Arkansas certainly had a rough night, getting absolutely crushed by Tennessee and losing 76-52 in a game where rebounding, or rather the lack of it, was the main culprit. The Razorbacks didn’t just drop the ball; they lost a 30-rebound advantage against Tennessee, and the frustration was real. 

Now, fans are disappointed, but it looks like John Calipari, the Arkansas head coach, was feeling even more heated. He wasn’t going to sugarcoat anything. After the game, he didn’t hold back, basically calling out his team’s effort in the brutal loss.

Looking back, things seemed hopeful for Arkansas after their impressive win over Oakland. It looked like they were on track, ready to take on No. 1 Tennessee with all their focus. But just when you thought they’d pulled it together, the glaring weaknesses reared their heads once more—rebounding, missed free throws, and turnovers. 

It was a real letdown for the Razorbacks, and Calipari made sure his frustration was heard loud and clear. “Here’s what I would tell you,” Cal fired back during his postgame comments. “If you’re in there and you can’t rebound, you can’t be in. Don’t be mad at me, don’t be mad at the assistant coaches—just rebound, or someone else has to play. You’ve got to go body-to-body.” 

He even emphasized the amount of work they’d put in, saying, “We did blockout drills, we did body-to-body stuff. You better try something different, because if you did all that and still didn’t get it done… it’s on you.”

Reflecting on the game, he admitted that if he could do it all over again, he’d have handled things differently. “I hate to tell you,” he continued, “but we didn’t do a shooter-out today. I just felt like our body time was noon, which was pretty early. We had three or four guys who kind of no-showed. They basically slept, had breakfast, and never really showed up mentally.” 

And as for the game against Tennessee? “You play a team like that, you better be ready to battle,” he added. “Not fist-fight, but you better be first to the ball. You’ve got to block out and grab some free baskets, or it’s going to be a long game. And we didn’t do that.”

The game itself wasn’t even close. Tennessee dominated in every way possible, especially in rebounding. The Vols grabbed 51 rebounds, including 24 offensive rebounds alone, while Arkansas only managed 29 rebounds in total. That was a huge gap, and it told the entire story of the game. At the same time, it was all cheers for the Wildcats. 

John Calipari’s former team shines in season opener

John Calipari’s former squad was having a much better day. Kentucky had their SEC opener to think about, and they delivered. They pulled off a win against Florida in a game that showed just how much Pope’s Wildcats have grown. Florida started strong, dominating the boards early on, but Kentucky fought back. 

In fact, they made an incredible adjustment during the first half, turning the tables and closing with a 52-42 lead. But it was in the second half where Kentucky really showed what they were made of. The Gators, led by Walter Clayton Jr. and Alijah Martin, made a push to narrow the score to 70-69, but a clutch three-pointer from Lamont Butler helped Kentucky hang on. 

The Wildcats kept the pressure on, and thanks to a monster 23-point performance from Koby Brea off the bench, they managed to hold off Florida for the win and almost etch their name in the history books. With the victory, the team remains one of the top teams in the SEC. 

Pope was excited but stayed focused on the bigger picture. “We’re learning how fun this is,” he said. “It’s going to be great times and hard times, but they’re all going to be growing times.” Undoubtedly, the coach has a lot of faith in his team, and this win only solidified that belief.