Congratulations to John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats for their National Championship victory last night in New Orleans. It was undoubtedly the top highlight in an impressive career for Calipari that has spanned decades in the game.
For me though, my favorite John Calipari highlight isn’t even really about him. John Chaney is the real star of this one (Calipari’s work was behind the scenes during the game Umass and Temple had just played).
In February of 1994, UMass squeaked out a one-point win against Temple in Amherst, Mass., and on his way off the court, Calipari allegedly ripped into the three game officials. Chaney, who a week prior was reprimanded for doing the same thing after a game with West Virginia, crashed Cal’s post-game press conference and went ballistic, to the point where Chaney yells, “When I see you, I’m going to kick your ass!” Chayney is then led out by Temple officials, assistant coaches and Eddie Jones. The whole thing is capped off by a smug Cal’s, “Some things never cease to amaze me.”
Incredibly, these two ended up becoming good friends after this episode.
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