Kentucky Wildcats Basketball

John Calipari didn't get to celebrate with his team after Kentucky ended its six-game losing streak Sunday against Mississippi State after being ejected earlier in the game. 

However, Calipari did find a way to see the smiles on his players' faces.

The Wildcats coach told reporters he hid in the locker room so he could "remember why I do what I do."

Kentucky has been mired in the worst slump in school history, losing six straight games after a season-opening win over Morehead State. The program had not lost six straight games since 1927 and represented the worst stretch of basketball any Calipari-led team has ever faced.

Calipari said hoped his ejection would help spark his team, though it wasn't exactly done on purpose.

"I know you're going to say, 'Did you do this on purpose?' The first one? Yes, I did because there were two or three things that happened that we weren't going to have a chance to win if we didn't [fix]," Calipari said. "My second one, it was like, 'Yeah, OK.' When I walked off, I said this is either gonna be a good thing or a bad thing."

Kentucky will look to continue turning around its season—hopefully with Calipari not needing to hide out—Tuesday against Vanderbilt. 

Kentucky men's basketball head coach John Calipari said that freshman forward Cam'Ron Fletcher has returned to the team following a suspension:

Calipari announced on Twitter last Monday that Fletcher had been suspended from the team after an emotional outburst on the bench:

The incident occurred during Kentucky's 75-63 loss to UNC on Dec. 19. Jack Pilgrim of Kentucky Sports Radio relayed Calipari's comments on the situation:

Fletcher, a freshman forward from St. Louis, has averaged 2.2 points and 2.2 rebounds in 8.7 minutes per game. He played just three minutes against UNC on Dec. 19 and did not take part in his team's Dec. 26 matchup against Louisville, which the Wildcats lost 62-59. 

Fletcher is part of Kentucky's star-studded 2020 recruiting class that ranked first on 247Sports' list of the best incoming freshmen groups.

Calipari recruited a pair of 5-star players in Brandon Boston Jr. and Terrence Clarke and added a quartet of 4-star recruits that included Fletcher.

All six prospects were ranked in the top 70 nationally. Fletcher, a small forward, ranked 68th nationally, 15th at his position and second in Missouri.

Fletcher's college career hasn't gotten off to the best start, and UK has struggled as a team, going 1-6 in its first seven games. However, Fletcher and the Wildcats have time to turn it around with the entire SEC slate still ahead of them. Kentucky opens conference play on Saturday at Mississippi State.

Kentucky men's basketball dropped its sixth straight game after losing to rival Louisville 62-59 on Saturday.

After the matchup, Kentucky head coach John Calipari spoke with reporters about the skid.

"Let me just say this again, losing stinks," Calipari said. "We had our chances, and we had some breakdowns."

UK big man Isaiah Jackson tied the game at 59 thanks to a free throw with 1:05 remaining, but Louisville got to the line and sunk three free throws of its own en route to the three-point win. Kentucky missed three field goals in the final minute.

With the loss, Kentucky fell to 1-6 for just the third time in program history, per ESPN Stats & Information.

Kentucky, which ranked 10th in the Associated Press preseason poll, opened the 2020-21 campaign with an 81-45 win over Morehead State. However, the Wildcats then fell to unranked Richmond 76-64 at home before losing five more, capped by the Louisville loss.

The talent is there for Calipari's Wildcats to turn their season around.

Kentucky ranked first on 247Sports' class of 2020 recruit rankings. Calipari brought in a pair of 5-star talents in Brandon Boston Jr. and Terrence Clarke in addition to four 4-star players, including Jackson and guard Devin Askew.

In addition, time is currently on the Wildcats' side, as SEC play hasn't started yet. Kentucky is scheduled to begin its conference slate Jan. 2 at Mississippi State.

"I don't believe it's over," Calipari said regarding his team's season. "We haven't played a league game yet. Let's go do what we do. I'm not budging, I'm not cracking."

However, Calipari noted that his team has squandered some opportunities to turn its season around.

"All of a sudden, you get punched in the mouth and you start tasting blood, how do you react?" Calipari said.

"How do we limit some of the breakdowns? ... Where's the leadership right now where we had chances? We've had our chances and we've dropped them all."

Four of Kentucky's six defeats have been against unranked teams, although the Wildcats have faced off against four ACC opponents (including No. 17 UNC) and No. 3 Kansas.

It's been a tough stretch for the Wildcats, and Calipari wondered aloud whether he should have constructed an easier schedule to open the year.

