Former BYU Coach Mark Pope Has Kentucky Rolling
Nov 13, 2024, 7:26 PM
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY - NOVEMBER 04: Head coach Mark Pope of the Kentucky Wildcats calls instructions during the second half against the Wright State Raiders at Rupp Arena on November 4, 2024 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
(Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah- Mark Pope, who coached the BYU Cougars from 2019-2024, took the job of a lifetime at the end of last season. Pope, who played for and won a National Championship with Kentucky from 1993-1996, left to coach the Wildcats after the surprising exit of legendary coach John Calipari. Mark was offered the job after leading BYU to a 23-11 record and a 5th-place finish in the Cougars’ first year in the Big 12. He also coached BYU to their second NCAA Tournament appearance during his tenure.
So far in his first year at the helm of the Kentucky Wildcats, Mark Pope has his squad undefeated through three games with a signature win on Tuesday night over Cooper Flagg and No. 6 Duke 77-72 in the State Farm Classic. The victory over the Blue Devils on Tuesdays was Kentucky’s first victory in the matchup since 2015, showing that Pope is not in over his head as some initially thought, but rather he is ready to beat the best teams that college basketball has to offer, even in his first year.
NO. 19 KENTUCKY TOPS NO. 9 DUKE 😼
The Wildcats take down the Blue Devils in a THRILLER👏 pic.twitter.com/kkJ2Gyahk7
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) November 13, 2024
The early season matchup between these two blue bloods was everything that we hoped it would be. The Wildcats and Blue Devils traded punches throughout the first half, tied at 19 when they hit the under 12-minute timeout. A series of Kentucky turnovers late in the half helped Duke to open up a nine-point lead that they would take into the break.
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Duke maintained that lead throughout the first ten minutes of the second half, but Kentucky hung around, giving themselves the opportunity to chip away at the deficit, finally tying the game at 67 with 3:57 remaining. There were several lead changes throughout the last four minutes of the game, but it was still all knotted up with less than 30 seconds remaining. Duke’s Cooper Flagg was trying to set up a last-second shot but had the ball stolen away by Otega Oweh, who was then fouled on his way to the bucket, making both free throws to give Kentucky the two-point lead with ten seconds left on the clock. Flagg turned the ball over for the second consecutive possession after the Blue Devils got the ball back, putting Kentucky back at the line to build on their lead. The Wildcats would go on to win 77-72.
Despite his individual meltdown to end the game, Cooper Flagg led all scorers with 26 points. Otega Oweh had the most balanced stat line for Kentucky with 15 points, six rebounds, and three assists. The Wildcats also went ten deep, playing five guys off the bench. Brandon Garrison and Koby Brea both provided sparks with eight points a piece.
“I like our group,” Coach Pope said in his post-game press conference about the culture of his newly-constructed team, “Nobody knew each other and they’ve been very intentional about getting to know each other, and three or four weeks into the summer I had guys doing incredibly gracious, generous acts of kindness for their teammates… I think that wins, these guys have been so intentional about working to love each other.”
Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats will look to continue their undefeated start against Lipscomb on November 19.
