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Despite win, Mark Pope sees room for growth in one key area

Mark Pope says that they haven't even begun to touch where they could be as a rim protecting team.

By Mark Knight

Nov 4, 2024; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Wright State Raiders guard Andrew Welage (22) shoots the ball during the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
Nov 4, 2024; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Wright State Raiders guard Andrew Welage (22) shoots the ball during the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images / Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
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Mark Pope was all smiles after securing his first win as the head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats. It was a blowout win over Wright State 103-62 in front of almost 20,000 fans in Rupp Arena. Pope raved about his team and how intentional, poised, and aggressive they were. He loved how they shared the ball with 30 assists (the most assists ever in a season-opener for Kentucky). However, he said there is one area where he would love to see them continue growing as a team.

While discussing how disruptive the team is on the defensive end, Mark Pope said in his post-game presser, "We haven't even begun to touch where we could be as a rim-protecting team. I think we have so much in the tank there that will add to our defense."

Mark Pope would love to see Kentucky grow more in their rim-protecting.

Kentucky had four blocks against Wright State from four different players: Lamont Butler, Otega Oweh, Amari Williams, and Jaxson Robinson. No player from the bench recorded a block on the night, and the one guy you would expect in Andrew Carr also didn't. It seems that Coach Pope is right; that is an area of improvement.

It may be a little nitpicky, but that's the point of these early games in the season. As the harder competition is coming, figuring out these areas of growth is essential. Mark Pope said that he wants his team to be focused on allowing the "defense to lead to offense." They will need to find ways to be disruptive. He was happy with the 11 steals but would love to see more blocks.

Kentucky will next take on Bucknell on Saturday at 4 pm EST. Be on the lookout to see how quickly this team adapts to their coach's desire for growth. While this stat may develop throughout the season, Pope would love to see an uptick as soon as Saturday.

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