NEW ORLEANS – All is quiet now in the Big Easy, but that won’t be the case starting Wednesday when New Orleans Arena officially opens for NCAA Tournament festivities.
The team touched down around 7 p.m. CT at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport after about a two-hour flight. We immediately boarded a bus for the team hotel, which is located downtown at the JW Marriott.
The Cats were supposed to practice upon arrival but head coach John Calipari decided to cancel it and give the players a night to themselves. Some of them won’t have this opportunity again (to be in a city like New Orleans for the NCAA Tournament), so Calipari wanted to give them a chance to take in the sights and sounds of the city.
Most of the players headed for the world famous Bourbon Street, but rest assured, Calipari made sure to remind them that this was a business trip only.
Speaking of Bourbon Street, I have yet to wander to the French Quarter but plan on doing so once or twice before the week is over. A late dinner, a long day of work and travel convinced me that I better get some rest while I can before this week’s festivities.
Not a lot of Wildcat fans out on the streets Tuesday night but it’s still a couple of days away from the start of the actual games. I expect Big Blue Nation to start filing in Wednesday, although there is still reportedly a good chunk of tickets left. We did happen to see a few Texas players walking the street, one of which I believe was Longhorn superstar Damion James.
As far as Thursday’s plans go, every team at the New Orleans pod is scheduled to have an open practice for the fans and media (I’ll post the schedule below). In between the practices, each team will have media availability, of which I’ll have a few posts from later Wednesday.
The practice that most of you are concerned with, of course, starts at 4:25 p.m. CT when the Cats take the court.
Before calling it a night, I just wanted to remark how loose the players seemed to be on the plane ride and bus trip to the hotel. Without getting into specifics, let me just say that the atmosphere has been completely transformed from last season.
I can remember sitting with the team on the trips to Florida last season and noticing how tense the mood felt. The coaching controversy, the struggles of the regular season and the uncertainty of the postseason was unbelievably taxing on last year’s squad. It looked as if the weight of the world was on the shoulders of the players.
That certainly isn’t the case with this year’s team. These guys are loose, confident and taking in the experience. They’re smiling, laughing and joking with one another.
Is the pressure still immense? Sure. But because of the season’s success, the atmosphere head coach John Calipari has created and the confidence this team has gained over the year, they seem to be at ease with themselves. This isn’t a team that’s feeling the pressure, which I think is certainly a good thing.
More than anything, this team has outstanding chemistry. From the players to the coaches to the trainers to the student mangers, everybody seems to truly like each other. I really believe, in a time where everybody will have to rely on one another, that’s extremely important.
I know it’s only a small window into what goes on behind the scenes, but I can personally tell you that it is night and day from what I witnessed last year.
We’ll see how it all transpires over the next few days and weeks. Again, I’ll be with you throughout the postseason to bring you the latest updates, features, videos and more. I’ll check back with everybody on Wednesday from the arena.
Wednesday practices (open to media and general public)Noon-12:40 p.m. Old Dominion (11)12:45-1:25 p.m. Sam Houston State (14)1:30-2:10 p.m. Notre Dame (6)2:15-2:55 p.m. Baylor (3)4:25-5:05 p.m. Kentucky (1)5:10-5:50 p.m. Texas (8)5:55-6:35 p.m. East Tennessee State (16)6:40-7:20 p.m. Wake Forest (9)
