Kadary is the reason we are here. So I guess you can say Mike Repole is the reason we are here. The way the Refs and Pitino ripped the last game of his college career away from him is criminal.
Richmond reaches, all their high minute players pretty much do except Eijofor. He is really, really good at it but it still is a high risk approach, especially when you start to get different refs from different conferences from different parts of the country in the tournament. Unfortunately, he played poorly when he did play, it happens.
The simple fact IMO, is, outside of Eijofor, and in smaller, more relative roles, Lefty and Prey, SJU played poorly; very poorly on offense and Calapari came up with a great game plan to negate the Johnnie’s defense. Like water when it rains, the cries of “the refs dun it” come out of the woodwork from most fans of most teams when things go south.
I obviously have no actual idea what went on between Pitino and Luis but he did a like thing with Smith against Baylor and it cost them that game IMO so there is precedent. But again, many on here attribute the loss to yet another “ref gate”; I don’t, just different ways of looking at that game.
But Luis “wild child” approach has always been there, tempered a bit for sure but always there and it was OK when it was a major factor in a 31-4 record but in typical Pitino fashion, it becomes a huge scapegoat when it didn’t. How about just being a man and admitting your team played poorly collectively and Calapari took you to the cleaners? How about that and then doing the right thing and praising a group of players to the heavens for leaving it all on the court for you all season? But he chose to let the opportunity pass and frankly that was very wrong IMO. He was effusive in his praise when they won and Luis was the “It” guy, well, you stand by them ALL when it is over.
Pitino is a great, great coach but like all people, is flawed, and it clearly showed again in his press conference. This was a great, very memorable team, but neither it nor its coach were or are infallible.
Finally, I think most fans knew a NC was a possibility, but so was this game. Unfortunately, we got this game, but the idea this ending ruined a great, great season is just so much nonsense to me. One and done is a crapshoot and games like yesterday happen to the best of teams. I, for one, will always remember this season with great joy, it was quite a ride. But that’s just me…….