Kentucky enters the SEC preseason picture with a No. 7 projection, according to the conference’s newly released rankings.
The Wildcats slot in behind Florida at the top, followed by Vandy, Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas and Texas. Kentucky sits just ahead of Missouri, Texas A&M, Auburn, Georgia, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, LSU, Mississippi State and South Carolina in the projected order of finish.
The SEC also put out its preseason All-SEC teams, and Kentucky landed two players on the list. Milan Momcilovic was named to the SEC All-Second Team, while Malachi Moreno earned third-team recognition.
Momcilovic said at Kentucky basketball Media Day that Mark Pope’s push for him to take even more shots this season is a sign of confidence, even if it means his percentage may dip.
"I think that just shows confidence in me, and he wants me to shoot a lot more. He doesn't want my percentage to be so high just because I'm shooting tough shots, shooting any time I can get open. So hopefully it's the same the percentage, but it's tough to match."
Moreno’s offseason progress has also drawn praise from Pope, who pointed to a recent scrimmage as proof of how far the big man has come.
"Malachi Moreno -- we had a scrimmage on on Saturday -- he had three assists in the first four minutes. The jump he's made has been has been really exciting for us to see. ...
Malachi's made huge strides," Pope said. "I'll be really honest with this, and Malachi knows this -- the first four weeks of the summer, I was really frustrated with Malachi.
I felt like we were stuck in molasses. There was a little bit of stubbornness, and we were kind of fighting, but that happens over the course of a tenure when you're pushing, pushing, pushing.
Then, what he's done since then is almost unrecognizable with some of the skill sets that he's brought to the game. His interior scoring has improved dramatically.
His use of quicks has improved dramatically. His rim protection is a place we're really pushing him to be really aggressive.
Our two-point at-rim field-goal percentage is a hugely important number for us, and he's had a huge impact there. He's taken on a leadership role where our guys see him as a leader and a veteran on this team."
Kentucky’s first of three exhibition games is set for Friday against Little Rock.
In Other News...
Kentucky Is Suddenly In The Hunt For 3 Program-Changing Recruits
Kentucky footballs new era under Will Stein is already showing up on the recruiting trail, where the Wildcats are being mentioned with three of the most coveted names in the 2028 class. Wide receiver Jordan Anderson, defensive lineman Kellan Hall and cornerback Grayden Reid have all drawn strong attention nationally, and multiple recruiting analysts have noted that Kentucky has been actively pushing for each of them. For a program trying to build momentum early with a younger class, that kind of visibility matters.
Joe Price, Jay Bateman and Allen Brown have all been involved in those efforts, giving Kentucky a staff presence around three prospects who could alter the trajectory of the class if the Wildcats can stay in the mix. The long lead time only adds to the intrigue, since these are the kinds of recruitments that can swing on relationships, development plans and continued persistence over time. Right now, Kentucky appears to be positioned in the conversation in a way that would have felt much harder to imagine not long ago. [Read more 🡒]
Kentuckys 1950 Title Claim Still Comes Down To One Debate
Kentuckys long-running football argument with Oklahoma has a clean backdrop this week, because the schools have barely crossed paths at all. The Wildcats and Sooners have met only three times before their upcoming SEC matchup, and the history between them goes right back to one of college footballs most debated seasons, when Kentucky added a retroactive national title claim from 1950.
That season still turns on which standard you trust more. Kentucky points to its Sugar Bowl win over Oklahoma as the seasons defining result, while Oklahoma finished the regular season atop both major polls. Add in the fact that Tennessee and Princeton also claim national titles from that year under different systems, and the old question remains as unresolved as ever: who really owned 1950? [Read more 🡒]
Mark Popes First Kentucky Team Just Got An Early SEC Reality Check
Kentuckys basketball reset under Mark Pope has already entered the part of the calendar where preseason optimism meets leaguewide skepticism. At SEC Media Days in Birmingham, the conferences preseason projections placed the Wildcats seventh on the mens side, even as two Kentucky players landed on the preseason All-SEC teams. It was a reminder that the first year of a new era does not come with much benefit of the doubt, even for a program with this much expectation baked in.
The womens team drew a stronger early nod, coming in at fifth in the league and getting Clara Strack on the preseason All-SEC First Team. Both teams are now turning their attention to actual basketball, with the men set to begin exhibition play against Little Rock as the season starts to take shape. For Kentucky, the rankings are only preseason noise, but they do offer an early snapshot of where the league thinks the Wildcats stand before the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]