Among his many "Caliparisms," Kentucky's head basketball coach has long enjoyed prodding the media by stating he was once wrong... in 1978.
The UK boss may have to update his resume after Saturday's game in Starkville, Miss.
Redshirt freshman wing Dontaie Allen, a former Kentucky "Mr. Basketball" who had played only 20 minutes all season and had failed to leave the bench in three of the Wildcats' seven games during a shocking 1-6 start, scored a career-high 23 points to help lead UK to a 78-73 double-overtime victory over Mississippi State.
It was a "Told you so" moment for Big Blue Nation, which has been clamoring for John Calipari to give the former Pendleton County star a bigger opportunity to help the Cats with shooting skills that allowed him to average 42.9 points per game as a senior in high school.
"Well, when you do that, you kinda prove your point, and that's what you're supposed to do when you get a chance," Calipari said. "I'm so happy for him."
Calipari noted that there have been signs of a breakout from Allen in practice, but he's been playing behind some other talented players. One of them, 5-star freshman wing Terrence Clarke, did not play Saturday due to a sprained ankle.
"You're proving now that they should be playing behind me," Calipari said of Allen. "He changes our team."
A lack of playing time early this season did not discourage Allen. Instead, it fueled him.
"I was just keeping my head down and just working hard," said Allen, who made seven of his 11 shots from 3-point range against the Bulldogs after coming into the game with just two made field goals all season. "I'm thankful to have the opportunity that I had tonight."
"Dontaie's attitude was so good. Never changed," Calipari said. "Always a great kid, coming in spending extra time. And now he had his chance, and now all of Kentucky is going crazy. And you know what? You can say 'Cal, you screwed this season up.' Maybe I did. But I tell you this, and I say it every year, every one of these kids will get a chance to prove they should play more or less. Some kids don't take advantage of it. Dontaie did."
Kentucky (2-6, 1-0 SEC) started its "new season" on the right foot. In addition to Allen's big performance, the Cats also got 14 points and 12 rebounds from graduate transfer center Olivier Sarr, 12 rebounds from freshman forward Lance Ware, and 11 points apiece from freshman guards Devin Askew and BJ Boston.
Ironically, Calipari had to watch the final 19:04 on TV like the rest of Big Blue Nation after he was ejected with a pair of technical fouls midway through the second half. He even removed himself from the Cats' initial celebration after the game.
"When I walked off, I said ‘This is either going to be a good thing or a bad thing,'" he explained. "... What I did after the game, I snuck in the back of the locker room in the far corner before they came in because I just wanted to enjoy that celebration. I wanted to see it, and I wanted to enjoy it. I wanted to remember why I do what I do – to see that kind of stuff. Them doing it without me is even better.”
Mississippi State (6-4, 1-1 SEC) got 19 points from D.J. Stewart and 17 points from Iverson Molinar but could not avoid its 15th consecutive loss to a Calipari-coached UK team without a win.
*****
RAPID RECAP:
Kentucky looked like it was headed toward an unthinkable seventh straight loss after Mississippi State took a 55-46 lead with 9:04 remaining in the second half. The Bulldogs had just completed a five-point trip in which UK coach John Calipari was ejected with two technical fouls for disputing what he believed was a palming violation on a basket by MSU's Iverson Molinar. Much like the Cats responded to his ejection last season at Arkansas, this year's completely new squad instantly came to life. Dontaie Allen drained a pair of 3-pointers as part of a 10-0 run over the next four minutes to give UK the lead. The lead changed hands several times over the course of the final five minutes and two overtime periods, but the Cats would not be denied.
GAME BALL:
Dontaie Allen, Kentucky -- There are nights when this is a no-brainer. This is one of them. The former Pendleton County star and Kentucky "Mr. Basketball" delivered a performance for the ages to help end an almost historically bad losing streak by the Cats. For a homegrown player who had made two baskets all season to produce 23 points off the bench in a high-pressure situation is something right out of a Hollywood script.
KEY STAT:
Sparked by Dontaie Allen's seven treys, the Cats had their best 3-point shooting night of the season, going 11-of-21 as a team. Somewhat surprisingly, 7-foot center Olivier Sarr produced two of them, including one to start the second overtime and give UK a lead it would never surrender.
QUOTABLE:
"If you put the work in, you know you're going to be ready." -- UK wing Dontaie Allen
UP NEXT:
Kentucky returns to action Tuesday at Rupp Arena against Vanderbilt. The Commodores (4-3, 0-1 SEC) are coming off a 91-72 loss to Florida in Nashville. Tipoff is slated for 7 ET on the SEC Network.
