WATCH: Mark Pope, Kentucky players preview Sweet 16 matchup vs. Tennessee

Mark Pope and Kentucky’s starters took the podium in Indianapolis ahead of tomorrow’s Sweet 16 matchup, and, as you might expect, the fact that the Cats are playing Tennessee for a third time was a popular topic. Mark Pope said that while his players may have confidence coming into the matchup after beating the Vols twice already, past results ultimately don’t matter.

“If we really parse details, there’s certainly, maybe the emotional advantage of winning two that you feel like you know you can. There’s the strategic side of coming to know to consider you might have a better idea of, if you’re going to make changes, a better idea of how and why.

“But I think that’s like the .1 percent. I think mostly this is a free-standing game. This is a great Tennessee team. It’s one of the top teams in the country. It’s the best defensive team in the country. They have one of the best offensive teams in the country.”

The players echoed Pope’s comments and praise for the Vols. The six covered a wide range of topics during their time at the podium, with Pope fielding questions on the Kentucky vs. Indiana rivalry, his time with the Pacers, how the group is staying loose, and the adversity the team has faced this season due to injuries. The players talked about the impact playing in a football stadium has on shooting, their close bond, and whether or not anyone can stop Otega Oweh. See it all below or keep scrolling for a transcript.

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Mark Pope Transcript

MARK POPE: In a random twist of fate, I can’t believe I get to sit up here with Bill Benner. Bill and I don’t know each other well, but David Benner, his brother, who was one of my favorite people in the world, he passed away, but he was the information director here with the Indiana Pacers for a long time. One of the great human beings on the planet. I love him. So we miss him. I’m happy to be here with you.

We’re clearly excited to be here, competing in this incredible venue in this beautiful city in the NCAA Tournament. We’re excited about moving forward.

Q. You referenced your time with the Pacers. What do you remember about Indianapolis? And what did you take from playing for Larry Bird?

MARK POPE: Come on, I’m the most blessed human being in the world that I got to be here on those great Indiana Pacers teams in this tremendous city, playing for Larry Bird and Rick Carlisle and the whole crew. I’ll never forget it.

The Pacers drafted me. It was my first two years here until Coach Bird fired me. And it was two of the most fun, incredible years of my entire life getting to play with these guys, with Reggie and Jack and Chris and the Davis boys, come on, Rik Smits. It just doesn’t get any better, in epic contests, in a really tremendous era of basketball.

To do that here in Indianapolis is special to me. This is where I met my wife and we started our life. It’s a really special city to me.

Q. I’ve noticed in the locker room there’s a lot of levity among the players. They’re having a lot of fun. How do you think that translates to their game right now? And as a follow-up, as someone who has been here, won the whole thing, how important is that moving forward?

MARK POPE: I think joy in the gym is a principle that’s really, really important to us. I think we play better when we work hard to find joy in the process because this can be a grind also. It can be mentally and emotionally taxing and exhausting. And the pressure can be immense.

But finding the joy in it, I think, actually helps us perform better. It helps us be more focused. I think it helps us be looser. It helps us, enables us to be better decision makers. It takes us from our limbic system to our frontal cortex literally, in a real sense, and helps us be decision makers, which is such a crucial part of what we do on the court.

Also, it is, what’s the point? What’s the point of all this if you’re not building relationships that are going to last forever and if you’re not enjoying every moment. If you can’t be here in this city in the Sweet 16, with this group of guys, if you can’t enjoy that, then you need to find another thing to do.

I love that the guys are enjoying it. And I love that they’re taking in every single moment. They came here for a reason. They’re very focused on that reason. But their love of each other is showing through is actually a strength for us.

Q. I understand your rivalry or your series with Indiana University is being renewed next season. What does that rivalry mean to college basketball? And is that something that you guys will look to make permanent moving forward?

MARK POPE: Am I allowed to talk about this? I assume I am?

So I have such beautiful memories of Kentucky-Indiana in the RCA Dome and looking up in the arena and seeing the aisleway where it was split, where it was all blue/white all across the arena on one side and all red and white on the other side of the stadium.

And I love everything about it. I think these rivalries are really special in college basketball. I think this rivalry has incredible history. I think it’s great for college basketball. There’s nothing about it that’s not great. I’m really excited about it.

