The NCAA season is heating up, and the Kentucky Wildcats are right in the thick of it. The post Mark Pope Faces Alarm “Bells Ringing” as Kentucky’s Defensive Struggles Deepen in Devastating Loss to Georgia appeared first on EssentiallySports.

Kentucky basketball put up another clunker Tuesday night in Athens. Mark Pope’s UK team fell behind by 13 points at halftime and eventually lost by that same margin, 82-69, to Georgia in the Wildcats’ first SEC road game of the season.

Similar to his BYU teams, Pope’s Wildcats share the ball well and score a lot of points. Kentucky ranks third nationally in scoring (89.0 points), is sixth in assists (18.7) and is making 35.5% of nearly 30 3-point attempts per contest.

Good morning, folks! Now that we’ve had a full day to recover from Tuesday night’s disaster in Athens, how are we feeling? Cold? Yeah, me too. But mentally, I’m already back on the “Kentucky men’s basketball is good and fun and I’m going to enjoy them” train.

Even though the referees didn't do him any favors, Kentucky's Mark Pope doesn't want to talk about them after the loss to Georgia.

Kentucky basketball got a feel-good win against Brown on Tuesday before SEC play begins on Saturday. A 12-point halftime lead turned into a 34-point domination

Against most high-major opponents this season, UK basketball has trailed by double digits in the first half. How can Kentucky stop this trend?

Kentucky men’s basketball guard Lamont Butler talks to the media after the Wildcats’ 82-69 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2024. Butler was asked what was the difference in the game as UK fell to 12-3.