John Calipari to face Grizzlies one more time in 2024 as Arkansas host Oakland in non-conference play

John Calipari is set to face the Oakland Grizzlies once again in 2024 as the Arkansas Razorbacks host the Grizzlies in a non-conference game in December. Arkansas and Oakland previously met twice on the hardwood, with the most recent encounter taking place in November 2011, where the Hogs defeated the Grizzlies 91-68.

In a memorable turn of events, coach Greg Kampe's Oakland achieved an 80-76 victory over Kentucky in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. This resulted in the end of Calipari's tenure as head coach, encompassing 532 games and his fourth consecutive season without reaching the Sweet 16.

Coach Calipari will have the opportunity to face the Grizzlies once more. The game is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 30, at Bud Walton Arena, according to a tweet from college hoops analyst Rocco Miller.

The game will see Coach Calipari face off against Coach Kampe for the second time in less than 10 months.

According to a report from WXYZ 7 News Detroit, this week, Kampe and Calipari were jokingly discussing playing against each other. Kampe said that playing against a friend is bittersweet.

"They don't want me to get beat, and I don't want them to get beat. I just want to play against someone I don't know," Kampe said.

Calipari shared during the annual SEC meetings in Florida last week that Arkansas' 2024-25 non-conference schedule was nearly finalized. The matchup with Oakland marks the second non-conference game reported for the 2024-25 season. Additionally, the Razorbacks are reportedly scheduled to face Michigan in the Jimmy V. Classic on Dec. 10 at Madison Square Garden.

John Calipari’s Arkansas in top 25 early rankings

Former Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari yells to the team.

According to CBS, John Calipari's Arkansas landed a spot in the way-too-early top 25 rankings. The ranking is due to Calipari's Razorbacks not retaining any players from last season's 16-17 team under Eric Musselman.

Despite still being in the building phase, Arkansas has made significant progress, securing commitments from transfer players Johnell Davis (FAU), DJ Wagner (Kentucky), Jonas Aidoo (Tennessee), Adou Thiero (Kentucky) and Zvonimir Ivisic (Kentucky), as well as promising freshmen Boogie Fland, Karter Knox and Billy Richmond.

During the SEC meetings, Calipari said:

"We're not going to take six or seven freshmen now."

He emphasized a balanced approach by aiming for three or four freshmen while also retaining some players and adding a couple of transfers.

Reflecting on his time at Kentucky, Calipari said:

"The lesson at Kentucky was, you can’t do this now with seven freshmen. You just can't. You're going to hit a team that's 25 years old on average, one was 26, and that team is physically going to get you."

Coach Calipari's strategic blend of seasoned transfers and talented freshmen aims to elevate Arkansas from a rebuilding team to a competitive force.