Q. You guys played Tennessee twice, beat them twice. What advantages do you see for the team that won both of those games this year? And flip side, what the advantages might be for the team that lost both of those games heading into this?

MARK POPE: If we really parse details, there’s certainly, maybe the emotional advantage of winning two that you feel like you know you can. There’s the strategic side of coming to know to consider you might have a better idea of, if you’re going to make changes, a better idea of how and why.

But I think that’s like the .1 percent. I think mostly this is a free-standing game. This is a great Tennessee team. It’s one of the top teams in the country. It’s the best defensive team in the country. They have one of the best offensive teams in the country.

Rick Barnes is, if not the best, one of the best coaches in all of college basketball right now. He’s one of the people that I really, really admire. I admire him because he puts together great teams every year. And I admire him because, everything I know about him, he’s a way better man than he is a basketball coach. When you’re one of the best basketball coaches that’s saying a lot about him.

I think he lives his life by a moral code and a moral compass. And I think he sets an incredible example for the rest of us in the profession. I think he sets a great example for everybody. I don’t know what advantage comes from it. I just know it’s two great teams playing together in the Sweet 16, trying to get to the Elite Eight. And that’s exactly what you would expect at this point in the tournament. We can’t wait to get to it.

Q. First time since ’85 that there’s been no mid-majors, pretty much all power-conference teams. What’s kind of your thoughts, if you could, on just the future, going forward with NIL and revenue sharing? Are the little guys going to be able to win a few games in here like maybe they once were able to?

MARK POPE: Yes. I mean, I think the answer is yes. We had No. 1 seeds that were one missed shot, one made shot away from going down. So there’s been all the drama.

I expect that will continue because the reason is because there are so many talented players. There are so many incredibly talented players. And there are so many incredibly talented coaches.

I think this tournament is one of the great things in all of sports. And I think it’s because it’s a pure meritocracy once you start playing. Once you start playing, doesn’t matter what your budget is, doesn’t matter if you came in on a bus or flew in on a plane. Doesn’t matter if you don’t have 17 different uniforms or if you have only one. Doesn’t matter if you have holes in your shoes or your 75th new pair. I think this incredible event is only going to get better and better.

Q. Every venue is different when you’re playing in the tournament. You were at Fiserv in Milwaukee, built for basketball, built for the Bucks. You’re here at Lucas Oil. What’s it like practicing and eventually playing in this building?

MARK POPE: I think it’s a great building. One of my coaches, Alvin Brooks, loves this building like no place on the planet because he hoisted a trophy here. I think it’s a really special venue.

What’s interesting, a lot of times, in the older stadiums you would walk in it would be really, really light. You kind of got caught up in the background. In our first experience in here this morning, the background kind of fades away so it feels a lot more intimate maybe than it is. I think it’s an incredible venue. I think it’s a special place, and we can’t wait to play.

Q. Have you done anything here since you’ve been to Indianapolis to make it fun, make it joyful for your players, unusual? And when you played for Coach Pitino, did he do that for you guys?

MARK POPE: Whoo (laughter). My memory might be a little bit skewed, but I remember we toured Italy. We did a foreign tour with Coach Pitino. And I remember just an insane amount of time in the gym. I do remember at one point, we finished practice, he threw us in a bus — and we were so exhausted. I think most of us fell asleep. But at one point I do recall we were driving around the coliseum on our way back to the gym to work out again (laughter).

I love that man. I love him.

Q. Is he here?

MARK POPE: We got in late last night. We’re up early for practice today. The one great thing about our team it’s fun listening to them at breakfast. I’m not going to tell you what the whole team was debating about. There was a serious debate about which concerts were appropriate to attend and which weren’t as a team. It was delightful.

With this group, we don’t have to do a lot of exotic things for these guys to really enjoy the moment and love each other. They’ve made that great. It feels like you’re in a room with 12 brothers that are constantly — they never stop talking. It’s wonderful.

We have talked about, we’re pursuing maybe some options to get out of the hotel a little bit this afternoon just because it’s a little bit of a longer — we were early in the morning, so it will be a little longer day. But these guys are pretty fresh all the time.

Q. Amari talked about sometimes kind of needing physical play early to kind of get him into a flow. Aside from eating warm milk with your cereal with him, what kind of buttons have you had to push to get him really going?

