"He's in the Hall of Fame, I'm in the wall of shame": Bruce Pearl praises John Calipari after Arkansas nearly stuns Auburn in gritty loss
Top-ranked Auburn coach Bruce Pearl heaped praise on Arkansas coach John Calipari after the Razorbacks nearly pulled off a major upset against the Tigers on Wednesday night. Auburn eventually held on to win 67-60 at Neville Arena and Pearl was all praise for Calipari.
After the game, Pearl was asked what he felt about having "another" Hall of Fame coach at Calipari courtside. While Pearl praised Calipari, he was also self-critical:
"He's the only one in the Hall of Fame." Pearl said. "He's in the Hall of Fame. I'm on the Wall of Shame."
Calipari was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015. The veteran coach was enshrined only a few years after he coached Kentucky to the national title in 2012. Calipari also served as the head coach at UMass from 1988 to 1996, at the New Jersey Nets from 1996 to 1999, and at Memphis from 2000 to 2009.
Calipari was the coach for the Wildcats from 2009 to 2024, before taking up the job at Arkansas last year. As things stand, his Razorbacks team is 13th in the Southeastern Conference with a 15-11 record (4-9 SEC). It's unlikely that Calipari will lead Arkansas to the NCAA Tournament in his first year with the team.
While Pearl is not yet in the Hall of Fame, he could potentially be inducted soon if he wins the national title with Auburn this season.
Bruce Pearl's Auburn will look to finish regular season with a flourish before March Madness
Bruce Pearl's Auburn (24-2, 12-1 Southeastern Conference) will look to finish the regular season on a high in the coming weeks before heading into the NCAA Tournament.
The Tigers have games against Georgia, Ole Miss, Kentucky, Texas A&M and Alabama in their run before March Madness kicks in. Auburn is leading the SEC standings and can clinch the conference title with three more wins. It will be interesting to see if they can do it.