Kentucky HC John Calipari's words come back to haunt him in upset loss to Oakland

This year was supposed to be different for Kentucky and head coach John Calipari, but Oakland didn't get the memo. The Wildcats were upended in the opening round Thursday, 80-76, causing the coach's own words to come back to haunt him. 

Only days before the start of the tournament, Calipari said Kentucky was "built for March." However, following the Wildcats' stunning loss, he sang a different tune and borderline threw his team under the bus. 

"We had some guys that didn't play the way they've been playing all year," Calipari told Kyle Boone of CBS Sports. "When the game started, they just — we had some guys not play to the level they could play." 

Even if it wasn't the right way to go about it, Calipari isn't wrong, as Oakland came out confident, and Kentucky, well, didn't. 

The Wildcats shot a lousy 42.6% from the field (26-of-61). Meanwhile, after finishing No. 1 in the nation from three-point range (41%), they shot an uncharacteristic 32.1% from beyond the arc against Oakland. 

Following the brutal loss, guard Reed Sheppard took accountability, saying, "Coach isn't out there playing the game." 

Sheppard and the rest of the locker room might rightfully blame themselves for the loss. However, early exits from the tournament are becoming commonplace under Calipari, which isn't easy to ignore. 

For the fourth straight year, Kentucky's season has ended in disappointment. After missing the tournament entirely in 2021, they've been eliminated in the Round of 32 (2023) and now twice in the Round of 64 (2022 and 2024).