MARK POPE: One, this whole Weetabix thing has been super fun, man. The videos that we’re getting sent to us are really special, sweet and delightful, just B.B. (phonetic) coming through in major fashion.

With Amari, I’ll tell you who the most important guy to him is Brandon Garrison. It’s pretty fun. Our rhythm is the rest the team goes out early, and B.G. and Amari stay back in the locker room for a minute because they get on the court a second later when we’re doing warmups. Those two get each other hyped.

They haven’t got to the point where they’re getting super physical with each other to kind of awaken him, but maybe we’ll start on that. But B.G. is really important to him.

Those two have developed an incredible relationship. Just focusing on the things we do. Those are things we’ll spend time with Amari on, is kind of talking about a first hit, a first rebound, talking about being really, really aggressive downhill to two feet early on in the game.

He’s been so incredibly good for us. He really is a generational guy right now in his own unique niche in the game. He’s been really special.

Q. Kentucky’s the standard for basketball in this league. You’ve been away a few years. I’m sure you followed the league, followed Kentucky. What’s happened to the SEC this year to the point they’ve gotten all these teams in?

MARK POPE: Well, I can’t give you a really insightful answer on that because I haven’t been here. But like you said. But I do think it’s pretty great. It’s the first time the league’s ever had 14 teams in. It’s the first time a league has had seven teams in the Sweet 16. It’s just been a magical, brutal, beautiful year in the SEC.

We’ll still see how that pans out as we move forward. But you want to be in the most competitive league. There’s no doubt. I mean, it’s really remarkable what this league has been. And it’s been a blessing to all of us. It’s been painful for all of us, too. That’s what you want.

Q. You’ve emphasized all year the importance of the players kind of keeping the even keel, not getting too high, not getting too low, keeping their emotions in check. How do you feel like they’ve done? And along the same lines, there have been some coaches, Rick Pitino included, who have advocated for eliminating the postgame handshake line. I didn’t know if you had any strong feelings one way or the other about that.

MARK POPE: I do. It’s because I’m a terrible sport. I advocate that we shut down the handshake line when I lose and that we do it when I win. (Laughter).

I’m a bad loser, guys. I’m trying. I’m trying so hard. I got a whole psychology team that’s trying to help me do it better. Hopefully we don’t do it a lot.

I think that we all have moments where we feel like why are we doing this and those are probably not our best moments. At the end of the day, I do think that athletics — I hope that athletics is about more — it can be deadly serious about winning, which it is. Like, we’re deadly serious about winning. And it can also be more.

And the “more” part, you think the deadly winning part is exhausting and taxing, it is, because it takes every ounce of everything that you are as a human being, because you’re competing against guys that are giving every ounce of everything, sacrificing everything that they have, to win. So sometimes to ask for more seems impossible.

But the one great thing about athletes is they’re chasing the impossible. So can we be the most vicious, competitive, fighting people in the world and fight tooth and nail with every ounce of what we have to find a way to win? And then can we do more?

Then can we actually, like, be man enough to walk through a line and teach our guys to walk through a line that we don’t want to walk through, the guys we don’t want to shake their hands and do it out of the camaraderie of sports? That’s a tall order. But I like tall orders.

And I like us being more than — if we’re going to do this great, guys, we’re going to win and win at the highest level and we’re going to do a little bit more. That’s just one little way that I think we can do a little bit more.

I’d like to be mature enough — and I’m not — I’d like to be mature enough to keep chasing bigger and more important things than even just basketball.

Q. Overcoming injuries has been a theme of this season. I know you talked about not sleeping a few nights before games. Could you talk about how that’s defined and forged this team to help them get to that point? Maybe touch a little bit on Lamont and what he’s gone through to play here.

MARK POPE: Every experience we have, good or bad, our goal is to make it a learning, teaching experience, is how can it grow us? My staff is so good about refocusing me and saying, okay, relax, take a breath, how can this grow us? How can this grow us? How can this grow us?

For sure the injuries for us have been really painful. It’s been problematic for us and giving us incredible challenges, but what’s exciting about it is how it’s grown us.

