UMass honors John Calipari during homecoming ceremony
Most people associate John Calipari with his massive success at Memphis and Kentucky, but his first head coaching job in college basketball was at UMass from 1988-96.
Nearly 20 years after the 56-year-old left the college ranks for the NBA, the school honored him during Wednesday's game against New Orleans.
The Minutemen won 193 games under Calipari's leadership, including a 1996 run to the Final Four led by Naismith Player of the Year Marcus Camby. The NCAA later stripped UMass of the tournament wins due to Camby's improper benefits case but, as far as the program's concerned, those wins happened.
Unbelievable night. Ellen and I can't thank everyone enough for the memories. Tonight was the celebration of an era pic.twitter.com/2DEb3GlVRQ
— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) December 17, 2015
The home team also wore throwback jerseys featuring the cursive "U" from Calipari's time there.
Couldn’t pass up the opportunity to bring back the cursive “U” with @UKCoachCalipari in town! pic.twitter.com/xQSXLyBVGC
— UMass Basketball (@UMassBasketball) December 15, 2015
In the perfect ending to the night, the Minutemen escaped with a dramatic 103-95 overtime victory, improving to 6-4 this season.