Morehead State coach almost makes player cry
by Scott M Gleeson, USA TODAY Sports
Morehead State was on the verge of pulling off the biggest upset of the season on Wednesday night, leading Kentucky in the second half before the young Wildcats pulled away in the closing minutes.
The Eagles’ first-year coach, a former Kentucky player, was back in Lexington and could taste a colossal upset victory over his alma mater.
But as it all started to crumble for the mid-major school against John Calipari’s highly-touted freshmen squad, Woods lost his cool and took his frustration out on point guard Devon Atkinson, yelling furiously and appearing to shove the senior player.
An exchange between Woods and Atkinson was shown on television and Atkinson then appeared to be fighting back tears, leaving Fox Sports South announcers to pause awkwardly.
Woods now is facing disciplinary action for the incident. Athletic department spokesman Matt Segal told The Associated Press the situation is being discussed internally and that any disciplinary action would be announced on Friday. Calls by USA TODAY Sports to the school’s athletic department were not immediately returned.
Atkinson fouled out with 5:51 remaining in the game, and that’s when Woods unleashed on him. Woods told the Lexington Herald Leader after the game he was attempting to “calm him down and figure out a way to cheer your teammates on.”
Woods’ clearly has an in-your-face coaching style. In a Nov. 12 game against Maryland, Woods was seen yelling at junior center Chad Posthumus on the sideline.
And this isn’t the first time Woods was in the news at Morehead State, after envoking headlines when he criticized Kentucky players who didn’t know history of the 1992 “shot” by Christian Laettner.
H/T: The Dagger
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