I think it’s grown us in a lot of ways. It’s giving young guys a chance to come up and play, giving guys a chance to play in different positions with different responsibilities. It’s made us really rethink everything that we went into the season expecting to do. We don’t talk about the loss of Kerr Kriisa very much, but it changed entirely the way we were planning to approach the game. That’s an afterthought in the slough of the injuries we’ve gone through. It gives you an opportunity to really grow and really become better coach and a better player, and I think our guys have taken advantage of it and we’ll continue to be tested in that way.

But adversity is a gift. Adversity is a beautiful thing. But really the death of me is going to be when I’m sitting on a beach somewhere just drinking a nonalcoholic beverage and have no adversity because then how are you growing? What are you becoming? I think we’re obsessed with becoming something, like how can we find a way to get better. And these injuries have certainly played a part in us trying to do that.

Q. (Question about Lamont).

MARK POPE: I’ve talked about Lamont a lot. It’s a beautiful thing as a coach, just like a beautiful thing as a parent — as a parent, when you see your children doing things better than you ever did them and being smarter than you ever were and doing things that are so brave and so bold, we all know what that feels like. That’s how I feel about Lamont Butler. He’s doing things that you just shouldn’t have to ask a player to do.

And he’s never been dissuaded. He’s never been diverted or distracted from his, like, core, which is like he wants to raise up and do this for his guys. He’s doing it at insane cost right now and with unbelievable bravery and unbelievable fortitude and gratitude.

That’s why I love sports. I talk about sports, does it give us a chance to do something even more? We have to do the winning, but can you win and actually do something more than winning? And Lamont Butler, if there’s a guy that’s been symbolic of that on this team, you talk about a guy winning and doing more, it’s Lamont Butler. He’s really special.

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Kentucky players Transcript

Koby Brea, Otega Oweh, Andrew Carr, Amari Williams, Lamont Butler

Q. Koby, you guys have done this twice now, with Tennessee for the third time. Does something have to change specifically to make it a repeat for them?

KOBY BREA: I don’t think we have to do anything different. I think we’ve got to do the same thing against every team, consider to be ourselves. We trust each other on the court. We know what we’re capable of doing.

Tennessee is obviously a really good opponent. Gotta give them respect and we’re coming into the game with the same mentality that we came into the first two.

Q. Lamont, you guys are at this stage getting ready to play in a game you’ve dreamed about your whole lives. Wondering as a team, how often do you guys think of Jaxson and Kerr who aren’t able to participate in this right now?

LAMONT BUTLER: We think about them all the time. It’s really tough for them to not be out there with us and playing. But feel like they’ve done a great job of just being leaders off the court, being really vocal in huddles and pulling guys to the side and telling them what they see out there, what can help our team.

They’re still very valuable to us. And we just are playing hard, playing for love and playing with passion for them who can’t be out there with us.

Q. Koby, Tennessee has been one of the top defenses in the year, but you guys were really successful against them in both games, shooting 50 percent from 3. What made your offense so successful, and how do you look to take that into the third match-up?

KOBY BREA: I think the coaches do a really good job of scouting the way they guard and. They’ve been a really good defensive team, but I feel we’ve seen their defense a couple times this year, teams that do similar things. So we kind of just do what we do every game and just scout them and work on the things that they’re good at and how we’re able to use that against them.

I’m sure that they’ll probably try to change things up a little bit since the first two times didn’t work out too well. But we’re going to continue to do what we do. We work on every type of defense guarding us. Just gotta continue to do us.

Q. Andrew, I know you didn’t play too much in the first two match-ups against them, but Milicic is a guy who hit a bunch of 3s for them. What’s the key to slowing him down and what did you learn when you guys went back and watched the film from his success against you guys?

ANDREW CARR: He’s a great player. So certainly he shot the ball really well from 3 against us. Especially the first match-up, wasn’t shooting a great percentage. We kind of changed how we scouted a little bit and changed how we attacked the game. We’re not giving anybody any dead shots. We’re making other teams feel uncomfortable.

I think it’s helped our defense improve these last couple of months. For that being said, just being able to have presence on the ball, make sure he’s not comfortable, especially when he’s trying to step out and shoot some 3s, which he had a lot of success against us in the past.

