Final Four 2012: Why John Calipari Will Lead Kentucky Back to Title Game

John Calipari is widely regarded as one of the best coaches and certainly the best recruiter in all of college basketball.

However, he has never captured an NCAA tournament title in his lengthy career that began back when he was the head coach of the UMass Minutemen in 1988.

This is the year he will finally get it done.

Calipari had some close calls through the years, including Final Four appearances in 1996, 2008 and 2011 and would have captured the 2008 championship if it weren’t for Mario Chalmers' miracle shot and Kansas’ subsequent overtime victory.

This year is different, and this Kentucky squad may be one of the most talented groups he has ever assembled. They play lockdown defense and can actually shoot free throws at a decent clip, things many Coach Cal teams have traditionally struggled with.

Anthony Davis is perhaps the best interior defender college basketball has seen in years, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist exerts more energy than anyone when trying to stop the ball and the rest of the supporting cast has no problem matching their leaders’ intensity.

Calipari should also have his boys motivated and ready to go in the Final Four since their opponent is the Louisville Cardinals, a hated in-state rival that they already vanquished during the regular season.

Kentucky’s coach will be pitted in an X’s and O’s battle against someone he is oft compared to, Rick Pitino.  

The difference between coach Cal and Pitino is that the latter has won a championship with UK while the former is still thirsting for one.

Expect it to be an extremely close bloodbath of a game, but Calipari has proven he is the better coach and has put together the better team. It will finally pay off this year.