John Calipari Ejected as Kentucky Snaps Six-Game Losing Streak
It's been a season to forget for the Kentucky Wildcats. The program is off to its worst start in nearly a century, and fans have grown so displeased that their social media complaints have driven some players to delete their Twitter accounts.
In Saturday's game against Mississippi State, that type of frustration got the better of head coach John Calipari.
Calipari picked up two technical fouls and was ejected in the second half for arguing with officials. The outburst seemed to spark a resurgence from his players, as Kentucky beat Mississippi State, 78-73, in double overtime to snap its six-game losing streak.
Calipari got the hook with just over nine minutes to play in the second half. It appeared he was arguing with referees about what he thought was a carrying violation by Mississippi State that was not called. The ejection drew applause from the Bulldogs' bench, as well as the small crowd in attendance.
Assistant coach James Flint, who coached with Calipari at Massachusetts and is in his first season with Kentucky, took over head coaching duties.
Mississippi State made both technical foul free throws to push its lead to 55-46, and Kentucky responded with a 10-0 run to take its first lead since midway through the first half.
Kentucky's Dontaie Allen led the Wildcats with 23 points off the bench, shooting 7-for-11 on 3-point attempts. Heading into this game, Allen had played just 19 total minutes and scored seven points on the season. Mississippi State's Iverson Molinar led the Bulldogs with 17 points.
The win improves Kentucky to 2-6 on the season and 1-0 in conference play. Mississippi State falls to 6-3 overall and 1-1 in SEC games.