Q. Otega, obviously your brother plays in the NFL and you have a chance to play at Lucas Oil Stadium. What does that mean to you to kind of bragging rights over him? I understand he hasn’t had a chance to play here yet. And what’s your relationship like with him and helping you get to this moment?

OTEGA OWEH: It’s a cool feeling playing in the stadium. I’ve never played in a football stadium before. Definitely just want to win, say that I won in a football stadium you haven’t played in. That would be cool.

But it just means a lot knowing he’s got to the highest level. I’m trying to get there. Just with the gems, the advice that he’s given me so far has been it’s a lot for me and it’s definitely got me all the way here.

I’m just thankful that he’s in that position. And he’s going to be here tomorrow. So he’s definitely going to be able to cheer me on.

Q. Andrew, you guys have the confidence of having won twice already. What do you think the mindset is for Tennessee? What advantage might they have even though they haven’t won in that game heading into, especially, this kind of stage?

ANDREW CARR: I mean, I think for them, they probably want to just try to learn from anything they could from those first two games. For them coming into this third one that they think will probably shoot the ball a little bit better.

I feel like for us to continue being able to come out on top, we’ve got to just continue to contest every shot and make every shot tough. And that’s what we’re able to do the first two match-ups. That’s what we’re going to be looking to do again on Friday.

Q. Lamont, you played in a lot of NCAA Tournament games. You’ve got that experience. You’re your team’s point guard. Zakai sets the tone for them. How much do you take it upon yourself to set the tone and maybe counteract whatever he does on the floor for your squad?

LAMONT BUTLER: He’s a really good player, really good point guard. One of the best point guards in the country. Defensive player of the year in our league and first-team. We know that we’ve got to go out there and really just play hard against him. It’s going to be a great match-up for me.

But it’s a team effort. It’s a team effort, not just one person guarding somebody. We’re going to be connected on defense, and we’ve got one of the best coaches. I think we’re going to be ready to go and win that game.

Q. Lamont and Koby, I know when you’re a really good shooter, the surroundings don’t matter too much. But wondering with a setup in a stadium what the backdrops are like for you to adjust to that. And how did that go today at practice?

LAMONT BUTLER: It’s definitely a little different. We’ve never played really in a football stadium. Play in an arena. Once we got our first shots up and figured it out, it’s normal at that point.

KOBY BREA: I feel like it’s been pretty cool just to play in different environments; and for me, it’s my first time playing in a football stadium. That’s a pretty good experience. I don’t really think it changes anything. I always say if the ball is round and the rim is a circle, then I think it’s all the same thing. Just excited to get out there and play.

Q. Andrew, when I look at you guys sitting up there, you’re all really relaxed and seem confident. Is that just part of the team mentality? I know B.G. has a tendency to get kind of worked up, but Coach Pope has always emphasized keep a level head, keep your emotions in check. Is that just part of your team personality?

ANDREW CARR: Yeah, I’d say definitely this team, we really care about each other a lot. We like to have a lot of fun together, and so it’s a lot of fun to be around these guys. And definitely how talented our team is and how close we are, definitely brings you a little bit at ease at times. It really allows us to enjoy the moment and take our time. It really allows us to be a little laid back but always having a great time with each other, for sure.

Q. Otega, wanted to ask, you’ve been a powerhouse going into this season, into this tournament, is there a way that Tennessee actually can stop you?

OTEGA OWEH: I don’t know. I hope not. But I’m just going to try to go out there, have good energy. I hope the ball finds good energy. I hope they can’t stop me because I’m trying to win, but we’re going to see.

Q. Andrew and Amari — Andrew, you just talked about how much fun you guys have together, how much you enjoy each other’s company. I guess, what brought you guys together so quickly? Part of the team, you didn’t know each other this time last year, how did you guys become like brothers?

ANDREW CARR: I would say probably just being able to bond over things pretty quickly in the summer. A lot of us have similar interests, just being able to really, just try to get to know each other on a deeper level.

Everybody is new at one spot. So everybody kind of had that mindset of trying to get to know each other a whole lot better. It gives you a little bit of nostalgia growing up in the park playing against each other early on in the day, it’s like you’re a little kid. It’s a lot of fun.

AMARI WILLIAMS: I’ll say the same as Andrew, just hanging out in the summer, I feel that helped a lot. So I’ll just say that.