"We need more time for all the team-building stuff that we do here all the time," Calipari said. "We team-build in the summer. We team-build in the fall. We're making up time. Not where we need to be, but making up time.

"You gotta play games you can win to build confidence. ... This was the stupidest schedule I've ever put together. I'd like to smack myself in the mouth."

For now, the Wildcats have the rest of the calendar year off before traveling to Starkville to take on the Bulldogs.

Kentucky head coach John Calipari announced Monday Cam'Ron Fletcher has been asked to step away from the team:

Fletcher had an outburst on the sidelines during Saturday's 75-63 loss to North Carolina. Calipari said after the game the freshman was upset about not playing more minutes, per Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio.

The forward played only two minutes in the loss and has seven minutes of playing time over the last three games combined.

He apologized for his actions on social media Sunday:

Fletcher was a 4-star recruit and considered the No. 68 player in the 2020 class, per 247Sports composite rankings.

Despite his skill set, Fletcher was the lowest-rated of the six Kentucky prospects that made up the No. 1 class in the country, per 247Sports. The Wildcats also added three transfers who get significant minutes.

It has left the freshman with little playing time despite the team's overall struggles.

Kentucky (1-5) is off to its worst start since 1926, per Sports Illustrated, and Fletcher hasn't been able to help much during the five-game losing streak. After tallying nine points and five rebounds in the season opener against Moorehead State, he has only four total points since.

The schedule doesn't get any easier for the Wildcats with a road game against rival Louisville on Saturday before the start of SEC play on Dec. 29.

A tough stretch for the No. 20 Kentucky Wildcats continued Sunday night when they were upset by unranked Georgia Tech, 79-62.

The loss was the Wildcats' third in as many games as they followed up their season-opening victory over Morehead State with losses to then-unranked Richmond (now No. 19) and No. 7 Kansas.

Georgia Tech earned its first win of the year after falling to Georgia State and Mercer to start the season.

Kentucky hasn't started the season at 1-3 since the 2000-01 season.

Sunday's loss also marked the first time that Kentucky head coach John Calipari has lost to a former assistant coach, giving him a 17-1 record, according to Georgia Tech play-by-play broadcaster Andy Demetra. Georgia Tech head coach Josh Pastner was the assistant coach at Memphis in Calipari's last season, and he was elevated to head coach when Calipari left for Kentucky in 2009.

The Yellow Jackets held a 34-27 lead at halftime after going on a 15-5 run, but the sides were nearly equal in field-goal percentage, with Kentucky hitting 10-of-24 shots (41.7 percent) and Georgia Tech going 13-of-31 (41.9 percent). The Wildcats had the advantage with four of eight three-pointers, compared to 3-of-9 from Georgia Tech, and in free-throw percentage (3-of-4 vs. 5-of-7).

It was in the second half that the Yellow Jackets took command, never giving up the halftime lead. They closed the game hitting 62.1 percent of field goals (18-of-29) while limiting the Wildcats to 48.0 percent (12-of-25). They also outscored them from three.

Freshmen Terrence Clarke and Brandon Boston Jr. led the Wildcats offense, with Clarke recording 22 points, three rebounds and three assists, while Boston posted 11 points and tallied four rebounds. Classmate Isaiah Jackson added nine points, 12 rebounds and four assists.

But the trio of first-years was no match for a set of Yellow Jacket seniors that provided a more balanced attack. For Georgia Tech, Moses Wright tallied 21 points with eight rebounds and three assists, followed by Bubba Parham (17 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST) and Jose Alvarado (10 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST).

Kentucky is set to host Notre Dame on Saturday at noon ET (CBS), while Georgia Tech will look to carry its momentum into Wednesday's game at Nebraska.

Brandon Boston Jr. and the No. 10-ranked Kentucky Wildcats fell to Richmond 76-64 in the final game of the Bluegrass Showcase on Sunday.

Kentucky held a 32-28 lead at halftime but gave up 48 points to the 2-0 Spiders in the second half.

The Wildcats, who missed 13 free throws in the loss, hit just 36 percent of shots with 21 turnovers and missed all 10 three-point attempts.

Kentucky head coach John Calipari spoke highly of the Richmond program, which earned its first win of the season Friday with an 82-64 defeat of Morehead State, prior to the Bluegrass Showcase, per UKAthletics.com's Tim Letcher: 

"Their experience, their ability to control the game, to make you play through every possession. If you play 15 seconds, you're getting beat. You've got to play the whole possession. On offense, because of how they play, you cannot take high-risk plays. You've got to be efficient offensively. Attack and run and get in the lane."

