According to reports, the Kentucky Wildcats basketball program has identified a replacement for John Calipari.
According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, the team is making significant progress in securing the services of former BYU head coach Mark Pope. Thamel reports that the deal is set to be finalized in the coming days.
Since 2019, Pope, aged 51, has served as the head coach at Brigham Young University. Under his leadership, the program has achieved an impressive record of 110-52, resulting in a winning percentage of .679. Furthermore, the team has successfully made it to the NCAA Tournament twice, specifically during the 2020-21 season and the most recent one. It is worth noting that they would have also qualified for the tournament in the 2019-20 season if it had not been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the previous season, Pope was an integral part of the Cougars’ transition to the Big 12. The team achieved an impressive record of 23-11 overall and 10-8 in conference play. As a result, they secured a spot in the NCAA Tournament as the No. 6 seed. Unfortunately, their journey was cut short with a surprising upset in the first round against No. 11 Duquesne.
Mark Pope, who previously served as the head coach at Utah Valley from 2015-19, took over at BYU. Initially, he faced challenges with two consecutive losing seasons. However, he turned things around in his final two years, leading the team to impressive records of 23 and 25 wins, respectively.
Pope hails from Omaha, Nebraska and pursued his college education at Washington and Kentucky. He had the opportunity to showcase his basketball skills for a total of four seasons, spending two seasons at each school. Notably, Pope was a valuable member of the 1996 Wildcats team that clinched the National Title. During his senior year, Pope averaged slightly over 20 minutes per game, contributing 7.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
Pope entered the NBA when he was selected by the Indiana Pacers in the second round of the 1996 NBA Draft. Throughout his professional career, he played for the Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Denver Nuggets, accumulating a total of 153 games. As a forward, he had an average of 1.9 points and 1.7 rebounds per game.
If he gets the job, Pope will become the 23rd head coach in the history of Kentucky basketball, stepping into some sizable shoes. Calipari, who recently accepted a position at Arkansas, had a successful 15-year tenure at Kentucky, boasting a remarkable record of 410-123 and a winning percentage of .769.
Under Coach Calipari’s leadership, the University of Kentucky men’s basketball team participated in the NCAA Tournament an impressive 12 out of 14 times. During this period, they reached the Sweet 16 on eight occasions, demonstrating their consistent performance on the national stage. The Wildcats also achieved remarkable success, making it to the Final Four four times and advancing to the Finals twice. Their crowning achievement came in the 2011-2012 season when they emerged as champions, solidifying their position as one of the top teams in college basketball.
In the last three tournaments, Kentucky has faced challenges, experiencing defeats in the Round of 64 twice, and the Round of 32 once. During the previous season, the Wildcats were defeated by the No. 14-seeded Oakland Golden Grizzlies as a No. 3 seed. Similarly, in the 2021-22 season, they suffered a loss to No. 15 Saint Peters in the first round as a No. 2 seed, only for Saint Peters to advance to the Elite Eight.
Kentucky has established itself as one of the most legendary college basketball programs of all time, boasting an impressive eight NCAA men’s basketball titles. Their remarkable record places them just behind UCLA, who leads with a total of eleven championship victories.
