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John Calipari conducted a radio interview days after Kentucky’s disappointing first-round NCAA men’s tournament elimination.
Calipari processed Thursday’s stunning 80-76 loss to Oakland while looking ahead to the future on Monday night. He told Tom Leach that he expects to have his annual end-of-season meeting with Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart this week.
“I look forward to hearing his thoughts,” Calipari said, via Ben Roberts of Kentucky Sports. “How we can be better.”
Per The Athletic’s Kyle Tucker, Calipari looked ahead to finding “older, talented players” on the transfer portal and “the right transfer who understands what this [program] is.”
However, Calipari is far from over Thursday’s disappointing outcome. He said he felt “physically ill” discussing the loss.
“I have had better weekends,” Calipari said. “Hurting. Our team — players, staff, their families — we’re all hurting. I’m hurting for them, but I’m hurting. I’m hurting for our fans, and I know many fans out there are hurting. But I want to say: No one is hurting more than me right now.”
Kentucky entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 3 seed, and Calipari had declared that his young roster and explosive offense was “built for March.” His team instead went home after Jack Gohlke made 10 three-pointers off Oakland’s bench.
The Wildcats have one March Madness in the last five years. Calipari acknowledged that Kentucky’s recent tournament shortcomings aren’t good enough.
“My standard is we’re playing to play deep into the NCAA tournament and compete for national titles. And win national titles,” Calipari said. “I wanted this job knowing that was the case. I love this job knowing that was the case. I never left this job. “But that’s what the standard is for me.”
There is no official decision on Calipari’s future, but he’s eager to redeem this year’s early exit if given the opportunity.
“If someone says to me, ‘I’m coming back,’ the first thing I’m saying is, ‘Under eight months until the first game next year. Let’s go,” Calipari said. “Because I want this taste out of my mouth.”