Mark Pope replaced John Calipari as Kentucky coach and took the Wildcats to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament before losing five players. Pope turned to the transfer portal to restock his roster including
bringing Jayden Quaintance to campus after he chose Arizona State with Calipari's departure for Arkansas. Pope has leading scorer and preseason All-SEC player of the year Otega Oweh back to help lead the way. Kentucky opens the season Nov. 4 against Nicholls at Rupp Arena.
Oweh led Kentucky by scoring 16.2 points a game and also had 57 steals. Guard Jaland Lowe arrived through the portal after leading Pittsburgh scoring 16.8 points a game last season. Quaintance, a former five-star recruit, is recovering from ACL surgery.
Pope had to replace Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr and Koby Brea That's why Pope added six through the portal led by Denzel Aberdeen from reigning national champion Florida. Mo Dioubate helped Alabama reach back-to-back Elite Eights. Quaintance averaged 9.3 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in 29 games at Arizona State after reversing his commitment to Kentucky. Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno, two of four first-year players, are expected to start.
The season opens Nov. 4 against Nicholls. The Wildcats play in-state rival and 11th-ranked Louisville much earlier than usual, on Nov. 11. They host No. 22 Michigan State on Nov. 18, No. 25 North Carolina on Dec. 2 and Indiana on Dec. 13. They play No. 21 Gonzaga in Nashville on Dec. 5. SEC play begins Jan. 3 at No. 15 Alabama with five league road games in January. Three of their final five games are on the road before hosting No. 3 Florida on March 7.
This is the 50th season for Kentucky playing at Rupp Arena where the Wildcats are 676-88 all-time in the regular season. ... The Wildcats reached the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019 in Pope's debut season. ... Kentucky set a handful of program records including most wins over AP Top 25 teams with eight and most 3-pointers made with 341.
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