In one of the bigger upsets of the NCAA Tournament, one of the first high seeds lost to John Calipari’s team. His No. 10 Arkansas got the best of Rick Pitino’s No. 2 St. John’s in a 75-66 thriller. The most acclaimed coaches renewed their rivalry, but it was the Razorbacks coach who moved to 14-10 all-time against Pitino in college matchups, including a 3-2 edge in NCAA Tournament games. Yet, Calipari’s focus wasn’t on his longtime adversary—it was on survival, a theme that has defined Arkansas’s rollercoaster season.

Arkansas’s journey to this point was anything but smooth. The Razorbacks started SEC play 0-5, limped to an 11-7 overall record by midseason, and battled injuries to key players like Adou Thiero and Boogie Fland. Critics wrote them off and analysts declared them “hopeless”. But Calipari, in his first year at Arkansas after a 15-year tenure at Kentucky, leaned on his decades of experience to turn it around, finishing conference play 9-6 and securing a 22-13 record by tournament time. So, it is understandable that against St. John’s, the rivalry with Pitino took a backseat to the immediate task: winning a physical, gritty matchup.

“If you went through the year, we went through when we were 0-5 when we 1-6 and they said they got no chance of making the NCAA tournament. When you’re playing games you’re not worried about the other coach, you’re about survival,” Calipari said on the Dan Patrick show, recapping the win.

Arkansas fans should probably breathe a sigh of relief that Calipari didn’t doubters get to his head. But also, Calipari’s comfort in the underdog role is no accident. He’s been here before: UMass in 1996, Memphis in 2008, Kentucky in 2014—all improbable Final Four runs. At Arkansas, he’s channeled that again, guiding a team from “coffin-bound” to the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in five years.

“I didn’t care. It was about let’s just win,” he further said on the show. “I’m fine in that role; I’m comfortable in the role. I’m just trying to make sure my team is comfortable in that role”. For their upcoming game against the Texas Tech too, the messaging won’t change from the 66-year-old. “I’m just saying we’re the underdog, okay. And every time they play in those kind of games they play well.” And players like D.J. Wagner see it too: “The fire in him, he wants the best for us and he wants us to win in every moment”.

From Rick Pitino’s side too, there were no signs of a rivalry. Postgame, he amicably admitted that Calipari’s team was the better one and the one that deserved to go forward. And to keep the ball rolling, Calipari replied like that one best friend, saying, “You know, Rick did a great job with his team all year. If they made a few shots, they probably beat us. So, we were fortunate to get out, but I’m proud of these guys.” For him, it is crazy that we won against a team that had 28 offensive rebounds. Well, everyone invested in their supposed rivalry knows that the two have admitted that they don’t have much of a relationship. There, clearly, is much respect though. Both even reached out for a handshake and exchanged some words that we can only guess.

Looking back at how John Calipari turned it around against Pitino

Calipari’s dominance over Pitino continues. In the last 10 years, he now holds a 9-2 record against his longtime rival. During the second-round matchup, Arkansas struggled from deep, shooting just 2-19 from beyond the arc. A similar struggle from the deep was the problem for St. John as well. They shot just 30% from beyond the arc all season. And in this game? A dismal 2-22 from deep.

Calipari’s game plan hinged on a trait that Pitino himself admitted St. John’s hadn’t faced all season. “We haven’t faced that type of length and athleticism this year“. Arkansas ranks fourth nationally with 5.6 blocks per game and they wielded that advantage well. The Razorbacks made 46 points in the paint, making most of St. John’s dismal 8-of-25 layup performance. Calipari’s squad turned the paint into a no-fly zone, forcing St. John’s into a 28% field-goal nightmare—well below their season norms.

Freshmen, as Calipari has always believed, were the X-factor. Billy Richmond III dropped 16 points, and Karter Knox added 15, both thriving in a slugfest where Arkansas shot just 2-of-19 from three. It seems like Calipari’s trust in youth paid off. Prior to the game, Calipari had fired up his team saying, “How about we give ourselves a chance to make some magic? Let’s go fight like heck, play free and loose,” and his freshmen were full of that energy.

If the Razorbacks continue this streak, they might not only surprise the fans but also one of their alums! With this win and in his first season with the team, Coach Cal is back in the Sweet 16 for the 16th time.