25d ago basketball Edit

Reports: UK close to making Mark Pope new coach

Former Kentucky standout and 1996 national champion Mark Pope has led the BYU program since the 2019-20 season. (Steven Branscombe/USA Today Sports)

Jeff Drummond • CatsIllustrated

Managing Editor

Joined the Cats Illustrated staff in the summer of 2017. Veteran reporter and photographer who has covered UK sports dating back to 1987.

According to multiple national reports, Kentucky could be on the verge of naming a former Wildcat as its new head basketball coach.

Three days after John Calipari officially stepped down and was later named the new head coach at Arkansas, could Mark Pope be next in line?

The stunning news hit social media late Thursday night as ESPN's Jeff Borzello and Pete Thamel have reported that Pope, a member of UK's 1996 national championship team who has bee the head coach at BYU since 2019, is in the process of finalizing a deal with Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart.

Earlier in the day, Barnhart received word from Baylor's Scott Drew and UConn's Danny Hurley that they were staying with their respective programs despite lucrative offers by UK.

Pope, 51, has a 110-52 record with BYU. The Cougars went 23-11 this season and 10-8 in the Big 12, earning a 6-seed in the NCAA Tournament. They were upset in the first round, 71-67, by 11-seed Duquesne.

The regular season was highlighted by impressive wins over NC State, Iowa State, Baylor, and perhaps most notably, a road win at Kansas.

BYU ranked 14th in KenPom's offensive efficiency rankings this season and ranked second nationally in percentage of points scored from the 3-point arc (41%).

Prior to his time at BYU, Pope was a head coach at Utah Valley and an assistant coach at BYU, Wake Forest, and Georgia. He was the college roommate of Jeff Sheppard, father of current UK freshman guard Reed Sheppard.