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ATLANTA — Kentucky coach Mark Pope doesn’t have the luxury of high-end talent and multiple NBA draft picks on his roster. That much was clear watching Duke’s Cooper Flagg, the presumptive No. 1 pick in next year’s draft, spin past, cross up and raise up over UK defenders en route to a game-high 26 points.
Those elite players are sure to trickle into Lexington the way they traditionally have to help make UK a basketball blue blood. But for now, Pope doesn’t need them; he’s got himself a squad.
That, too, was very clear watching the No. 18 Wildcats rally from a 10-point deficit against No. 6 Duke at State Farm Arena for a 77-72 win Tuesday in the Champions Classic. If they can beat the Blue Devils, who have the look and components of a national title contender, they can beat anybody.
Whatever concerns UK fans had after John Calipari took his show to Arkansas after 15 seasons and Baylor’s Scott Drew turned down the chance to become his replacement can be put deep in storage.
Like the kind of unit you pay for and forget it’s there.
Turns out, Pope’s experience as a head coach at Utah Valley and BYU accounts for a lot. He’s got a system that works and has the right fit of personnel at UK to run it.
“I like our group,” Pope said. “And if we had lost this game, I’d still like our group.”
What’s not to like? UK showed why veteran teams always seem to get the best of those loaded with one-and-dones come NCAA Tournament time. The Cats were on the wrong end of that lesson plenty of times under Calipari. Under Pope, they won’t be.
For all of the hype Flagg brought to the game, and it is well justified, he turned into a one-man show for the Blue Devils down the stretch. He scored their final seven points, but he also had two turnovers in the final 12 seconds that prevented Duke from even attempting a shot.
Kentucky played together.
Forward Andrew Carr, a fifth-year senior who played on a Wake Forest squad that beat Duke twice in his two seasons, had two three-point plays late…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/kentucky-basketball-shows-mark-pope-043735485.html
Author : The Courier Journal
Publish date : 2024-11-13 04:37:00
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