Cal: Beating Morehead not life or death

With his era about to officially begin, John Calipari uttered a most un-Kentucky-like thought: Kentucky does not have to win against Morehead State in Friday night’s season opener.
“I don’t want these kids feeling they have to win,” Calipari told reporters on Thursday. “No.
“You’ve got to prepare to win and let it go.”
For a program that once saw the home team booed in what became a 29-point conference victory, Calipari sounded like a revolutionary. Winning not being the top priority — the only priority? — surely was not the kind of change UK fans envisioned when Calipari recruited the No. 1 recruiting class and persuaded All-American candidate Patrick Patterson to return for another season.
Yet, Calipari insisted that beating Morehead State is hardly a must.
“I understand what the expectations are,” he said. “The expectations are not to win in November. They’re not. You could lose the first five (games) and win the national title. They’ll forget about it.”
Or UK fans could harp on a chink in Calipari armor: He can’t win the little ones.
The new Kentucky coach laughed at the suggestion, and stuck to his big-picture view.
“I’m not trying to soft-sell this,” Calipari said. “What I do is tell the truth. . . . This is about us learning.
“What an opportunity in this game. (Morehead State) may rain on our parade. If they want it worse than we do, they may. We’ll see what we’re made of. On Nov. 13.”