Thursday Night Notes from Open Practice Day at the NCAA Tournament

Good evening, friends. After a long morning of driving through the mountains and a long afternoon of catching up with the Cats, I am now relaxing in my very nice room at the entirely too nice media hotel here in Greensboro. Greensboro is the one North Carolina city I haven’t spent a lot of time in, so I came in with low expectations, but so far, the O.Henry Hotel by itself has exceeded them. Live jazz, afternoon tea, a top-notch restaurant/bar, and a rubber ducky in the bathtub? This is a far cry from the Holiday Inn in Memphis that Jerry Tipton refused to stay in.

Thursday night at the media hotel at the NCAA Tournament doesn’t usually look like this. pic.twitter.com/kpwObOCcfG

— Tyler Thompson (@MrsTylerKSR) March 17, 2023

I have a feeling if Kentucky wins and we get a chance to explore on Saturday, the rest of the city will surprise us too. Until then, let’s run through some quick notes.

Sahvir Wheeler said he’s ready to play

The biggest storyline of the day came from the open locker room session, where Sahvir Wheeler told reporters he will be available to play tomorrow night if needed. Wheeler has been out since the Florida game on Feb. 4 with an ankle injury and an unrelated tailbone procedure. This week, he was a full participant at practice and told reporters he is ready to roll when his number is called.

“I’m just — I’m at a loss for words. I’m just so happy to be able to play again, you know what I’m saying? This group of guys, what we’ve gone through individually and as a team, the ups and downs, I’m just super happy to be here.”

…But John Calipari made it clear it’s not a given

While Wheeler was talking to the media, John Calipari was too in a different room. Calipari spun a slightly different yarn, telling reporters that although Sahvir is nearing full strength, he needs to be certain the guard can give it his all before throwing him into an NCAA Tournament game, especially against guards like Providence’s.

“Well, he is trying his hardest, and he is doing great stuff, but, you know, I’ve got to really feel that he is going to be maybe not 100 percent, but he can’t be 80. Not in a game like this. Providence is well-coached. They’ve got terrific players. Obviously, I know Bryce well and respect him and love him to death. He is a terrific player, but their guards are good. They’re downhill runners.

“And so we’ll see. He’ll go through the shoot-around. We’ll practice a little bit after this, and then the docs and the trainers will tell me what they think.”

Later, while describing what this group has gone through, Calipari cast some doubt that everyone will be available on Friday.

“Everybody counted us out. They’re still counting us out. I told the guys, I like this. This is kind of like my UMass and Memphis days: Ah, they didn’t play… they’re not… they didn’t… they’re not…All right. We’ll see where we are. We’ll see.

“But this — I’m liking the group. I wish we were fully healthy, but we’ll have to see what happens Friday, who can play.”

We’ll know for sure soon enough.

Bryce Hopkins was a popular topic

You can read more about that here. This quote from his teammate Ed Croswell stands out.

“Bryce has explained to us, like, you know, he wished he had a fair chance at Kentucky, but he has moved past it, and he is at his happy home now, and Providence has taken him in. He has passed it, and now he is playing some of the best basketball of his career.”

Big night tomorrow for both sides.

Calipari still loves coaching at Kentucky

Another big storyline this week has been the mounting pressure on John Calipari in season 14 at Kentucky. When asked how he handles that, Calipari said that every job in coaching is stressful and he understands the expectations that come with his.

“But these jobs, they’re hard. Yeah, I’ve got a hard job. I love this job. I love being at Kentucky. I love walking in every arena, and it’s full. Every arena we go to, every game at home we led the nation in attendance. Who wouldn’t want to coach there? Yeah, there’s the other side of it. There’s a high expectation, but that’s never scared me. It doesn’t scare me now.”

Calipari and players preview Providence

We’re still working our way through a flood of content and will have leftovers for you in the morning. You can get a head start with the videos below.

Walker Horn is coming for our jobs, by the way:

Ace reporter @walkerhorn_ on the scene with the hard hitting questions 😂 pic.twitter.com/uKrenrjHVw

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) March 16, 2023

Open Practice Highlights

Per usual, Kentucky’s open practice at the NCAA Tournament wasn’t a true practice, more of a glorified walkthrough, but you can see the players get a feel for Greensboro Coliseum below. We missed Chin Coleman’s halfcourt shot, but I can guarantee you it was electric.

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It looks like the radio crew had a fun day in Mayberry — err, I mean Mount Airy

While Jack, Steven, and I were busy at the arena, the radio crew was making their way to Greensboro with a pit stop in Mount Airy, the inspiration for Mayberry of “The Andy Griffith Show.” I’m sure we’ll hear all about it tomorrow, but here’s a sneak peek from Drew:

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A post shared by Drew Franklin (@drew_franklin)