1989–90 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

The 1989–90 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represented University of Kentucky in the 1989-90 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The head coach was Rick Pitino[2] and the team finished the season with an overall record of 14-14.[3] The team utilized a fast-paced offense predicated on taking many three-point shots; after the team hit 18 of 41 three-point attempts in a game against Tennessee Tech, Lexington Herald-Leader columnist John McGill dubbed them "Pitino's Bombinos", a nickname which stuck.[4]

1989–90 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
1989–90 record14-14 (10-8 SEC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaRupp Arena
1989-90 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
Georgia13–5 .722  20–9  .690
No. 23 Alabama †12–6 .667  26–9  .743
No. 19 LSU12–6 .667  23–9  .719
Tennessee10–8 .556  16–14  .533
Kentucky10–8 .556  14–14  .500
Ole Miss8–10 .444  13–17  .433
Auburn8–10 .444  13–18  .419
Mississippi State7–11 .389  16–14  .533
Vanderbilt7–11 .389  21–14  .600
Florida3–15 .167  7–21  .250
† 1990 SEC Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

Coming off the controversy of the Eddie Sutton scandal,[5] the NCAA banned the Kentucky Wildcats from television for one season. Pitino knew this and still took the challenge of making this team successful despite the many deficient parts of the program. Coming off an iffy season in the NBA with the Knicks, Pitino missed the college experience and felt that Kentucky would be the most interesting choice.[6] The 14-14 record was a direct reflection of this, but Pitino definitely bounced back over the next few years. Coming into the new season, not all of Kentucky's players were completely committed to playing due to the program being in shambles. Some players were reported to have skipped class or not put forth 100% effort into practices. Ironically, the students that did not compete were focusing more on their grades so they could graduate.[7] Despite Rick Pitino's intense coaching effort, the season included many difficult moments for the Wildcats, including a 150-95 loss to Kansas (which is thought to be the biggest blowout by a Kansas team ever).[8] Combining all of these obstacles, the Wildcats finished with an disappointing .500 record, though Pitino was named SEC Coach of the Year (for the first of three times) for guiding Kentucky to a 10-8 record in conference.

References
  1. sports-reference.com 1989-90 Southeastern Conference Season Summary
  2. "1989-1990 Kentucky Wildcats Roster and Stats". Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  3. "1989-1990 Kentucky Wildcats Schedule and Results". Retrieved 27 October 2013.
  4. Gregory, Eric (May 9, 1997). "Bravo, Pitino". Lexington Herald-Leader. p. C3.
  5. https://www.aseaofblue.com/2012/3/28/2889948/kentucky-wildcat-basketball-the-unforgettables-20-years-ago-today
  6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1989/12/08/pitinos-honeymoon-begins-at-kentucky/9664671d-1a22-4e90-9392-d54aa9ecdcab/
  7. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1989-09-03/sports/8901100284_1_kentucky-fans-rick-pitino-derrick-miller
  8. https://articles.latimes.com/1989-12-10/sports/sp-402_1_rick-pitino


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