Good morning, folks! We’re in for a busy day in the world of Kentucky basketball. First, we’ll hear from men’s head coach Mark Pope this afternoon as he prepares for Saturday’s highly-anticipated showdown against John Calipari‘s Arkansas Razorbacks.

Initially, many Kentucky fans weren’t sold on Pope, whose BYU team made an early exit from the NCAA Tournament last March. He didn’t have the sexy resume, wasn’t drenched in

While still building UK basketball's 2025 recruiting class, Mark Pope and his staff have kept tabs on 2026. These 10 players have offers from Kentucky

Kentucky's Mark Pope started his coaching career at Rupp Arena with 11 straight wins. How does that start compare to other first-year UK coaches?

Unlike Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr was unable to take the floor against the Commodores on Saturday afternoon. A back injury prevented the fifth year senior from practicing for multiple weeks, and on Saturday, Pope made the decision to keep him out for the game.

Contrast that success with Calipari’s first Arkansas team, which needed six tries to notch its first SEC win of the year, and Kentucky fans figure to have plenty of ammunition Saturday. The Razorbacks are just 12-8 overall, and their 1-6 start to SEC play has them looking like a long shot for an NCAA Tournament berth.

Mark Pope and the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats have been dealt another blow ahead of their game against No. 8 Tennessee tonight, with Lamont Butler ruled out due to a shoulder injury.

Five things you need to know from No. 12 Kentucky’s gut-check 78-73 win at No. 8 Tennessee in SEC men’s basketball: 1. Mark Pope, slayer of rivals. There is a school of thought that one of a college head coach’s primary jobs is beating the teams his/her fan base dislike the most.

Checking in from Cal to Welch Mark Pope won his first 11 home games ... a group that includes Kentucky. The other 10: Louisville, Alabama, Arkansas, BYU, Duke, Georgetown, Kansas State, Notre ...

Brown: Kentucky basketball's Lamont Butler embodies toughness Mark Pope wants to play with But ... The other 10: Louisville, Alabama, Arkansas, BYU, Duke, Georgetown, Kansas State, Notre Dame ...

Pope took over after John Calipari left for Arkansas in a stunning turn of events. However, Pope wasted no time winning over the fanbase, especially since he is a former Kencutky basketball player. Moreover, moves such as this one only helped Pope's case more, and fans were excited to see the fan interaction with the Wildcats coach.

The No. 8 Vols will host the No. 12 Wildcats on Tuesday, but this matchup is different from years past. For the first time in 15 years, John Calipari will