“There may have been some completely destroyed furniture in the locker room,” a frustrated Mark Pope admitted after Kentucky’s tough 84-98 loss to Ole Miss. Looks like that fire lit a spark in his squad because ever since, the Wildcats have been on a mission, bouncing back with two straight wins!

Kentucky have just made a statement victory. The Wildcats took down No. 5 Tennessee 75-64, completing a regular-season sweep of the Volunteers. With Ansley Almonor and Otega Oweh dropping 13 points each the Mark Pope-led side are now 7-1 against Top 15 teams this season!

But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for Mark Pope and his Wildcats. They were already without their second-leading scorer, Jaxson Robinson, and things got worse when their top playmaker, Lamont Butler, went down with an injury with 8:40 left. Despite the setbacks, Kentucky battled through the adversity and still walked away with a huge win!

Analyst John Fanta wasn’t about to let Mark Pope’s efforts go unnoticed! On The Field of 68: After Dark podcast, Fanta made sure to give Kentucky its well-earned flowers. He said, “They’re 17-7 and having a really nice year in an ultra difficult conference but because of their shot-making ability you know that this is a team that just really is dangerous.”

There’s no question that the Wildcats are an offensive powerhouse! They’ve dropped 100+ points in six games this season and boast a stacked roster with four players Otega Oweh, Jaxson Robinson, Lamont Butler, and Koby Brea who are all averaging more than ten points per game this season. But their defense, that has long been a work in progress, also shined a glimmer of hope when the Wildcats limited its past two opponents to an average of 60.5 points and 7-for-40 3-point shooting.

In a conference stacked with top 3 nationally ranked teams, Mark Pope & Co. have managed to remain persistent. They have also been one of the better ranked teams on field goal and three-point percentage with 48.57 and 38.36. Despite injury troubles surrounding Robinson, Butler, Kerr Kriisa, and Andrew Karr at that. “For them to be short-handed and sweep Tennessee, and rack up that win earlier this week, that was a testament to the personnel that they’ve got,” Fanta adds.

Opening the season ranked 23 to lingering around in the top 15, Wildcats are making their case. They also went up 18 spots on ESPN power ranking this week. Kentucky is very much in the game and the 67 teams making it to the March Madness better watch out.

What’s next for Mark Pope and Co?

The Wildcats have their eyes set on improving their SEC record, which currently sits at 6-5. With seven games left, including tough battles against Alabama and Auburn. Mark Pope knows his squad can’t afford any slip-ups. While they’ve been giant slayers against ranked teams, taking care of business against unranked opponents will be just as crucial down the stretch.

The Wildcats will have a chance to boost their SEC record when they head to Austin to take on the Texas Longhorns at the Moody Center on February 16. Despite Texas struggling with a 4-8 conference record, ESPN gives the Longhorns a 55% chance of winning which is likely due to factoring in Kentucky’s ongoing injury concerns. With key players sidelined, Mark Pope’s squad will need to dig deep to silence the doubters and secure a crucial road win!

“We could find some clarity on them in the next couple of weeks,” a concerned Mark Pope admitted when asked about the injuries to Jaxson Robinson and Lamont Butler. Translation? Kentucky will be without two of its key players for at least the next four games to Texas, Vanderbilt, Alabama, and Oklahoma. With their second-leading scorer and best playmaker sidelined, the Wildcats face a massive challenge ahead. Can they hold the fort, or will their season take a serious hit? Only time will tell! Stay tuned for more updates!