[sstack]

Correct me if I am wrong, but I do not recall anybody questioning these same players' effort or attitude when the opened the season with a win over Maryland, then lost to Duke by only 7, and later to Louisville by only 3 points. What changed? Were they lazy and unmotivated then?

If not, then nobody can deny that Calipari deserves the lion's share of the blame for the team's declining confidence and level of effort. These freshmen are not bad kids and I don't recall any of them getting into any mischief off court. Coach Cal put the team on cruise control this season and the results are what we saw tonight. The very least a coach can do is put a team on the court that hustles, win or lose.

I remember fans complaining all year long by lack of hustle and poor attitude. And I think the lack of hustle on the court is what bothers UK fans the most. We are used to seeing players put on the UK jersey and give it their all for the love of the team. As a sports nut, I love the athlete who gives it their all. And anybody who has been around sports has heard over and over, you can't coach hustle. I get so mad at my daughters soccer games when kids do not hustle,it seems so simple to me but the truth is some athletes are born with it and some are not. I really do not think you can coach it. And in Cal's defense (I can't believe I would ever defend Cal's coaching) he could not bench these players to motivate because he had no body on the bench who could play (his fault there is no bench players).