Rick Pitino engaging in high level trolling of Kentucky Wildcats Basketball
By Paul Jordan
It’s the thorn in the paw of the mighty lion. Every time I hear someone talk about it, the hairs on my arm bristle and that low guttural growl that my dog gets when some one walks by starts to form in my throat. I am talking about Tom Crean and this whole ridiculous Kentucky Wildcats basketball vs Indiana Hoosiers series that ended and the incessant hype/drama that continues to surface to this day. And it was no big shock to me that when Louisville and Indiana, two of Kentucky’s most hated rivals, met up last night that the talk would somehow turn indirectly to Kentucky and this whole UK/IU series.
Every story has two sides and the Kentucky Wildcats and Indiana Hoosiers versions of this side are about as far apart as the political division in this country. Kentucky Wildcats fans go with the John Calipari version. Calipari likes the big, neutral site games that will mimic the atmosphere of a NCAA Tournament game. Calipari proposed that Kentucky and Indiana would continue their series at big venues like the Lucas Oil Arena in Indianapolis.
Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
To be fair, I should mention that the history of this UK/IU series has not been a traditional home and home series. Legend has it that Bobby Knight wanted the series to be neutral court and for several years, this was a big venue, neutral site series. It moved to a home court series, but a lot of the history of this series was set away from the home courts.
And if you follow John Calipari, that is what he does. He lives for the big venue, neutral court game. Much to the chagrin of Kentucky Wildcats season ticket holders, Calipari prefers the big, mutual stage as he feels that better prepares his team for the NCAA Tournament. During his reign at Kentucky, The Wildcats have set up Kansas, Michigan State, and Duke on one rotating opponent, big venue event and North Carolina, UCLA, and Ohio State in another. During this time, Kentucky still has their home and away games versus Louisville, North Carolina, and UCLA in the near future. Year in and year out, the Kentucky Wildcats have one of the best out of conference schedules in all of college basketball.
Not so much for Tom Crean and the Indiana Hoosiers. If you follow the Hoosiers version of the story, Crean wanted nothing to do with neutral court meetings. He wanted the Kentucky/Indiana series to continue on the home courts of each team. And to be honest, I did not hate that idea. Calipari kind of left that idea open for the future but wanted the immediate future of this series to be at Lucas Oil Stadium. Crean wanted no part of it and in one of the nastiest breakups ever, the Kentucky Wildcats and Indiana series was over.
And ever since then, Tom Crean has NOT been able to land that high-profile home and home series that he wanted with Kentucky. It’s been three years and the Indiana home out of conference schedule still ranks as one of the worst in the power five conferences. The only thing that makes the Indiana schedule halfway respectable are the neutral court games like the one last night at Madison Square Garden versus Louisville.
Which sets the stage for what happened last night in New Your City.