One can usually tell how close it is to game day based on how coaches and players deal with question and answer sessions.
When it comes to the relationship of head coaches John Calipari (Kentucky) and Rick Pitino (Louisville), to say that these two won’t be seen sharing a meal would be an understatement.
Sure enough there was a disagreement of sorts, with Pitino responding to Calipari’s comments on UK’s reach within the state with the following:
To be fair Calipari did offer a clarification on his comments, noting that within their in-state rivalry with the Cardinals there are Kentucky fans all over the state.
Kentucky’s got a number of fans in the city of Louisville, and they’ve played a regular season game at Freedom Hall (Louisville’s home before the building of the KFC Yum! Center) every season since the 1957-58 campaign.
But with the enormity of the Final Four being what it is, seemingly innocent comments like the one that Calipari made back in October about the popularity of Kentucky Basketball will receive even more attention.
Pitino added in his response that Calipari’s comments wouldn’t provide extra motivation for his team, and frankly if a team needs added motivation with two wins separating them from a national title there’s something wrong.
But for the fans of the two teams, the latest words from the two head coaches is just more lighter fluid for a flame that was already burning.
Raphielle is also the assistant editor at CollegeHoops.net and can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.