Mark Pope enters his third season at Kentucky with the kind of pressure that comes from two uneven years and one clear expectation: the Wildcats need to start looking like Kentucky again.
Pope’s first team in Lexington was built well enough to be good, but injuries to key players derailed the season. His second roster fit far less cleanly, and the result was only so-so before injuries again got in the way.
Now, after going 46-26 in his first two seasons, Pope does not necessarily need a banner year with trophies stacked on trophies. He does need a strong one.
Kentucky does not have to win the SEC Tournament for the first time since 2018. It does not have to claim the SEC regular-season title for the first time since 2020. It does not have to reach the Final Four for the first time since 2015 or cut down the nets for the first time since 2012.
But by the time 2026-27 ends, the Wildcats have to feel like they are moving back toward that level.
For that to happen, four things have to come together.
The first is straightforward: the creators have to work.
Because of injuries, Kentucky was basically without a true point guard for most of 2025-26. On his final weekly radio show of last season, Pope told the UK Sports Network’s Tom Leach, “We are desperate to bring creators here to Kentucky.”
He went out and did exactly that, bringing in not one but two starting-caliber point guards in Washington transfer Zoom Diallo and Furman transfer Alex Wilkins. Both are used to being ball-dominant, and both are now learning a Kentucky offense built around ball movement. Even during UK’s 3-0 exhibition run, that adjustment looked bumpy at times.
How fast Diallo and Wilkins settle in will matter a lot.
Kentucky also needs Milan Momcilovic to get more room to operate. Last season at Iowa State, the 6-foot-9, 220-pound wing made more 3-pointers than anyone in NCAA Division I men’s basketball, hitting 136.
He did it while taking only the 20th-most 3s in the country, 279. For Kentucky’s sake, that shot volume has to keep climbing when opponents open things up for him.
That was not always the case in the exhibitions. Momcilovic took just 14 shots combined in wins over Little Rock and Texas Tech, though he did get up 17 field-goal attempts in Wednesday’s overtime win over Central Florida. That uptick matters.
Then there is Kentucky’s recurring problem against the middle of the pack.
Pope’s first two teams have handled elite opponents reasonably well, but they have stumbled against teams that sit in that awkward, dangerous range below the top tier. In 2024-25, Kentucky went 7-5 against teams ranked in the final NET top 21, with wins over eventual national champion Florida, Final Four team Duke and Gonzaga. But against teams ranked 22 through 50 in the final NET, the Wildcats were 5-7.
Last season followed a similar script. Kentucky found momentum with wins over Tennessee, Woo, Pig, Calipari and Vanderbilt, only to see late losses to Georgia, Auburn and Texas A&M wipe it out. That kind of swing has kept Pope’s teams from turning decent stretches into something more durable.
Finally, Kentucky needs a forward to break out.
Freshman guard Mason Williams has already shown some pop in the exhibitions, looking like a steal with 16 makes in 23 shots and a 14-point average over three games. But for Kentucky to rise above merely good, it needs a comparable surprise on the front line next to Momcilovic.
Ousmane N’Diaye has had the biggest offensive workload so far, taking 28 shots in the three exhibitions and making nine. If he becomes more efficient, Kentucky can keep benefiting from his defensive length.
Bryadon Hawthorne also flashed in the exhibition against UCF, scoring seven points with three rebounds, four blocks and two steals. And there is another path: a healthy Kam Williams. The 6-7, 210-pound junior was starting to settle in after transferring from Tulane when a Jones fracture in his left foot ended that progress.
With a potential difference-maker in center Malachi Moreno, a dangerous shooting wing and, Kentucky hopes, multiple creators in the backcourt, the Wildcats have enough pieces to imagine a better season. What they still need is someone at power forward to grab hold of the job and give Pope the breakout he needs.
In Other News...
Kentuckys Roster Is Earning Serious SEC Respect Before Opening Night
The preseason chatter around Kentucky is already turning into something more concrete, with the SECs coaches giving the Wildcats a pair of early honors before the season even tips. Milan Momcilovic landed on the second team, while Malachi Moreno was named to the third team, a sign that Kentuckys roster is drawing real respect across the league instead of just buzz inside Lexington.
Momcilovic arrives from Iowa State with the kind of shooting pedigree that can change the shape of an offense, after leading the country in total 3-pointers made and 3-point percentage last season. Moreno, meanwhile, is back for his second year at Kentucky after making the All-SEC Freshman Team a year ago, giving the Wildcats a mix of proven perimeter firepower and a returning young piece that opposing coaches already know well. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky's SEC Title Chase Has One Threat Fans Can't Ignore
The SEC race has tightened into a familiar kind of November stress, with Kentucky and Georgia sitting atop the league standings with one conference loss apiece. For Wildcats fans, the math is simple enough to follow and hard enough to ignore: every remaining weekend carries weight, and the path to the league title is now shaped as much by what happens elsewhere as by what Kentucky does on the field.
Alabama is the complication Kentucky cannot dismiss, especially because the head-to-head tiebreaker already tilts in the Crimson Tides favor. That kind of edge can loom large in a crowded standings chase, even as Kentucky football continues to work at building its own momentum off the field, with modest gains in average home attendance and season ticket sales alongside ongoing stadium upgrades. It is a reminder that in Lexington, footballs progress still gets measured against the sport that usually sets the standard. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Just Got A Big Reason To Worry About Tennessee's Offense
Kentucky is using its bye week to patch up an injury list that already includes several important pieces, and the Wildcats may need the extra time after another setback around the backfield. Starting running back CJ Baxter remains in uncertain shape after his injury, leaving Kentucky with some real questions to sort through before it gets back to game action.
Across the field, Tennessee got a scare when DeSean Bishop went down with a right ankle injury, but coach Josh Heupel said the running back is expected to be in good condition for the upcoming game. That matters for Kentucky because Bishop has become one of the Volunteers most important offensive threats, ranking second nationally in rushing yards and giving Tennessee a backfield weapon the Wildcats will have to account for if hes ready to go. [Read more 🡒]