LEXINGTON, Ky. — Even before Tuesday’s game against South Carolina tipped off, Kentucky coach John Calipari already had experienced an eventful three days. It started Saturday, with UK going on the road and losing in lopsided fashion, 78-52, to a top-10 Alabama squad. Then on Monday, 247Sports.com’s Travis Branham reported that Texas, which fired coach Chris Beard earlier this month, had reached out to Calipari via “back channels.”
So what Calipari needed Tuesday, above all, was a stress-free, decisive victory over the Gamecocks.
That is not what happened.
In one of the most shocking setbacks of Calipari’s 14-year run as coach, South Carolina upended UK, 71-68 at Rupp Arena, snapping the Wildcats’ 28-game home win streak, which had been the longest active streak in the SEC.