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Rick Pitino won 109 games at Rupp Arena when he coached Kentucky, but none were bigger than the one he got there on Saturday.
He guided No. 20 Louisville to a 65-56 upset of the second-ranked Wildcats on the same floor where he rebuilt Kentucky to national prominence from 1989-97.
``My best win ever,''
Pitino said simply.
As the final seconds ticked away and the boisterous capacity crowd finally quieted,
Pitino walked to midcourt and embraced Kentucky coach Tubby Smith, his former
assistant and the man who succeeded him in Lexington.
Pitino, who still wears the NCAA championship ring he won with Kentucky in 1996, kept his head down as he walked off the floor to the locker room -- through the home team's tunnel.
``We had that special moment that happens once in your lifetime,'' he said.
Pitino guided the Wildcats to three Final Fours. He said Saturday's win equalled those accomplishments.
``Winning a championship or going to a Final Four is much more significant and important,'' he said. ``But what this team had to overcome in terms of the amount of respect we have for Kentucky is the best moment I've had with a basketball team.''
Before the game, Pitino, wearing a black suit and a red tie decorated with tiny horses, joined Smith in the tunnel under the stands.
Pitino urged Smith, still one of his closest friends, to take the floor before him. Smith did, to wild cheers from the capacity crowd.
He followed Smith seconds later -- surrounded by a police escort. He smiled broadly and shook hands with a few blue-clad fans before reaching Louisville's bench.
The rest of the Kentucky faithful peppered him with boos -- but the noise didn't reach the level it did two years ago when Pitino was in his first season as the Cardinals' coach.
``I expect to be booed because I'm the visitor,'' Pitino said. ``When people boo you, it's a compliment.''
Two years ago, Pitino's face was drawn and frowning as fans were relentless in their deafening barrage of vicious insults.
He came out the home team's entrance that day, too.
The Wildcats won the 2001 meeting 82-62. By game's end, the crowd was chanting ``TUB-BEE, TUB-BEE!!'' saluting Smith.
Kentucky officials have since added a student cheering section behind one basket at Rupp Arena. The students were ready to pounce on Pitino again Saturday with jeers and a creative assortment of hand-made signs.
One read, ``University of Leftovers.'' Another had a picture of Pitino with a phone number at the bottom: ``Will coach for cash. 1-800-SELL-OUT.''
The game was broadcast by CBS Sports and another sign read, ``Celtics Believed in Santa, too,'' referring to Pitino's failed stint with the NBA's Boston Celtics from 1997-2001.
Pitino threw off the students by sneaking onto the floor from the opposite end. When the cameramen swarmed around him, Pitino emphatically waved his arms with a broad smile and told them, ``Get out of here!''
Pitino got another loud round of boos when he was introduced before the game.
``I loved this place for eight years and I got treated like royalty,'' said Pitino, now in his 18th season as a head coach. ``Now, I'm not supposed to be treated like royalty.''
The Cardinals seemed more rattled than their coach at the start of the game, falling behind 24-10 in the first 10 minutes.
Pitino settled them down without saying a word.
``Coach is so strong mentally. You never saw the look of fear in his eyes,'' sophomore guard Taquan Dean said.
Louisville's defense took control after that, holding Kentucky to 12 field goals the rest of the way.
The Cardinals waved towels and yelled as they followed their stoic coach into the locker room after the game.
``He said it was a great victory, the greatest victory he's had as a coach,'' Dean said.
Pitino improved to 15-1 against former assistants who have become head coaches. Smith is still the only one to beat him.
``This is a special, special moment,'' Pitino said.