had some issues to figure out as they returned home from the Christmas break.
Calipari, meanwhile, said some of the issues to work out are his own.
"As I look on where we are, I'm not really happy with me," he said. "Like, I haven't figured this out, so if I'm a little bit still like, 'OK, which way is this?' They're going to be that way too. . . . I keep saying, the upside of this team is tremendous. But they're not there, which means that I must be doing a crap job not getting them to play better. We're trying to work some of it through practice, but I'll be honest with you, demonstrated performance is the only way to do some of this. They have to get on the court and do it."
Among the challenges he's hoping to address are how to get the ball inside to Nick Richards and E.J. Montgomery more often, and how better to space the floor despite a lack of three-point shooting.
Defensively, Kentucky has been effective stretches. Expect the Wildcats to try to duplicate what Texas Tech did against Louisville -- pick up all over the court, look to speed the Cardinals out of the comfort zone and get baskets of their own in transition.
"We're a team that you've got to steal some baskets near that rim," Calipari said. "We're shooting a fairly good percentage as a team. We really are. But if (Nick) and EJ combined are shooting let's say 60 percent what do we need to shoot from the three to get the same kind of result? Forty percent. What are we shooting? Thirty. Twenty-nine. So, now do you take more threes? And all you geniuses -- 'We've got to shoot more 3s' -- or do you try to get them more shots?"
Calipari said he was encouraged despite his team's six-point loss to Ohio State. He said his team played 35 good minutes. But if it wants to beat Louisville, it'll have to do more than that.
"Louisville is good, now. Jordan (Nwora) is as good as they get. Dwayne (Sutton)'s playing good. Ryan (McMahon) is shooting. I mean, this is a really good basketball team," Calipari said. "Chris (Mack) has done a great job with his team, a veteran team. They run their stuff. I'll tell you what they really do is defend. They really guard and give you tough looks, and you've had teams scoring 40 against them. So, it'll be a hard game for us. I don't care where it's played. . . . You've got to come and bring it and compete for 40 minutes. Are we there yet? I don't believe so. I liked that we played for probably 30-35 minutes, 32 minutes against Ohio State. That ain't going to be enough in this game. This team is a veteran team and they play. . . . Chris has done a good job with this team. He really has. He's done a good job with the program."
For Calipari, the big concern heading into Saturday's game will be effort, not scheme. He wants his players to compete hard for 40 minutes, minimize lapses, and see what happens. He said he's not going to get too worked up over a game in late December. But it's the challenge of bringing things together when people are doubting him that he truly likes.
"I like this team," Calipari said. "I haven't lost any faith in these guys. I don't look at this the way you guys look at it or our fans look at it -- everything is life and death. If it's life and death, you die a lot. So this is, OK, another game in December, a great opponent, a well-coached team, terrific players. Alright, where are we right now? Are we good enough to win the game? I don't know. And what if we're not but we really play? OK, then we move on. It's Dec. 28 tomorrow. I'm happy it's the 27th because I get another day to be with this team. I walked out and stopped practice (and said), 'Why do I love this so much?' Because people start doubting your team and doubting individual players, and my job is to build them up and get them going and getting them in spots where they can have success. Haven't done that yet. That's on me. But I cannot battle for them. I can try, but if I get too far out on the court, they'll call a technical on me. So I cannot battle (for them). I cannot fight (for them). The other things I can help them with."
And, perhaps, games like Saturday's will help bring his younger players along. Confidence is a funny thing. Calipari said he asked his players in practice, "Raise your hand if you think you're playing good."
Only one player raised his hand. Then Calipari told them, "Think about if we can get guys to start playing better what we'll be. That's why I keep saying the upside of this team is tremendous."
Copyright 2019 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
