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John Calipari’s middling Kentucky team may be college basketball’s most interesting story

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John Calipari’s middling Kentucky team may be college basketball’s most interesting story


The Kentucky men’s basketball team handily defeated Mississippi on Tuesday night, 75-63, providing a rare feel-good moment in a season largely defined by poor defense, inexplicable losses at Rupp Arena and John Calipari’s typical mix of petulance and indignance in response to the pushback he’s getting from Big Blue Nation. 

Calipari has been at Kentucky for 15 seasons now − far longer than even he would have expected. But he’s now locked into the job by the largesse of his contract and the lack of better options for a 65-year-old whose best coaching days are likely behind him. 

And the plain reality that Calipari likely isn’t going anywhere anytime soon − he won’t be fired, and he isn’t the type to leave millions of dollars on the table − makes what happens over the next six weeks the most interesting story in college basketball. 

Either Kentucky will conjure up a March run that heals some deepening wounds, or one of the sport’s preeminent programs will be stuck with a coach it no longer wants and a decline it does not deserve. 

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Make no mistake: At a time when parity rules the sport, the old guard of coaching stars has largely left the scene and the future NBA stars are not as relevant to college success as they once were, college basketball is pining for a Kentucky comeback. 

But to this point, watching Calipari flail around on the sidelines without the answers to make it happen has been nothing short of sad. 

Since losing to Wisconsin in the 2015 Final Four, ending the Wildcats’ chance of becoming an unbeaten national champion, Kentucky hasn’t been the same program and Calipari hasn’t been the same coach. 

The erosion has happened for a lot of reasons. The biggest is probably that older, more physically rugged players have become more important than the one-and-done freshmen that were Calipari’s specialty. There have been staff changes and some key, longtime Calipari assistants that were shoved to the side in an attempt to become more recruiting-focused. There has also been a staggering stubbornness to adapt to modern basketball until this year, as Calipari has finally embraced the 3-pointer and better offensive spacing. 

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But the change has come at a cost: Kentucky is now ranked just outside the top 100 in the defensive efficiency metrics, which is stunning in the context of Calipari’s long career. At UMass, Memphis and then Kentucky, defense was non-negotiable. It was the thing that saved his teams time and again when the shots weren’t falling. The effort his teams consistently gave on that end of the floor was probably Calipari’s best attribute as a coach.

And this year, unless something changes late in the season, Kentucky’s poor defense is probably going to be what extends its Final Four drought to nine seasons. 

Previously in times of trouble, Calipari always had the next gimmick he could sell and the next recruiting class that could make people believe a championship was just around the corner. 

Those days are long gone. 

Prior to the Ole Miss win, Kentucky had lost three in a row at Rupp for the first time ever, had lost to hated rival Tennessee for the seventh time in the last 12 meetings and was trending toward a poor seed in the NCAA tournament. 

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Meanwhile, Calipari has drawn criticism locally for skipping out on his postgame radio interview after a few tough losses, and the atmosphere at home games has been downbeat. Even though Calipari almost certainly isn’t going anywhere, it feels like every game at this point is a referendum on whether he’s still the man for college basketball’s most rewarding, but also toughest, blueblood job. 

All this is happening while Kentucky has a roster stacked with future NBA players, including two potential lottery picks in Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham and top recruit D.J. Wagner, who has had an uneven and injury-plagued season. With Kentucky’s mix of freshmen and veterans, this team should be better than 17-7.

“It’s just going to be a process,” Calipari said Tuesday. “And I keep saying to everybody, we’ll break through. We will. My teams break through.”

But nobody really believes that anymore.

At one point in Calipari’s Kentucky tenure, the entire country would have feared this team regardless of the struggles it’s had in February. Just wait, just wait. The light’s going to come on because it’s Kentucky and Calipari. That was the aura around the program he created and his players lived up to time and time again. 

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The recent reality, though, has told a different story. Kentucky missed the NCAA tournament in 2021, got bounced by No. 15 seed St. Peter’s in 2022 and was outclassed by Kansas State’s veteran guards in the second round last year. Maybe this team can reverse the trend, but they’re going to have to show us. 

College basketball was more fun when Kentucky terrified everyone. Yes, Calipari had a few inexcusable March flops and should have more than one national title. But those things can happen in a one-and-done tournament. 

