Mark Pope’s first night as the Kentucky Wildcats’ head coach brought an electrifying mix of nostalgia and renewed hope for the team’s future. Leading the Wildcats to a dominant victory, Pope demonstrated his connection to Kentucky’s storied basketball tradition. His focus on a high-energy style, marked by hustle and teamwork, stirred memories of Kentucky’s celebrated past and highlighted his ambition to restore the program’s prominence. Fans at Rupp Arena responded enthusiastically, sensing that Pope’s leadership might indeed bring back some “Kentucky magic” to the Wildcats this season.
There were only a couple of minutes left on the countdown clock when the 52-year-old bounced through the tunnel — high-fiving a few UK students on his way to the court — and hit the floor to a loud cheer from the crowd.
Yahoo Sports
Yahoo Sports
Search query
Sign in
Register & Receive NGN500,000 Immediately
Ad
MSport
NFL midseason grades & more
NFL playoff picture & more
NFL trade deadline results
First CFP expanded rankings
Embiid suspended 3 games
Lexington Herald-Leader
Mark Pope summons ‘Kentucky magic’ in his first night as head coach of the Wildcats
ben roberts
Tue, Nov 5, 2024, 5:46 AM GMT+1·9 min read
1
From the opening introduction to the final score to a special moment after it was all over, the first night of the Mark Pope era couldn’t have gone much better for the new leader of Kentucky basketball.
Pope’s Wildcats defeated Wright State 103-62 in front of an announced crowd of 19,635 in Rupp Arena, the building packed to the rafters and ready to go for the official start to this new chapter in the storied program’s history.
For Pope, the captain-turned-coach of his beloved Cats, it was a storybook start.
There were only a couple of minutes left on the countdown clock when the 52-year-old bounced through the tunnel — high-fiving a few UK students on his way to the court — and hit the floor to a loud cheer from the crowd.
Not long after that — to cap the pregame introductions — Pope’s name was announced over the PA to an even louder pop, fireworks blasting off in the upper levels of the building to mark the occasion.
The aftermath left a thin fog of smoke in the Rupp rafters. Before it had cleared, the Cats were already en route to a rout.
Pope, who ran one of the best offenses in the country last season at BYU, promised more of the same right off the bat at Kentucky, and his guys delivered in the opening minutes.
Example one of his innovative offensive approach: Starting center Amari Williams hit 6-11 forward Andrew Carr with an alley-oop for the first points of the Pope era — a basket that came less than 10 seconds into the game.
Less than two minutes later, Williams — a 7-foot, 262-pounder who missed nearly all of UK’s final exhibition game with a knee injury — grabbed a defensive rebound and sprinted the other way with the ball, leading a fast break that ended with him dishing it to Otega Oweh for a dunk.
And right after that, Jaxson Robinson nailed a 3-pointer to give Kentucky a 13-5 lead. Barely three minutes had ticked off the game clock, and all five UK starters had already scored a bucket. Before the first TV timeout, the Cats took their first double-digit lead.
It was basically a nightlong celebration from
