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John Calipari reveals Kentucky's mindset entering Mississippi State game

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report02/16/23
John Calipari, Kentucky Wildcats basketball coach
Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari gestures during one of his team's games on Feb. 7, 2023. (Andy Lyons / Getty Images)

It’s not often that Kentucky is on the NCAA Tournament bubble, but that’s precisely the case as the regular season winds down. So what is Kentucky’s mindset down the home stretch?

For coach John Calipari, it’s all about adopting a ‘refuse to lose’ approach.

“The biggest thing I’ve been talking to them about is refuse to lose,” Calipari said after a 71-68 win over Mississippi State. “Just refuse to lose. And you may run out of time, but you just keep fighting.”

The Wildcats have split their last six games 3-3, and the latest bracketology from ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has Kentucky among the “First Four Out,” narrowly missing the NCAA Tournament field.

Kentucky needs to bring it the rest of the way to assure itself of a spot in the Big Dance. Wednesday night’s win was just a start.

“It was a hard-fought game for both teams,” Calipari said.

Kentucky bench brings extra energy

If Kentucky’s mindset is a reflection of where the team’s currently at, things looked much improved based on the reaction of the bench to key moments in the Mississippi State game.

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That had apparently been lacking in recent weeks.

“Last week one of the guys said to me, ‘Your bench was not into it,'” Calipari explained. “And I went on the bus and I just said, ‘This is what someone in the media said to me.’ I’m not looking at the bench. I didn’t look at the bench today. But I told guys, ‘If you’re not going to be into it, don’t sit on the bench. If you’re hurt, sit in the seats.'”

After clinching the key win against Mississippi State, Kentucky sits in significantly better position.

Nothing is done yet, of course, and the Wildcats will still have to finish the season strong to earn an NCAA Tournament berth. But the path is there.

“We got everything out ahead of us,” Calipari said. “And there are a lot of teams, there are a lot of things that are rooting against us because they don’t want to see us in the tournament. I’ve got a good team. I’m just trying to convince them of that.”