Calipari once famously said, “We do more than move the needle. We are the needle.” He wasn’t wrong. For his first six years in Lexington, this program was feared every time it took the court, every year rolling out a new group of future NBA All-Stars who looked the part almost from Day 1. 

And the truth is, Calipari’s the only coach in the country who could make that happen. He’s one of one, as perfectly suited to that job and the demands of that fan base as anyone who’s ever lived. When he inevitably moves on at some point, it’s hard to imagine anyone else reaching those highs year after year. 

It means there’s one realistic solution to Kentucky’s season of discontent. Calipari desperately needs to do something that now seems long in the past. He has to get this team playing to its potential. He has to reset the clock and put this past month into a memory hole. He has to produce the kind of big run in March that used to seem automatic.

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He has to make Kentucky feel like Kentucky again. 



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Virginia woman arrested 30 years after newborn was found in a Kentucky landfill

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Virginia woman arrested 30 years after newborn was found in a Kentucky landfill


More than three decades after a newborn’s remains were discovered in a Kentucky landfill, investigators say advances in forensic science have finally led to an arrest.

Jennifer Cummins of Fairfax County, Virginia, was taken into custody on January 6 in connection with the death of an infant known for decades only as “Baby Jane Doe,” Kentucky State Police announced this week.

The case dates to 1991, when a sanitation worker discovered the remains of a baby girl at the former Richmond Landfill in Madison County, near Eastern Kentucky University.

Despite early investigative efforts, authorities were unable to identify the baby or determine who was responsible, and the case eventually went cold.

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Kentucky State Police detectives recently reopened the investigation using modern forensic tools and updated investigative techniques. With assistance from the State Medical Examiner, it was determined that the infant was born alive and healthy before being placed in a dumpster on the campus of Eastern Kentucky University.

An arrest has been made in the death of a baby whose remains were found in 1991 by a sanitation worker at the former Richmond Landfill in Madison County, near Eastern Kentucky University

An arrest has been made in the death of a baby whose remains were found in 1991 by a sanitation worker at the former Richmond Landfill in Madison County, near Eastern Kentucky University (Google Maps)

The new information ultimately identified Cummins as a person of interest. In late 2025, the case was presented to a Madison County grand jury, which returned an indictment charging Cummins with murder.

“Even after decades of time that has passed, with the collaboration of new technologies, advancements, and persistence, we’ve been able to discover new leads in this case,” said Kentucky State Police Trooper Justin Kearney. “That’s why it’s so important for people to know these cases never go cold to us.”

Authorities have not released details about Cummins’ relationship to the child or the specific circumstances surrounding the infant’s death.

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Kentucky State Police say the investigation remains active, and that investigators say they are still seeking the public’s help to resolve some unanswered questions.

Cummins is being held at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center while awaiting extradition to Kentucky.



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Kentucky Transfer WR Hardley Gilmore IV Commits to Louisville

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Kentucky Transfer WR Hardley Gilmore IV Commits to Louisville


LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Montavin Quisenberry isn’t the only former Kentucky wide receiver to switch out blue for red this offseason.

Hardley Gilmore IV announced Thursday that he has committed to the Louisville football program.

He’s the fifth Wildcat to transfer to the Cardinals in this cycle, following Quisenberry, who committed earlier in the day, cornerback D.J. Waller plus defensive ends Jerod Smith II and Jacob Smith.

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Gilmore is also the 11th portal pickup for UofL in the last three days, and their 15th transfer commitment overall in this cycle, beginning to offset 23 portal defections that UofL has seen so far. The 14-day transfer window officially opened up this past Friday, and is the only opportunity for players to enter following the removal of the spring window.

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Despite Kentucky’s instability at quarterback this past season, Gilmore put together a productive 2025 campaign. Playing in all 12 games while starting five, the 6-foot-1, 165-pound receiver caught 28 passes for 313 yards and a touchdown. His reception and yardage total was second on the team to Kendrick Law.

The Belle Glade, Fla. native got immediate playing time as a true freshman in 2024. Appearing in seven games, Gilmore was able to haul in six passes for 153 yards, including a 52-yard touchdown vs. Murray State.

While Gilmore has shown high end potential on the field, he comes with some off-the-field baggage from last offseason. Last January after opting to transfer to Nebraska following his true freshman season, he was charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly punching someone in the face at a storage facility in Lexington. Then this past April, he was dismissed from the Huskers for unknown reasons, and wound up returning to Kentucky.

