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John Calipari booed in return to Kentucky, but gets last laugh as Arkansas pulls off upset

Last April, John Calipari decided to "step away" from the University of Kentucky after 15 seasons; a day later, he joined the University of Arkansas.

Well, Calipari returned to Kentucky on Saturday night, and despite a championship in 2012 and a .771 winning percentage there, boos still managed to be loud as he returned.

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Well, Calipari got the last laugh, as his Razorbacks took home an 89-79 upset victory over the 12th-ranked team in the country.

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Calipari admitted that it took some getting used to.

"It’s hard to win in here. And I’ve got to be honest with you, I looked up a couple of times and I thought we were losing because I kept looking at Kentucky instead of Arkansas," Calipari said. "I made it clear it was a privilege and an honor to coach here. We had 15 unbelievable years of a great run and support."

With Kentucky, Calipari made the NCAA Tournament all but two seasons. Last year's team was knocked out in the first round as a No. 3 seed against Jack Gohlke and No. 14 Oakland. In 2022, the Wildcats were upset by No. 15 St. Peter's, and they lost in the Round of 32 in 2023.

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Calipari went 410-122 (.771) with the Wildcats – this year's Arkansas team is now 13-8 but 2-6 in conference.

The Hall of Fame coach is the winningest active coach in men’s college basketball and has an 867-271 mark during his stops at Massachusetts, Memphis, Kentucky and now Arkansas. He was 248-26 at Rupp Arena and led the Wildcats to a 93-77 win over Vanderbilt in his last home game at Kentucky last March 6.

It wasn't just a return for Calipari. Adou Thiero, D.J. Wagner, and Zvonimir Ivisic combined to score 42 points against their former team in Lexington en route to the win.

With Arkansas leading 46-45 at the half, Thiero and Wagner combined for a 12-2 run and a 58-47 lead to start the second half. Thiero opened with a dunk and ended the run with a three, and the Razorbacks never looked back.

Fox News' Paulina Dedaj and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Arkansas lineman accused of purposefully hurting Texas Tech player breaks silence after ridicule

Arkansas Razorbacks offensive lineman Fernando Carmona was ridiculed after video caught him stepping on the ankle of a Texas Tech player during the Liberty Bowl over the weekend. 

Carmona broke his silence on the matter, apologizing for what transpired. 

"I’d like to apologize for my actions last Friday night in the Liberty Bowl," Carmona posted on X. "I let me emotions get away from me. I have nothing but respect for Texas Tech and the game of football. I apologize to my team and coaches. I’m not that kind of player and will learn from this."

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Many took exception to Carmona stepping on C.J. Baskerville’s ankle, and the thought it was done intentionally was put out there. Some even said they wanted him "banned forever" from the game. 

Carmona’s actions led to immediate pain for Baskerville. Meanwhile, Carmona tried to play it off like he was helping a teammate off the turf. 

Baskerville accused Carmona of committing a "dirty" play. 

"There’s no denying that Arkansas played a great game last night, I am not taking that away from them. But #55 Fernando Carmona blatantly stepping on my ankle and pressing down on it on purpose is straight up dirty," Baskerville wrote on X on Saturday. 

"Proceeds to say "got your b**** a***." Do better."

This incident occurred during the fourth quarter of the Razorbacks’ 39-26 win over the Red Raiders to win the bowl game. 

Baskerville was Texas Tech’s leading tackler in the game, too, with 10 total as well as one pass deflection. He had 52 total tackles with four interceptions in his senior season. 

Carmona is a junior who spent the 2023-24 season with the San Jose State Spartans before transferring to Arkansas. 

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