Kudos to 'Crazy' Coach Calipari for Honest Accountability

Hogs managed comeback to beat No. 14 Michigan despite sickness, bright lights

Coach John Calipari barks orders from the sideline against the Pacific Tigers. Arkansas won 91-72. | Nilsen Roman - Hogs on SI Images

Coaches preach it all the time. So do parents. It's called accountability. When a coach practices what they preach, it's refreshing. That's what happened after Arkansas' game in New York City.

Hogs coach John Calipari said it once, said it twice, and didn't hesitate. He led a pair of post-game interviews by taking accountability for what he deemed were coaching errors.

First, he said it on a post-game interview with Scott Van Pelt on ESPN's Sports Center. Then he said it again, in a different way at his press conference following Tuesday's scintillating 89-87 win over No. 14 Michigan.

No matter how you slice it, the Hall of Fame coach stood tall and shouldered two big pieces of blame for what he called "two of the dumbest things I’ve done."

At the beginning of his interview with the accommodating Van Pelt, coach Cal ignored the opening question and said, "I made some mistakes down the stretch."

I've been listening to coaches my nearly my entire life, as a player through four years of college and then for more decades than I care to admit as a writer. Understand this: Not all coaches will admit mistakes, take accountability, certainly not publicly. So, credit Cal. Big props.

He changed an out-of-bounds play the Hogs were going to run, overthinking it. "The out-of-bounds play (he switched to) stunk," Calipari said. "I should've never changed what we were going to do. And I had Trevon come back for a ball when they were going to foul and he missed two. That's on me."

The keen observer lounging in my leather recliner with a legal pad handy immediately wondered why the 6-10 Trevon Brazile, just 1-of-2 at the free-throw line in the season's first nine games, was even near the ball.

Seemed obvious that DJ Wagner should be the inbounds passer with strict instructions to only throw the ball to Nelly Davis or Boogie Fland, who shoot 88% and 84% on free throws, respectively.

"That even shows you, even having experience, you can do some dumb things sometimes," Calipari said. "These kids fought. They fought and I almost cost them the game.

"I tell these kids when they play like this I have to do my job, too, and help them finish off the game. Hopefully, I’ll help them win more games than I’m going to cause them to lose, but that one, they saved me."

SICK BUT EFFECTIVE: Arkansas' leading scorer on the season, Adou Thiero, was sick with the flu but still managed to play 22 mostly productive minutes. He was noticeably tired in the second half after netting 11 of his 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting in the first half.

Arkansas forward Adou Thiero (3) falls sfter grabbing a rebound in the second half against the Michigan Wolverines at Madison Square Garden Tuesday. Thiero scored 11 of his 13 points in the first 21 minutes before tiring due to flu. | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Zvonimir Ivisic, the 7-foot-2 sophomore who is battling a sprained ankle, played just eight minutes and buried a 3-pointer to go with one board. Freshman Billy Richmond also had the flu and played only a minute.

"Z was hurt, and he said, ‘I can do it,’ but you saw it there," Calipari said. "He couldn't move, but he made a three, helped us win the game. We had two guys with the flu, one of them played, and the other I played a minute, but there was no reason to play him."

Arkansas Razorbacks guard Boogie Fland (2) looks to drive past Michigan Wolverines guard Roddy Gayle Jr. (11) as teammate Jonas Aidoo comes to screen at Madison Square Garden Tuesday night. | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

HAPPY HOMECOMING: Boogie Fland, the Hogs' freshman point guard from the Bronx, thoroughly enjoyed his trip back to the Big Apple. He led Arkansas with 20 points and seven assists and started the first-half comeback by scoring eight straight to whittle down a 15-point deficit. He had 13 points and four assists at intermission.

"I had over 100 people here, so just for them to be able to see me play in person… Most of my career, they haven’t been able to see me," Fland said. "Especially being the first time at the Garden, and we get the win, it’s not more special than that."

The Hogs trailed by four at halftime and that's when sophomore guard DJ Wagner took over. He outscored the entire Michigan team, 14-11, in the first 8:30 of the second half. That fueled a 28-11 spurt that gave the Hogs a 73-60 lead.

Arkansas Razorbacks guard D.J. Wagner (21) drives on Michigan's 7-foot forward Danny Wolf (1) in the first half at Madison Square Garden. Wagner outscored the Wolverines 14-11 to start the second half. | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Fland and Wagner constantly talk about "feeding off of each other" and talked about that prior to the end of halftime. Fland said Wagner kind of gave him a pep talk that fired himself up just as much.

Said Fland: "He was like ‘Let’s just go out there and have a blast. The atmosphere is crazy. We’ve got all our fans here. We’re at Madison Square Garden, one of the most famous arenas. Let’s go out with a bang.’ And that’s what we did. We came out the first five minutes and second five minutes and we just kept turning it out."

The Hogs' amazing 16 minutes of domination eventually produced a 57-24 spurt that turned a 15-point deficit into an 18-point lead. In college, 33-point turnarounds are almost non-existent.

CRAZY LOVE: Asked what it's like playing for Calipari, Fland said, "It’s amazing. He’s a little bit crazy but that comes with it. It’s out of love. He cares for us and he wants us to win and he’s going to put us in the situation to do so. We love him and just happy to be with him."

Wagner called it "a blessing. You all know coach wants the best for us. Even though sometimes, the way he says stuff, it may not seem like it. But we know it’s all out of love and he’s making us better in the end. I feel like it’s a blessing. At times it’s fun, but it’s crazy as well."

Madison Square Garden sits in the heart of midtown Manhattan, with the Empire State Building seen in the distance at far left. The iconic arena opened in 1968, as the fourth version of the Garden. The first was built in 1879. | Danny Wild-Imagn Images

AMAZING ARENA: The Hogs' two guards were asked if they'd talked about the opportunity to play in what's known as the world's most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. It's where the Knicks play, where Muhammad Ali boxed, where popes and music stars have appeared.

"A little bit, not a lot, but maybe in shoot around," Wagner said. "So in a way we did. It’s just a blessing to be here. I feel like we all knew how special it was to play in a building like this. As a kid, this is your dream, playing in arenas like this. It was just a blessing. I feel like we all felt that energy and felt that vibe."

Fland had been a fan in the stands watching the Knicks but never played on the famous floor. "It was a dream," he said. "Growing up in the Bronx, to have the opportunity to come back and play your hometown, get a W and show out with my teammates, it’s just no feeling like it."

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