From spectator to star, Koby Brea is making himself at home at Rupp Arena

Koby Brea was one of the stars of Kentucky’s 108-59 win over Jackson State, scoring a team-high and career-high 22 points, 18 in the second half. Brea hit five of eight threes, taking his season total from beyond the arc to 20-27, a scorching 74.1%. He was so hot at one point that after another three dropped through the net, he whipped around and started talking trash to Mark Pope, his own coach.

Brea is quickly making himself at home in Rupp, a building he visited for the first time eight months ago. In March 2024, Brea, then a star at Dayton, came to Rupp Arena for Drake’s concert (where Rob Dillingham took the stage). As Mark Pope told listeners on his postgame radio show, Brea was more starstruck by the venue than the performer on stage.

“Koby was here in Rupp a year ago. He was starring at Dayton as one of the most efficient offensive players in the country, and he came here for a Drake concert. And he came with his [girlfriend] Juliana and Koby walked in the gym, and he was just like, ‘Man, this is Kentucky,’ and Juliana was like, ‘Man, are you more excited about Drake or Rupp?’ He’s like, ‘Well, I’m more excited about Rupp.’ And now he’s wearing this uniform representing you all, and it’s actually beautiful.”

Brea hit five of Kentucky’s 17 threes tonight, a season-high. The Cats have made at least 10 three-pointers in all five games thus far, a first in program history and the most in consecutive games since 2016.

Pope: “I think every guy that we recruit is desperately dreaming of hanging a banner”

Brea continues to lead the nation in three-point percentage, as he did a season ago. The difference is that now, he’s wearing Kentucky Blue, a dream come true for every player on this entirely new roster. That hunger and unbelievable turn of events is what Pope says makes this group unique.

“I think Kentucky attracts really good people,” Pope said in his postgame press conference. “It’s the one place in all college basketball where you are representing just a fanbase in a different, unique way, right? And to want that, it’s almost like its own filter, right? To really want that.”

“I think that’s what Kentucky draws, right? Everybody knows that we talk about the name on the front of the jersey. Our guys know that. They know that when we recruit them, so in general, I think every guy that we recruit is desperately dreaming of hanging a banner and going to play in the NBA but they believe the pathway to do that is not actually making this exclusively about themselves.”

As Pope would say, it’s actually beautiful.