‘Gift of motivation’: Loss to Saint Peter’s could fuel future success for UK players
While this year’s first-round loss to Saint Peter’s ended the season earlier than its players and coaches had hoped, Kentucky has also had to cope with historic disappointment in previous NCAA tournaments.
Arguably the most vivid examples were the losses to Louisville in the 1983 Mideast Regional finals (aka the “Dream Game” played in, of all places, Knoxville) and to Duke in the 1992 East Regional finals (30 years later T-shirts bearing the words “I Still Hate Laettner” are worn).
To ask players how they coped with these perceived calamities was to learn that not all the memories are painful.
Derrick Hord played in the “Dream Game.” Several years of Louisville publicly lobbying for a regular-season series and Kentucky perceived as obstinate in resisting fused the game with added emotional zeal. UK had not played U of L since the 1959 NCAA Tournament (and not in a regular-season game since 1922).
“It was tough,” Hord said of dealing with UK’s loss in overtime. “It’s still tough.”
But Hord chuckled as he recalled how then Kentucky Gov. John Y. Brown wore a sports coat that was half red and half blue at the game.
“I remember how kind (U of L) Coach (Denny) Crum was to me,” Hord said. “After the ball game, we crossed paths in the hallway. He stopped and said some kind words. I never forgot that.”
Deron Feldhaus played for Kentucky in the 1992 loss to Duke. He and John Pelphrey were the defenders when Christian Laettner made the game-winning shot in overtime. As with the Dream Game, there was a prelude of several years. The game culminated Kentucky’s three-year rebuilding effort brought on by NCAA sanctions in 1989. Feldhaus suggested there was “kind of a relief” in advancing to within a game of the Final Four and playing the defending national champion so competitively.
“It was a different kind of loss …,” he said. “We laid everything on the line we could. It was one of those games it seemed whoever had the ball last was going to win.”
A more difficult defeat to accept came in that season’s second game, Feldhaus said. That’s when Kentucky lost at home to Pittsburgh in the second round of the Preseason NIT. Thus, Pittsburgh advanced to the semifinal round in New York City.
“Coach (Rick) Pitino had hyped up all summer he was going to take us to New York,” Feldhaus said.
But, again, a painful loss contained a plus.
“I think it brought us back as a team,” Feldhaus said. “We might have gotten a little of the big head with success. … I think that really brought us back for that season.”
Ellen Reed is a Lexington Catholic High School graduate who as a performance coach helps athletes and business professionals deal with disappointment. She and Jason Selk co-authored the book “Relentless Solution Focus: Train Your Mind to Conquer Stress, Pressure, and Underperformance.”
Selk wrote the book “10-Minute Toughness,” which former UK player Nate Sestina credited with getting him out of a basketball funk.
Reed recommended athletes not dwell on defeat, but to “use that negative emotion as a gift of motivation. … (to focus) on what they need to be doing to get” improved performance.
The media, which is “very results focused,” should be avoided, she said.
The annual period of deciding whether to enter the NBA Draft or transfer portal or return to UK should be embraced as a way to move on beyond disappointment, Reed said. “Having something to shift focus to is huge.”
Saint Peter’s saluted
In his summation of this year’s NCAA Tournament, Mike Lopresti of NCAA.com wrote a pithy paragraph on each game. This included:
Saint Peter’s 85, Kentucky 79 (OT): “Shocker of the tournament. This wasn’t quite Christian Laettner at the buzzer, but not many of Kentucky’s 53 previous losses in the tournament were more of a slap in the face than this for Big Blue Nation. …”
Saint Peter’s 70, Murray State 60: “Who invited these trouble-making Peacocks to the party? Murray State couldn’t crack that magic any better than Kentucky, getting outscored 15-4 in points off turnovers. The Racers owned the nation’s best record but never led a second.”
Saint Peter’s 67, Purdue 64: “… The Peacocks became the first No. 15 seed to ever win a Sweet 16 game and the Boilermakers aided and abetted with a bad game at an awful time. Stars Jaden Ivey and Zach Edey had nine field goals and 11 turnovers.”
North Carolina 69, Saint Peter’s 49: “Fairy tale, meet reality, and the North Carolina muscle that allowed only 30 percent shooting and out-rebounded the Peacocks by 16. But Saint Peter’s is in the book of March lore to stay. The Peacocks will now be every No. 15 seed’s favorite inspiration.”
‘Blue-blooded tie’
Here’s how Mike Lopresti summed up Kansas beating North Carolina 72-69 in the championship game:
“The long ride of 2021-22 ended with North Carolina, Kansas and Duke in a peculiar blue-blooded tie: Most championship games lost at six. A lot of almost shining moments.”
Incidentally, Kentucky has lost four times in championship games of the NCAA Tournament: 1966 (Texas Western), 1975 (UCLA), 1997 (Arizona) and 2014 (UConn).
Looking ahead
In its opening odds, the gambling site BetOnline.ag made Arkansas a 10-1 favorite to win the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Kentucky, Duke and Gonzaga are all second choices at odds of 11-1.
Among other SEC teams, the best odds of a national championship are Alabama at 33-1, Auburn and Tennessee each at 40-1 and Texas A&M at 66-1.
Louisville and Florida are each at 125-1.
To put that in perspective, opening odds of 9-1 made Gonzaga the favorite to win this year’s NCAA Tournament. Eventual champion Kansas was at 18-1, which was also the odds on Kentucky winning it all.
ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi said he will post his first bracket for the 2023 NCAA Tournament on April 19.
Jerry Palm, the bracketologist for CBS, said his first 2023 bracket will be unveiled in August.
Looking back
A look at the final Division I statistics shows that Oscar Tshiebwe led all Division I players with averages of 15.1 rebounds and 5.26 offensive rebounds.
The last DI player to average as many as 15.1 rebounds? Larry Smith of Alcorn in 1979-80.
By posting double figures in points and rebounds in all six of North Carolina’s NCAA Tournament games, Armando Bacot passed Tshiebwe for most double-doubles. Bacot had 31 in 39 games. Tshiebwe had 28 in 34 games.
Morehead State’s Johni Broome, who entered the transfer portal after the season, had the fourth most double-doubles with 23.
Sahvir Wheeler had the third-highest assist average at 6.9. Kellan Grady had the 15th-best three-point shooting percentage at 41.7.
Committee of 101
The Committee of 101, a volunteer service organization that has been a fixture at UK sporting events since 1966, is looking for members.
“Like many organizations and businesses, the COVID pandemic has taken a toll on our membership numbers, too,” secretary of Committee of 101 Joel Vincent wrote in an email. “Although we normally accept new members annually, this year we are in particular need to replenish our roster.”
Members — the signature attire is a blue blazer — work as ushers, greeters, ticket scanners and security at UK events (football, men’s and women’s basketball, gymnastics), plus KHSAA high school football championships, camps and women’s clinics run by John Calipari and Mark Stoops, plus selected concerts at Rupp Arena, the Barbasol golf tournament and other events in the Lexington area.
Members must be 21 or older. Membership is voluntary. Members do not get paid.
Information about The Committee of 101 membership and how to apply is available by email at uk101membership@gmail.com.
Billy Reed
Hall of Fame journalist Billy Reed will be remembered on April 23 at the Kentucky Derby Museum (704 Central Avenue, Louisville).
A visitation will be held beginning at 5 p.m. There will be a remembrance service beginning at 6 p.m.
Reed died on Feb. 5 at age 78. He was a must-read columnist for the Courier Journal and later the Herald-Leader. His career also included writing for Sports Illustrated.
Happy birthday
To Kyle Macy. He turned 65 on Saturday. … To Nerlens Noel. He turns 28 on Sunday. … To former Transylvania coach Don Lane. He turns 79 on Tuesday. … To Isaiah Briscoe. He turns 26 on Wednesday. … To Derrick Jasper. He turns 34 on Wednesday.
This story was originally published April 9, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