“Nothing outside the program, nothing criminal or anything like that,” Huskers head coach Matt Rhule said at the time regarding Gilmore’s dismissal. “Just won’t be with us anymore.”

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Gilmore and Quisenberry are the first of likely multiple transfer pieces that Louisville will add to their wide receiver room. Between graduation and the portal, the Cardinals are losing six receivers – including Chris Bell & Caullin Lacy.

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In their third season under head coach Jeff Brohm, Louisville went 9-4 overall, including a 4-4 mark in ACC play and a 27-22 win over Toledo in the Boca Raton Bowl. The Cardinals have won at least nine games in all three seasons under Brohm, doing so for the first time since 2012-14.

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(Photo of Hardley Gilmore IV: Jordan Prather – Imagn Images)

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You can also follow Deputy Editor Matthew McGavic at @Matt_McGavic on Twitter/X and @mattmcgavic.bsky.social on Bluesky





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Spotted lanternfly confirmed in 8 new Kentucky counties. About invasive insect

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Spotted lanternfly confirmed in 8 new Kentucky counties. About invasive insect


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  • The invasive spotted lanternfly has been confirmed in eight new Kentucky counties in 2025, bringing the total to 16.
  • Native to China, these insects pose a significant threat to agriculture, including orchards, vineyards, and various trees.
  • Spotted lanternflies damage plants by feeding on them and leaving behind a waste product that encourages mold growth.
  • Officials advise residents to inspect their property for the bugs and their egg masses, especially around dusk.
  • Sightings in Kentucky should be reported to the Department of Forestry or the University of Kentucky.

Entomologists have confirmed spotted lanternflies in eight more counties in Kentucky during 2025, according to a recent announcement.

These include Fayette, Franklin, Harrison, Pendleton, Robertson, Scott, Trimble and Woodford. The invasive insect was first found in the commonwealth in October 2023, in Gallatin County, and spread to counties including Boone, Campbell, Carroll, Grant, Henry, Kenton and Owen in 2024.

Here’s what to know.

What is a spotted lanternfly?

In short, the spotted lanternfly is a moth-like bug that’s not supposed to be in the U.S. The bugs tend to be red with black and/or white spots on their wings, according to the Department of Agriculture.

They’re native to China and first showed up in the U.S. in 2014. They’ve mostly been found in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, the USDA reports, but they’ve also been found in Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia.

One of the things that makes them so risky as an invasive species is that the eggs are thought to travel well, on everything from packages being shipped to moving boxes on U-Hauls. 

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Why are spotted lanternflies dangerous?

Spotted lanternflies can pose a major threat to the things such as orchards, vineyards and logging facilities. How? They tend to swarm and devour what they land on quickly, causing serious damage. 

Their “waste product” — known as “honeydew” — can also attract molds and other bugs that further damage plants.

They pose a threat, according to the USDA, to everything from almonds, apples and hops to maple, oak and pine trees and more.

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Is the spotted lanternfly in Kentucky?

Yes. The Kentucky Office of the State Entomologist said in a post to Facebook that the spotted lanternfly was confirmed in eight new commonwealth counties during 2025.

The species has been located in 16 counties total — Boone, Campbell, Carroll, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Grant, Harrison, Henry, Kenton, Owen, Pendleton, Robertson, Scott, Trimble and Woodford.

What to do about spotted lanternflies

The biggest thing you can do, according to the USDA, to help control the spread of the spotted lanternfly is to keep an eye out for them.

It is recommended that you inspect trees, plants and other surfaces on your property for bugs. It’s best to do that around dusk, the USDA says, because that’s when bugs tend to congregate, making them easier to spot.

Signs that a plant may be infected include the plant oozing, becoming moldy or developing a fermented odor, according to the USDA. You may also see a “buildup of sticky fluid” beneath the infected plant.

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The agency also recommends you keep an eye out for egg masses on everything from plants to boxes that hold things such as holiday decorations and often sit unattended for much of the year. If you spot an egg mass, you should scrape it “into a plastic zippered bag filled with hand sanitizer, then zip the bag shut and dispose of it,” according to the USDA.

In Kentucky, you should report sightings to your Department of Forestry regional office or reach the UK at 859-257-7597 or forestry.extension@uky.edu. UK experts also ask that anyone who finds one send a picture with the location to reportapest@uky.edu.

Contributing: Mary Ramsey, The Courier Journal. Reach Marina Johnson at Marina.Johnson@courier-journal.com.



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