John Calipari criticizes long replays, officials

A big part of college basketball has become officials taking time to go review plays on a court-side monitor. Whether possession of the ball or grading certain fouls is at stake, long reviews have become part of the game — and it’s frustrating Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari.

Calipari was asked about a long review during their matchup against the Alabama Crimson Tide, he went on a bit of a rant, talking against how long it took. He said the call the officials were making was obvious to everyone and taking four minutes to figure it out affected his players.

“I’m not trying to leverage it, it’s frustrating,” Calipari said. “I will tell you that if you wonder why I went crazy the other game is because everybody saw the slap in the face. We all saw it. KB saw it. Camera crew saw it. What took you three minutes? And then you go meet with the coach. My guy is at the free-throw line waiting to shoot a free throw and you’re having a dialogue about whatever. Couldn’t have been that play because it was a face slap. That’s why I got upset. Let’s play. Let’s go. Let’s play. And then all of a sudden, all hell breaks loose.

“It wasn’t me questioning anything it was just, let’s go, speed this thing up. Part of it was, my guy was shooting a free throw. After waiting five minutes, what did he do with the free throw? He missed it. So, you’re right. It needs to be done quicker. Needs to meet with both coaches. It’s a four-second conversation. ‘This is what happened, here’s the call. We’re not discussing. Let’s go. Let’s go play.'”

Calipari was discussing a moment when Alabama player Darius Miles hit Keion Brooks in the face after the ball went out of bounds. The review took a significant amount of time, leading to a missed opportunity for Kentucky to convert on the free throws.

As the season progresses and the calendar goes toward the month of March, the reviews will become even more prevalent, especially for Kentucky. Officials will want to make sure the calls they are making are correct during late-game scenarios. The Wildcats will close the season out with games against Arkansas, Ole Miss, and Florida before the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. A few long reviews could slow down the pace the Wildcats and John Calipari are trying to play with.