NCAAB News: Mark Pope, Kentucky get huge boost with new center

After a first season with the Kentucky Wildcats men’s basketball team that ended with a Sweet 16 elimination at the hands of the Tennessee Volunteers, Mark Pope has gotten major news ahead of the 2025-26 campaign, his second in front of the Wildcats. 

7-foot-1 center from the Miami Redhawks, Reece Potter, has reportedly committed to Kentucky. Before joining the Redhawks, Potter played high school basketball at Lexington Catholic, averaging 17.9 points and 8.7 rebounds in his senior season. 

His numbers decreased once he made it to Miami, as he put up 6.5 points and 3.7 rebounds in 17 minutes per game. Going to an iconic program such as Kentucky and playing for a coach like Mark Pope should help Potter develop his game. 

Kentucky gets a big boost in the paint

Reece Potter becomes the sixth player the Wildcats have added to their roster this offseason after Kam Williams joined from Tulane, Jalan Lowe from Pittsburgh, Denzel Aberdeen from Florida, Mouhamad Dioubate from Alabama and Jayden Quaintance from Arizona State.

Pope announced last week on a podcast with Jon Rothstein that the Wildcats were actively trying to add new players to the roster, although the 12 players on the sheet will play the majority of minutes.

Kentucky wants to add more talent

“I’m actually scouring the planet right now for guys that would fit in, as maybe a red-shirt guy that would kill it in practice,” Pope said. “Maybe a last year of your career guy that wants to come here and put on this one of one jersey and be a part of this.”

The Kentucky Wildcats are coming off a solid season with Mark Pope on the sidelines. They finished the regular season with a 21-10 record before beating the Oklahoma Sooners in the second round of the SEC Tournament, but were unable to move past the Alabama Crimson Tide, who dominated them with a 99-70 win in the quarterfinals. 

They went on to play in the national tournament, beating Troy in the first round and Illinois in the second before the Volunteers stopped them in the Sweet 16.