John Calipari, Kentucky players impressed with Big Blue Nation's presence in Louisville

The Big Blue Nation is notorious for representing Kentucky all over the globe, but even John Calipari was shocked to see the crowd that showed up in Louisville on Tuesday.

The UK men’s basketball head coach, along with a trio of Wildcats — Oscar Tshiebwe, Lance Ware, and Adou Thiero — just began a week-long tour across the Bluegrass State that will help raise money and donations for the tornados that ravaged western Kentucky back in the winter. The first stop was at the LaGrange Kroger in Louisville — enemy territory.

But looking at the crowd of fans lined up around the supermarket, you would have thought it was gameday at Rupp Arena. Fans showed up hours in advance to meet with Calipari, associate head coach Orlando Antigua, and the trio of current players who showed up while also helping out those in need.

“I want you to think about the people that lined up around this corner, got to see Lance and Oscar and Adou, and as we go forward there will be other players that they’ll get to spend time with,” Calipari told reporters on Tuesday. “But to wait in that line and then gave donations — one of them must have given us 15, 20 cards. I saw gas cards, and people care.”

One heck of a crowd here to see John Calipari in Louisville.

Orlando Antigua, Oscar Tshiebwe, Lance Ware and Adou Thiero all in attendance, as well. pic.twitter.com/WXU1DU4dtJ

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) July 12, 2022

As expected, Tshiebwe, the reigning unanimous national player of the year, was popular among the droves of crazed fans. The BBN was quick to bring up his desire to wear the No. 9 on his jersey this season, which the NCAA has a rule against. He did add that he’s not done trying to secure the number for this season, though.

“We take a picture and they say ‘Oscar you gotta hold up number nine.’ They all talk about number nine,” Tshiebwe told the media. “When I first came here they told me it was going to be easy, 15 minutes and you’ll get out of here, but I went 30 later minutes later… I’m happy; fans were very nice and we take the time for them.”

While he was elated to see so much of the Kentucky faithful show up, he was equally as surprised to see just how many were in attendance considering the city he was in.

“This was a lot of fun,” Tshiebwe added. “I thought most of the fans in Louisville, they’re just Louisville fans, but I found out we got a lot of fans in Louisville here. So it was a lot of fun for me to be here and just stay for like an hour and 30 minutes to take a picture with everybody.”

If Tshiebwe was having fun, you can imagine the fans were too. A few were even moved to tears.

“They’re just excited, some of them shaking, some of them with tears in their eyes,” Lance Ware told the media of the fans. “They’re super excited. It makes us all feel good and we’re here making somebody’s day.”

This meetup was also the first opportunity for Adou Thiero to embrace the Kentucky experience at its most intense. Hundreds upon hundreds of fans flooded the local Kroger and plenty of them knew exactly who the late addition was despite him not being heralded as a five-star recruit.

“I definitely heard about it but I didn’t really believe it, but now I believe it a lot,” Thiero said of Kentucky fans’ love for their program. “I’m getting called my first name, last name. It’s just nice to know that everybody knows me.”