Author: successsport360
For a brief stretch early in the second half Wednesday night, Kentucky basketball finally looked like the team Mark Pope has been trying to build. Otega Oweh grabbed a defensive rebound and immediately pushed the pace. The ball zipped from Oweh to Denzel Aberdeen, then to Kam Williams, then to Jaland Lowe — and back to Oweh on the opposite wing in just a few seconds. Missouri’s defense was scrambling. Rupp Arena was buzzing. This was the offense Kentucky fans had been promised. Then reality hit. Oweh’s jumper was blocked before it ever had a chance. Kentucky recovered but settled…
It’s about time. Mark Pope spent the offseason painting an optimistic picture of his first Kentucky roster, even likening it to a “Ferrari.” But from the beginning, Big Blue Nation saw the glaring flaw: a lack of proven perimeter shooting. Outside of Kam Williams — who shot 40 percent from three last season at Tulane — there were real questions. Those concerns have only grown louder. Williams is shooting just 24 percent from deep this year, with the lone outlier being an 8-for-10 outburst against Bellarmine. As a team, Kentucky is hitting only 33 percent from three-point range, a number…
The Kentucky Wildcats have had a rollercoaster season so far. From painful losses to missed opportunities, and even some truly bad games, fans have every reason to be frustrated. Yet, despite all the setbacks, many in Big Blue Nation aren’t ready to give up on head coach Mark Pope. Why? Because there’s a belief that Pope still has the tools, the strategy, and the vision to turn this team around. Fans point to the need for smart adjustments — both in the starting lineups and in overall roster construction. Some even suggest that bringing in a general manager could be…
When Jaland Lowe is on the floor, good things tend to follow — and the numbers back it up. Unfortunately for Kentucky, those moments haven’t come often enough this season. Lowe has scored in double figures in each of his last three games when playing at least 15 minutes, with his best performance coming in Saturday’s loss at Alabama. In Tuscaloosa, he poured in 21 points while adding three rebounds, two assists, and two steals in 27 minutes. On a night filled with frustration for the Wildcats, Lowe stood out as one of the few bright spots. Once again, though,…
Two months into the season, Kentucky coach Mark Pope and his Wildcats are facing a defining moment as the calendar turns to January. With Southeastern Conference play underway, Pope believes the issues holding his team back are clear. The lingering question is whether Kentucky can correct them quickly enough. That reality came into focus Monday during an extended film session following Kentucky’s 89–74 loss to Alabama in last Saturday’s SEC opener. What began as a routine review evolved into an honest, wide-ranging team discussion as Pope and his players worked to reach a shared understanding of the team’s shortcomings ahead…
Kentucky’s loss at Alabama was ugly on the scoreboard, but one tense moment late in the first half revealed something deeper about a Wildcats team still searching for its identity. With fewer than five minutes remaining before halftime and Kentucky trailing 36-21, the Wildcats’ offense completely stalled. Jaland Lowe dribbled near midcourt as the possession dragged on. Mouhamed Dioubate and Otega Oweh tried to set screens — none of them effective. Dioubate called for the ball. Lowe kept dribbling. Dioubate attempted to establish position inside against Latrell Wrightsell and later Houston Mallette — both former Alabama teammates — where he…
The Kentucky Wildcats looked disconnected from the opening minutes of their 15-point loss to Alabama, and head coach Mark Pope says the frustration within the team boiled over long before halftime. Saturday’s game followed a troubling pattern that has surfaced multiple times during Pope’s tenure. Kentucky fell behind early, and by the eight-minute mark of the first half, the Wildcats were already staring at a double-digit deficit. The hole only deepened from there, as Alabama stretched the lead to as many as 21 points before Kentucky limped into the locker room down 16. But it wasn’t just the scoreboard that…
Two months into the season, Kentucky basketball is still searching for consistency, and head coach Mark Pope isn’t hiding from it. After Saturday’s 89–74 loss to Alabama in the SEC opener, Pope took an unconventional but deliberate approach to address what’s holding the Wildcats back. Instead of pointing fingers or changing rotations on a whim, Pope brought the team together for an intense, honest film session designed to strip away outside noise and force accountability. His message was simple but revealing: communication breaks down when people assume they’ve already said enough. “The biggest failure in communication is assuming you’ve done…
Two months into the season, Kentucky coach Mark Pope and his Wildcats are still navigating growing pains. Monday offered a crucial moment for reflection as the team worked to reset after Saturday’s 89-74 SEC opener loss to Alabama. During a film session, Pope led an honest and intense discussion about communication and expectations. “The biggest failure in communication is assuming you’ve done it,” he said. “Everybody is telling themselves a story. This session was about reaching a point of truth and a shared understanding of our shortcomings and pitfalls. Pope emphasized that these talks help players filter out the constant…
Things aren’t looking great for Mark Pope and Kentucky basketball. The Wildcats sit at 9-5 overall and just 1-5 against ranked opponents. Their only quality win? St. John’s, which is no longer ranked. Even worse, several losses have been blowouts, with Kentucky falling behind by 20 or more against Louisville, Michigan State, Gonzaga, and Alabama. Now, statistician EvanMiya is projecting a shocking outcome: a 16-15 finish with a 7-11 SEC record. That would leave Kentucky on the bubble for the NIT — a scenario no Big Blue Nation fan wants to imagine. Mark Pope entered the season calling this roster…