FINAL: Kentucky destroys KWC 123-52 in first exhibition of Mark Pope era

Kentucky looked a little bit different inside Rupp Arena on Wednesday night. A new head coach. A new staff. A new team. Even a new court. But what didn’t change was an exciting brand of basketball.

In the first preseason game of the Mark Pope era in Lexington, the No. 23-ranked Wildcats completely shut down Kentucky Wesleyan out of the Divison II ranks, winning in blowout fashion 123-52. It was the exact kind of performance fans wanted to see from this new-look Kentucky program. Pope promised a fun and exciting offense and that’s exactly what we saw: 21 made three-pointers (50 percent), 32 assists to five turnovers, and lots and lots of transition opportunities (39 fastbreak points).

Jaxson Robinson paced Kentucky with 19 points on 7-12 shooting (5-9 3PT) while Otega Oweh wasn’t far behind with 18 points on 7-9 shooting. Lamont Butler and Amari Williams both stuffed the stat sheet too. Butler with 11 points, six rebounds, six assists, and six steals while Williams added 12 points, six assists, and five rebounds of his own.

Ansley Almonor (15 points), Koby Brea (13), and Andrew Carr (10) all reached double-figures, as well. Trent Noah drilled all four of his triples down the stretch as he finished with 12 points. Kerr Kriisa did not play due to a hamstring injury.

The Wildcats’ defense might have surprised some folks too. KWC shot just 33 percent from the floor and went 4-26 from deep. The Panthers turned the ball over 18 times and looked thoroughly outmatched all night long. Having a couple of former Defensive Player of the Year winners on the roster will do that.

The game started slow with the score knotted at 4-4 before an Oweh triple kickstarted Kentucky’s fast-paced offense. The Wildcats claimed a double-digit lead not even six minutes into the action and stacked its lead all the way until halftime.

UK held a commanding 60-24 advantage at the break on 8-20 shooting from long range (despite starting the night 3-12 from deep). The ‘Cats registered 18 assists to just one turnover through the first 20 minutes of action. Robinson led the way in scoring with 13 points.

As you might have guessed, the second half was more of the same. Kentucky’s lead quickly ballooned to 40 points then to 50 then to 60 before settling on 71. Noah came in near the end and splashed in a quartet of three-pointers to put the icing on the cake.

Kentucky will wrap up preseason play next Tuesday when Minnesota State Mankato comes to Rupp Arena. The first regular season game is set for Monday, Nov. 4 at home against Wright State.