John Calipari’s record vs. Kentucky: Wildcats have leg up on former coach

The game of the season in college basketball has almost arrived, as John Calipari is set to make his long-awaited return to Rupp Arena as he leads unranked Arkansas against No. 12 Kentucky on Saturday night. Ever Calipari beat the mob out of town last April — flipping to a conference rival, no less — this game has been circled on the calendars of every Wildcats fan, and even the coach himself seems to understand the resoundingly inhospitable reception he's bound to get.

But while this is definitely the most hotly anticipated game that Calipari has played against Kentucky, it's hardly the first time these two parties have crossed paths as opponents. Coach Cal's been around for a long time, after all, and before he was Kentucky's arch nemesis — even before he was Kentucky's savior — he and the school had a long history of marquee matchups. Who brings bragging rights into Saturday's game? Let's break it down.

John Calipari head-to-head record vs. Kentucky

Since starting his head-coaching career at Massachusetts in 1988, Calipari has faced off against Kentucky a total of six times — five while at UMass, and once during his nine-year run at Memphis. The Wildcats lead the all-time series, 5-1, and will hope to make it 6-1 on Saturday night.

The first two meetings between Kentucky and Coach Cal came during the 1991-92 season, Calipari's fourth at the helm at UMass — and the beginning of the Minutemen's unlikely (and controversial) ascent to national prominence.

The Wildcats rolled to a 21-point win at Rupp Arena in December, but Calipari's team would rally, closing the year on a 12-game winning streak to capture the A-10 Tournament title and punch just its second ticket to the Big Dance in school history. After wins over Fordham and Syracuse on the opening weekend of the NCAA Tournament, the Minutemen again rain into Kentucky, and while the rematch was much more competitive, 30 points from Jamal Mashburn were enough to move the Wildcats on to the Elite Eight.

That marked the start of an unlikely rivalry, as UMass and Kentucky would square off three times over the next three seasons — including a showdown in the 1996 Final Four. First, Rick Pitino led the No. 3 Wildcats to a 67-64 win over Calipari and the No. 11 Minutemen in a marquee non-conference showdown in February of 1994. Then, the teams faced each other twice in 1995-96, with UMass winning the season opener at the Palace of Auburn Hills and Kentucky exacting revenge on Marcus Camby and Co. with an 81-74 win in the national semifinals.

Calipari bolted for the New Jersey Nets just weeks later, but he'd be back in the college ranks soon enough, taking the Memphis job ahead of the 2000-01 season. A few years later, Cal had the Tigers among the nation's elite, setting up one more showdown against Kentucky at the 2006 Maui Invitational. This time, Calipari emerged victorious, notching just his second win over the Wildcats in an 80-63 blowout in Hawaii.

Three years later, Calipari made the move to Lexington, kicking off a 15-year stint at Kentucky that saw six SEC Tournament titles, six SEC regular-season titles, four Final Four appearances and, of course, a national championship in 2012. Of course, while