Oakland's Greg Kampe praises John Calipari for how he handled Kentucky losing in NCAA Tournament
All eyes were on Oakland after the Golden Grizzlies stunned No. 3 seed Kentucky 80-76 on Thursday in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. However, after the game, Oakland head coach Greg Kampe took a moment to point the spotlight on Kentucky head coach John Calipari.
“Can I say something? I’m having a hard time,” Kampe admitted. “When [Calipari] comes in here… That was a hard thing for me. He was unbelievably gracious after the game — unbelievably gracious. Because it has to be a hard thing for him too. And I feel bad because I didn’t know what to say to him. I just stared at him. But what he said to me, he was unbelievably gracious, and I want you to remember that’s a very good man.”
Oakland was unbelievable in the upset victory, shooting 15-31 (48.3%) from beyond the arc. Oakland graduate student Jack Gohlke was particularly incredible, erupting for a game-high 32 points while connecting on 10-of-his-20 attempts from downtown.
“It’s just something I’ve worked so hard for my whole career,” Gohlke said in a postgame interview with CBS’ Evan Washburn. “And coach instills the confidence in me, gives me the freedom to go out there and play and influence the game in a positive way. I’m just having fun… It’s a dream. This is why players work so hard to get to this stage.”
It was a nightmarish night for Kentucky. The Wildcats shot 26-61 (42.6%) from the floor and 9-28 (32.1%) from 3-point range. For reference, Kentucky entered the matchup as the best 3-point shooting team in the country, nailing 41.2% of its attempts from deep.
While Kampe admired Calipari for his postgame humility, Kentucky fans aren’t likely to offer the same kindness. The Wildcats have one won NCAA Tournament game in the past five seasons. Further, the jaw-dropping upset loss is a painful reminder of when Kentucky fell to No. 15 seed St. Peter’s only two years ago.
Before the final buzzer rang, Kentucky diehard called for Calipari’s job on social media. However, it won’t be easy for the program to part ways with the hall-of-fame coach.
On3’s Pete Nakos reported Calipari’s buyout is currently $33 million if Kentucky decided to part ways with him. After the 2024-25 season, that figure drops to $27 million. For comparison, Alabama head coach Nate Oats has the second-highest potential buyout in the nation at $18 million.