Losing John Calipari was considered to be a big blow to the Kentucky Wildcats. However, even if theyâre not the team to beat anymore, theyâre still doing better than Arkansas.
More than that, Mark Pope deserves a lot of credit for what heâs done. He built a team entirely off of the transfer portal, and while they might not be as talented as other teams, theyâve still fared well.
When asked about that, Coach Pope raved about his players and how much theyâre eager to get better, ask questions, and constantly pursue improvement and growth.
Mark Pope lauds Kentuckyâs playersâ determination to learn
âYou know youâre really blessed as a coach when you have great students. What I mean by that is our guys want to learn. When we point our guys in a direction, our guys go. Like, itâs unbelievable. That sounds so simple, but it actually doesnât happen in basketball with very many teams,â Pope.
Mark Pope the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats
The coach raved about his playersâ focus. He believes that has been the key behind their development and continuous improvement throughout the course of the season:
âWhen our guys dig in and focus, it might not be an immediate payoff in a day, but over the course of a week or two weeks or a month, these guys â every single time, theyâve kind of answered the bell, and actually got better,â he continued.
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All in all, the Wildcats couldâve still done a little better. They went 1-1 vs. Georgia and Mississippi State last week, which is why they fell in the AP rankings from No. 6 to No. 8.
