Mark Pope has seen what it takes to win it all. He lived it back in 1996 as a player on Kentucky’s national championship team - a squad loaded with future pros and dripping with swagger.
Now, nearly three decades later, he’s trying to guide a new generation of Wildcats to similar heights. And while this year’s roster has been hit hard by injuries, Pope sees something special in one player who’s carrying the load: Otega Oweh.
Pope didn’t hesitate when asked during his weekly Mark Pope Show which current player reminds him of someone from that legendary ’96 team. His answer? Otega Oweh - and the comparison he drew was to none other than Antoine Walker.
Now, let’s be clear: Walker and Oweh are different players with different games. Walker, a 6-foot-8 forward, was a do-it-all force in his sophomore season, averaging 15.2 points and 8.4 rebounds while helping lead Kentucky to an SEC title and, ultimately, a national championship.
He was named All-SEC and took home MVP honors from the SEC Tournament. His game had flair, his confidence was sky-high, and he thrived in a lineup packed with future NBA talent.
Oweh, at 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds, brings a different package - more guard than forward, more power than finesse - but Pope sees a similar kind of impact. “There’s something similar in terms of their impact on the game,” Pope said. And he’s not wrong.
With Kentucky missing key contributors like Jaland Lowe, Jayden Quaintance, and Kam Williams, Oweh has stepped into the spotlight and kept the Wildcats rolling. He’s leading the team in scoring at 17.1 points per game and has been even hotter lately, averaging 20.6 points over the last nine contests. That stretch includes a gritty 21-point performance in Saturday’s 74-71 win over Tennessee - a game that also doubled as a 30-year reunion for Pope and his ’96 teammates at Rupp Arena.
That win marked Kentucky’s eighth victory in its last nine games. Despite the injuries, the Wildcats are right in the thick of the SEC race, sitting just a half-game behind Florida heading into Tuesday night. And Oweh has been the engine behind it all.
It’s not just the numbers, though. It’s the way Oweh is stepping up in the big moments, the way he’s setting the tone for a team that could have folded when the injuries piled up.
Walker had a deep supporting cast around him - Tony Delk, Walter McCarty, Derek Anderson, Ron Mercer, and Pope himself. Oweh doesn’t have that luxury right now.
But he’s still finding ways to win.
For Kentucky fans, hearing Oweh’s name mentioned in the same breath as Antoine Walker is bound to stir up some March dreams. No one’s crowning him just yet, and there’s still a long road ahead. But if he keeps this up - if he keeps willing this team forward - he might just carve out a chapter of his own in Kentucky’s storied basketball history.
He may not be Walker. But he’s starting to feel like a player who could lead Kentucky to a banner moment of its own.