Richmond senior Nathan Cayo, who was perfect on 10 field-goal attempts in the Spiders' season opener, added 18 points and six rebounds Sunday, while Blake Francis—one of four graduate students on the Richmond roster—also added 18 points, three rebounds and two assists. 

Boston paced all scorers for the second game in a row with 20 points, 10 rebounds and a pair of assists, days after adding 15 points in Kentucky's 81-45 win over Morehead State on Wednesday. Senior Olivier Sarr, who transferred from Wake Forest, tacked on 17 points, and freshman Isaiah Jackson picked up 14 rebounds for the Wildcats in Sunday's loss.

In an attempt to rebound from the loss, Kentucky will face Kansas on Tuesday, with Richmond traveling to face Charleston on Wednesday.

Daimion Collins, a 5-star power forward out of Atlanta, Texas, has chosen to attend Kentucky.

"They will push me to be my best," Collins told ESPN's Paul Biancardi on Saturday.

"I like how their players have developed. Me playing with and against great players, hopefully it will make me a great player. I am ready for the challenge."

The 6'9", 210-pound big man ranks 19th on 247Sports Composite list of the class of 2021 and fifth overall among power forwards. He received 15 offers, including ones from Alabama, Kansas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma.

Jerry Meyer, 247Sports' director of basketball scouting, called Collins a future first-round NBA draft prospect and compared him to Denver Nuggets forward Jerami Grant in a Jan. 20 scouting report:

"Quite thin but has long arms and is quick off the floor as an explosive leaper. Highly mobile with good hands. Finishes with strength around rim and can score facing. Has potential to greatly improve as a face up player. Defensively, is a high level shot blocker who can also move his feet on perimeter. Can also rebound outside his area. Raw offensively in general but has great potential."

Eric Bossi of Rivals.com praised Collins' work during a live stream of his grassroots hoops organization, Team Griffin:

"Make no mistake about it, Collins is a five-star prospect and you can rest assured he will be elevated in our next update. I also think we will need to talk seriously about moving him into the top 10 of 2021.

"Don't get me wrong, Collins is not a finished product. He's almost painfully thin and his motor runs a little hot and cold.

"But, what stood out to me most in addition to his absurd athleticism and length is how much more diverse he's become. He handles the ball much better, he is shooting the ball some from deep and he's got some freakish switchability as a defender. I used to think of him as more of a modern center/power forward and now I'm thinking he could ultimately develop into a versatile hybrid/combo forward because of his ability to move on the perimeter."

Collins narrowed the field down to 10 on July 3:

Ultimately, Collins joined John Calipari's program at Kentucky.

He links up with a Wildcat class of 2021 that includes 4-star power forward Bryce Hopkins and 4-star point guard Nolan Hickman, per 247Sports.

The class of 2020 has nine players led by a trio of 5-star recruits in shooting guards BJ Boston and Terrence Clarke and center Isaiah Jackson.

Skyy Clark, a 5-star combo guard, announced Thursday on Instagram that he has chosen to attend Kentucky.

The 6'3", 200-pound Clark is ranked as the 14th-best overall prospect in the class of 2022, per 247Sports. He's No. 3 on the combo guard list and No. 1 among all prospects from Tennessee.

The 247Sports' predictions all pointed toward Clark picking Kentucky, and that's where he decided on going as head coach John Calipari adds yet another superstar recruit.

Clark's affinity toward Kentucky was made clear following an interview with Kentucky Sports Radio upon receiving an official scholarship offer from the Wildcats.

"I don't even know what to say; it was just a huge blessing," Clark said, per Jack Pilgrim of KSR. "We were on a Zoom call with Coach [John] Calipari, Coach [Tony] Barbee, Coach Kenny Payne, Coach [Joel] Justus, and Coach [Brady] Kennedy. Just hearing [Calipari] say, 'You have an official scholarship to Kentucky,' it didn't even seem real. It's something I've been waiting on for a very long time."

Per 247Sports, Clark had 25 scholarship offers, including ones from UCLA, Memphis and North Carolina, who were the other finalists:

Clark transferred to Brentwood Academy after spending his first two years at Heritage Christian in North Hills, California. He did not make the move for basketball reasons, as noted on Instagram.

"This was not a basketball decision," Clark said (h/t Tarek Fattal of the Los Angeles Daily News). "We have talked about moving for a year. ... This move is about getting closer to our family, and this pandemic opened our eyes to that."

Per Fattal, Clark averaged 25.5 points per game for Heritage Christian last season. This paragraph from Lance Smith's scouting report for Scouting Live stands out:

"As the 247 5-star ranking suggests, it is not an exaggeration to say that Clark is one of the most offensively talented sophomore combo guards you will ever see. That doesn't mean his game is perfect or guarantee that he'll thrive in college or the NBA. But he's already one of the best shooters in high school basketball as a sophomore, his handles are elite, and his ability to finish at the rim is also far ahead of his years."

Kentucky is ultimately getting a potential superstar in Clark, who could develop into the next standout UK guard en route to becoming an NBA lottery pick.

The Kentucky Wildcats confirmed Wednesday that both Rhode Island transfer Jacob Toppin and Wake Forest transfer Olivier Sarr would be eligible for the 2020-21 men's basketball season, per Kent Spencer of WHAS and Ben Roberts of Kentucky.com. 

Both Toppin, the brother of NBA prospect Obi Toppin, and Sarr posted videos on Twitter following the news:

Head coach John Calipari also commented on the news:

Toppin, a 6'9", 187-pound forward, averaged 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds in 30 games (three starts) last season for the Rams. 

"This is a big day for me and I want to thank the NCAA and my Kentucky family for their help in this process," the sophomore said, per Roberts. "I can't wait to get on the court with this group of guys and play in front of our fans."

Sarr, a 7-foot, 243-pound senior, averaged 13.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks for the Demon Deacons last season. He'll be expected to step in as Kentucky's starting center immediately. 

Toppin may find playing time a bit harder to come by, given Kentucky has the top incoming freshman class in the country, per 247Sports. That includes two 5-star prospects (shooting guards BJ Boston and Terrence Clarke) and four 4-star prospects (big men Isaiah Jackson and Lance Ware, point guard Devin Askew and wing Cam'Ron Fletcher). 

Sarr's immediate eligibility will allow Jackson and Ware to spend more time at the 4. But with Keion Brooks Jr. and Dontaie Allen returning on the wing, Toppin might not expect to play more than the 18.5 minutes he averaged last season with URI. 

His brother, Obi Toppin, won the John Wooden and Naismith Player of the Year Awards last year as a sophomore after averaging 20.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.2 blocks and one steal per game for Dayton, shooting an incredible 63.3 percent from the field and 39.0 percent from three. 

Jacob Toppin probably won't post numbers anywhere close to that in his second season—Obi had already averaged 14.4 points per game as a freshman—but he's another young player for the Wildcats to develop. 

Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari isn't budging on his team's agreement to play a home-and-home series with their in-state rival.

Following recent comments from Louisville coach Chris Mack about potentially playing the Wildcats-Cardinals game at a neutral location this year, Calipari released a statement pushing back on the idea and reiterating his expectation for U of L to return to Lexington next season.

"Chris and I have talked and he expressed his concerns," Calipari said. "While I understand the difficulty and the complications created by the pandemic, we are prepared to come to Louisville to play this season under the previously agreed upon terms, and we fully expect Louisville to honor the agreement with a return game to Rupp Arena next season."

Kentucky and Louisville have alternated hosting the annual regular season, non-conference matchup dating back to 1983. 

The Wildcats lead the overall series 37-16 and have won the last three matchups. 

Mack nearly pulled off the upset last season in his second game against UK as the Cardinals' head coach, but fell 78-70 in overtime at Rupp Arena. That shifted the series back to the KFC YUM! Center in downtown Louisville, yet the coronavirus pandemic has given Mack reason to question the value of playing a home game if fans are unlikely to attend. 

Here's how Mack explained it on the Full Court Press podcast with John Fanta and Kim Adams earlier this week:  

"Where is the equity of Kentucky coming here in front of no fans and then having to go back to Rupp Arena [in 2021-22] in front of 21,000 fans? But I recognize and we recognize, man, the best rivalry—I know I'm biased—in all of college basketball. If there was somehow we could do this at a neutral site again, that's without talking to Kentucky and what their scheduling is."

Louisville is 8-13 at home and 5-20 in Lexington against Kentucky. Regardless, Calipari believes Mack should honor the current agreement as UK will be doing with it's marquee non-conference home games this season.

"We are contracted to play Notre Dame and a Big 12 opponent for the SEC/Big 12 Challenge in Rupp Arena this season and we are honoring those contracts even if it is with little or no fans," Calipari said. "It is no one's fault we are in a pandemic. We cannot predict the future with this virus, whether that's this December or next December. My hope is they are not trying to end this series because it is important for this state that we play."