LEXINGTON — The work begins for real for Kentucky coach Mark Pope, who was hired from BYU and given the challenging task of following Hall of Famer John Calipari after his departure to Arkansas after 15 years. A captain on the Wildcats’ 1996 NCAA championship team, he is charged with maintaining the program’s lofty standards and expectations, which means winning a ninth national title. Kentucky hasn’t moved past the NCAA second round since 2019. Pope was 110-52 in five seasons at BYU and led the Cougars to a 23-11 finish and NCAA appearance last season.
Kentucky (23-10, 13-5 SEC)
Mark Pope was hired from BYU and given the challenging task of following Hall of Famer John Calipari after his stunning departure to Arkansas after 15 years. A captain on the Wildcats’ 1996 NCAA championship team, he is charged with maintaining the program’s lofty standards and expectations, which means winning a ninth national title. No. 23 Kentucky hasn’t moved past the NCAA second round since reaching the Elite Eight in 2019. Pope was 110-52 in five seasons at BYU and led the Cougars to a 23-11 finish and NCAA appearance last season. He has built his first roster with transfers totaling 586 starts, giving the Wildcats their most experienced squad ever.
Players to watch
Lamont Butler (graduate, G, 6-2, 9.3 ppg). The San Diego State transfer is expected to be a leader after starting 102 of 131 games for the Aztecs. He was a 1,000-point scorer and averaged a career high last season but also brings an impressive defensive resume’ to Lexington: he ranks fifth all-time at SDSU with 183 steals and 10th with 338 assists. Butler helped the Aztecs reach the NCAA championship game two years ago.
Jaxson Robinson (graduate, G, 6-6, 14.2 ppg). Robinson came off the bench at BYU but was the Cougars’ first reserve to lead the team in scoring. He has SEC experience after playing at Texas A&M and Arkansas before spending two seasons at BYU under Pope.
Amari Williams (graduate, C, 7-0, 12.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg). One of UK’s three players 6-10 and over. The Drexel transfer was the first player named Coastal Athletic Conference defensive player of the year for three consecutive seasons, recording 249 rebounds and 57 blocks last season alone.
Departures and arrivals
All of Kentucky’s scoring left along with Calipari, with guards Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham becoming NBA draft picks and leading scorer Antonio Reeves going in the second round. There’s plenty of offense coming in, led by former Fairleigh Dickinson forward Ansley Almonor (16.4 ppg) and several newcomers averaging in double digits. The Wildcats have also added height with 6-11 Andrew Carr (Wake Forest) and 6-10 Brandon Garrison (Oklahoma State) joining Williams.
Top games
All eyes will be on Rupp Arena on Feb. 1 when Calipari returns with the No. 16 Razorbacks. The season starts Nov. 4 against Wright State with marquee non-conference games against No. 7 Duke (No. 12, Atlanta), at Clemson (Dec. 3), No. 6 Gonzaga (Dec. 7, Seattle) and archrival Louisville on Dec. 14. The Wildcats open SEC play against No. 21 Florida on Jan. 4.
Facts and figures
Pope promises perimeter shooting, and BYU ranked third nationally with 11.1 made 3s per game last season. … Two of Kentucky’s three freshmen have Bluegrass roots. Guard Travis Perry is the state’s career scoring leader with 5,381 points, with fellow guard Trent Noah fifth all-time (3,707). … Junior guard Grant Darbyshire is the lone returning player.