Mark Stoops rejects John Calipari’s assertion Kentucky is a ‘basketball school,’ calls coach out on Twitter

There’s some drama brewing in Lexington, because the College of Kentucky grapples with a query any non-biased celebration might reply: Is it a soccer or a basketball college?

John Calipari began off the “debate” as he talked about UK’s want for a brand new basketball follow facility. In doing so, he made no bones by any means about the place the athletic division ought to be allocating its cash.

“This can be a basketball college. It’s at all times been that,” Calipari stated, per The Athletic. “Alabama is a soccer college. So is Georgia. I imply, they’re. No disrespect to our soccer workforce. I hope they win 10 video games and go to bowls. On the finish of the day, that makes my job simpler and it makes the job of all of us simpler. However this can be a basketball college. And so we have to hold transferring in that course and hold doing what we’re doing.”

In July 2016, Kentucky opened the Joe Craft Soccer Coaching Facility, a $45 million soccer complicated. Its basketball facility, opened in 2007, has not held up, and Calipari desires to take it upon himself to lift cash for a alternative.

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One a part of what Calipari stated, nevertheless, is not sitting properly together with his Wildcat brethren. In saying “this can be a basketball college,” Calipari caught the eye of soccer coach Mark Stoops, who took situation with the assertion.

Whereas it is true Kentucky soccer has arguably loved newer success than basketball — it is gained the Citrus Bowl, the Belk Bowl, the Gator Bowl, and the Citrus Bowl once more whereas basketball has topped out within the Elite Eight — it might be disingenuous to say Kentucky is not related to basketball earlier than soccer. Both means, Calipari doubtless did not anticipate blowback when he made the assertion.

Kentucky could assuage this example behind closed doorways, and it doubtless ends with Calipari acknowledging he spoke out of flip. Nonetheless, it is not an amazing look having one coach at your college calling out the opposite.