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Kentucky

Mark Pope downplays concerns of SEC cannibalizing itself in league play

Barkley-Truaxby:Barkley Truax•about 23 hours•

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Dec 31, 2024; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope looks on during the second half against the Brown Bears at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
Dec 31, 2024; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope looks on during the second half against the Brown Bears at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Joe Lunardi projects 13 SEC teams as being in the NCAA Tournament if the season ended today. Almost every game each team plays is an opportunity to earn a Quad 1 win and bolster their status for what’s to come in March.

Nine teams in the SEC are ranked in the current AP Top 25 poll, and seven of them have two or more losses in conference play. One team that’s being impacted by the league’s strength is Kentucky (14-5, 3-3 SEC), who are under first-year head coach Mark Pope this season. After losing to unranked Vanderbilt on the road Saturday, Pope sounded off on whether or not the SEC is cannabalizing itself during conference play.

“No, I think it makes us better,” Pope said. “I would choose this league, the way it is this year, every single year. It can rip you to pieces, for sure. But our job is to keep finding a way to get better.

“I have a really good locker room of guys that are going to keep focusing on getting better. We’re not going to lose our confidence. We’re not going to question each other. We’re not going to doubt what we’re doing. We’re just going to use all these experiences to get better, and there’s really specific things that we talk about to our guys all the time.”

At 3-3 in conference action, Kentucky is in 10th place in the current SEC standings despite having a top-10 ranking next to their name. UK can expect that ranking to drop when Monday’s AP Poll drops, but the competitiveness of each game the Wildcats play speaks to the strength of the league as a whole.

Pope noted that the loss to Vanderbilt may have had his team may have realize how hard every night in the SEC can really be.

“Our guys actually experiencing it together as a team, today, for the first time, where they’re like, ‘Oh, those words actually mean something. And it’s really painful if we don’t actually do that,’” Pope said. “So it makes us a better team. I’m not worried about that at all. I think we’re really blessed to be facing this competition every game.”

Things won’t get any easier for the Wildcats moving forward. They’re set to travel to Knoxville for their next matchup for a meeting with rival Tennessee on Tuesday. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN.