Western Pennsylvania ties will be on display in Kentucky game at PPG Paints Arena
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Several Pittsburgh ties will be on display tonight when Kentucky takes the floor for the opening round of the NCAA tournament at PPG Paints Arena.
Head coach John Calipari attended Moon Area High School and attended Clarion and heading into tonight's game, both schools will be pulling for him and the Wildcats.
Calipari graduated from Moon Area in 1978 and had made several visits to his alma mater, where the superintendent says that the coach's rise to fame and success can be an inspiration for students and staff alike.
In addition to Calipari, who isn't shy about his Pittsburgh roots, two players from the team he'll be coaching tonight also hail from Western Pennsylvania.
6'8" sophomore guard Adou Thiero is a Quaker Valley graduate who averages 22 minutes of playing time per game and 7.5 points per game.
During his time at Quaker Valley, the Leetsdale native helped lead his team to the PIAA State Championship game and scored more than 1,600 points in his high school career.
The local ties don't stop with Calipari and Thiero, however, as graduate student Tre Mitchell is another big contributor for the Wildcats.
Mitchell, a 6'9" forward, attended Elizabeth Forward High School in the Mon Valley for his freshman and sophomore years before transferring to a prep school in Connecticut.
Mitchell started his collegiate career at the University of Massachusetts with transfer stops at Texas and WVU before landing at Kentucky, where he is averaging 30 minutes per and nearly 11 points and 7 rebounds per game.
Kentucky will be taking the court this evening for the third of an all-day slate of games at PPG Paints Arena.
Today's game schedule in Pittsburgh
1:30 p.m. - Creighton (#3) vs. Akron (#14)
4:00 p.m. - South Carolina (#6) vs. Oregon (#11)
7:10 p.m. - Kentucky (#3) vs. Oakland (#14)
9:40 p.m. - Texas Tech (#6) vs. North Carolina State (#11)
