When Mark Pope became the Kentucky Basketball Head Coach many fans questioned the hire, questioning whether he could succeed in recruiting and compete in the ultra-competitive SEC. Since then, Pope has won over the fan base, becoming one of the most beloved coaches across the sport. Most of the fandom stemmed from his inspiring opening press conference and Kentucky’s unexpected success in the 2024-2025 season.
The Kentucky Wildcats entered the season as the 23rd-ranked team in college basketball, which is considerably lower than the average Kentucky squad from recent years. Despite the doubt, Kentucky had an amazing 11-2 start to the season with big wins over 6th-ranked Duke, and 7th-ranked Gonzaga that helped the Wildcats reach the number 4 ranking in the AP poll.
Kentucky has continued its success in a very competitive SEC. The SEC has an absurd number of 10 teams ranked in the AP Top 25, making this year’s SEC probably the best year for a conference of all time. Pope has led Kentucky to a 4-3 record to start conference play with notable wins at #8 Tennessee and #14 Mississippi State on the road, and against #6 Florida and #11 Texas A&M at home. Pope and the Wildcats are 6-1 against teams ranked in the AP Top 25. Incredibly, this is better than the entire ACC conference, who only have 5 combined wins against ranked competition.
Kentucky is currently ranked the 12th best team in college basketball, with a 15-4 record, although with the recent victory over #8 Tennessee, they will likely climb in next week’s rankings. They are projected to make March Madness as a 2 or 3 seed. After the hot start, Kentucky has high hopes, and it will be interesting to see how Pope and the Wildcats Perform in the rest of the SEC play.
Kentucky has a huge matchup against former coach John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday, February 1st for which many fans have been waiting. Other notable upcoming matchups include a rematch against #4 Alabama on February 22nd, and a game against the consensus best team in college basketball, Auburn, on March 1st. If Kentucky can get some key wins, and survive the rest of SEC play, they will be in prime position going into March Madness.
