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Mark Pope explains what went wrong on defense against Ohio State

Published

1 year ago

December 24, 2024

Mark Pope explains what went wrong on defense against Ohio State

Kentucky dropped to No. 61 in the latest KenPom defensive efficiency ratings after allowing Ohio State to score 85 points on 56.6 percent shooting overall and 68.4 percent from two. It was an abysmal effort on that end of the floor — and that’s with the Buckeyes going just 4-15 from three after entering the matchup shooting 41 percent from deep as one of the best in college basketball.

Mark Pope said the team’s magic number to open the season was 39 percent, hoping to hold teams to that hit rate defensively throughout the year. After hitting that mark in the first six games of the year, the Wildcats have done it just once in the last six. They’ve regressed in a major way and the staff is now looking for answers during the time off with SEC play coming in January.

What is Pope’s best assessment of what went wrong in New York City?

“Defensively, we gave up 15 points on rejects alone,” the Kentucky head coach explained Monday evening during his call-in radio show. “It’s just so uncharacteristic for us, just going away from where we’re leading the ball screen, right? I had made a huge emphasis about pushing our bigs up to try and get a little bit more of a presence at the point of the screen. When you let teams reject, it’s the worst thing to do, to push up the bigs.

“Out of seven possessions, it was 15 points — all twos and an and-one, a perfect field-goal percentage. There was a lot we didn’t do well. A lot of things that are going to help us get better, and get better faster.”

He actually liked the way things started against the Buckeyes, holding firm in the first 10 minutes — plenty good enough to stay competitive while waiting for the offense to figure itself out. Then it was a disaster finish before halftime, then more of the same after the brea.

“It was interesting. We started the game well, we gave up an early three, but we were pretty solid-ish in the first 10 minutes, and then it started to get away from us,” Pope said. “There were a couple of real issues that we were struggling with. We were really struggling with — you know, it was very uncharacteristic of us, but we give up 15 points on rejects of high ball screens, which is exactly the opposite of what our defense is designed to do. That was really surprising. We took a bunch of different paths, but some of that — this is some that’s on me, some of that is my responsibility — is trying to solve some other things and push up our bigs. It gave us less security. And I was really surprised that we were having the issue we did.”

There were a number of reasons for it, not just one glaring weakness or culprit. You could call it an all systems failure on that end.

“We were getting beat going under on ball screens as the game went on. We threw out some zone, we blitzed some ball screens, but I was really surprised by that,” he said. “You’re just very much surprised that the issue actually arose. And it’s probably a bunch of stuff.

“It’s a little bit personnel, it’s a little bit us getting a little extended, it’s a little bit maybe being distracted by other things, maybe some foul issues, but that was clearly — ball screens was an issue for us throughout the night. (Bruce) Thornton was a major issue for us, for sure. And so those are two things that we were trying to address personnel-wise, and dedication-wise, this game-wise.”

Fortunately for the Cats, they have plenty of time to go back to the drawing board and get this thing right.

“We just have to come up with the right answers in the right amount of time.”

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Related Topics:Featured Kentucky Basketball Mark Pope (91 - Newport Senior)

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Ohio voters literally can’t believe our eyes. Danger of AI ads not overblown | Letters

Published

4 hours ago

May 30, 2026

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Ohio voters literally can’t believe our eyes. Danger of AI ads not overblown | Letters

Letters to the Editor
| Columbus Dispatch

We can’t believe our eyes

Re “AI political ads bring fears over ’26 election,” May 27: I fully support House Bill 185. It probably doesn’t go far enough. This is a prime example of “don’t believe everything you see on the Internet.”

I am being inundated with emails and text messages from organizations and people I do not know. I block them as spam, but it doesn’t seem to do any good. About the only way to combat this is to attend a live debate between candidates, but most people do not have the time to do that.

I use AI every day with caution. We need better ways of identifying AI-created falsehoods.

Edwin Heller, Dublin

Tell voters what’s real

Re “AI political ads bring fears over ’26 election,” May 27: I don’t think AI should be used in political ads, but there is no way to stop it.What we can and should do is require campaigns to certify that their ad did or did not use AI to generate or edit content that:

Makes a real person appear to say or do something they didn’t say or do.
Alters footage of a real event or place.
Generates a realistic-looking scene that didn’t actually occur.

We grade movie content. Why not political advertising? The public needs a way to help distinguish truth from fiction.

Richard Wires, Columbus

Ban political ads, already

Re “AI political ads bring fears over ’26 election,” May 27: Political ads should be banned. Those using – AI-generated or not. I don’t trust anything I read online anymore, and especially political ads.

People read/see those ads, don’t research the information in them, and vote according to, oftentimes, the misinformation in those ads. The huge amounts of money being spent on ads is sinful!

Lyn Miller, Smithville

Food cuts hurt hungry families

While President Donald Trump and Republicans continually find new ways to enrich their billionaire funders and friends, they’ve made the largest cuts to SNAP in history, making it more difficult for over 40 million Americans, including 16 million children and 8 million seniors, to access healthy foods and forcing them to rely on the cheapest foods (usually the most ultra-processed}.

They’re especially hurting American children and setting them up for worse health outcomes than previous generations by making it harder for them to access healthy foods.

They’ve cut funding to support farm-to-school programs and food banks, passed the largest cut to food assistance in history, and are pushing to end the decades-old practice of putting fluoride in water to reduce tooth decay. Most appalling, they’ve even allowed food companies to use cancer-causing chemicals in snack foods targeted to children.

Meanwhile, they’ve allowed food companies to take advantage of inflation to raise prices to increase their profits. A Kroger executive suggested that inflation is good for business when he testified the chain has hiked the milk and eggs prices beyond the costs from inflation.

This is one more reason that we must do all we can to get Republicans out of office.

Russ Smith, Strongsville

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Ohio

I-TEAM: FBI searches multiple Stansley Mining properties in NW Ohio

Published

14 hours ago

May 29, 2026

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I-TEAM: FBI searches multiple Stansley Mining properties in NW Ohio

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – The FBI was part of a search of multiple properties related to Stansley Mining on Friday, a spokesperson for the agency confirmed.

A Public Affairs Officer for the FBI Cleveland Division confirmed to the 13 Action News I-TEAM that authorities searched a business in the area of Siliva Road in Sylvania, as well as property in Ottawa County by State Route 590 in Benton Township.

Officials with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation told the 13 Action News I-TEAM that they executed a search warrant at the property in Benton Township. Ohio BCI’s environmental division and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency were involved in the search.

It’s unclear exactly what officials were looking for. The FBI spokesperson said there wasn’t additional information to share at this point, but added there is no threat to the public.

Stansley Mining is the entity that owns Rocky Ridge Development, a company at the center of extensive 13 Action News coverage after its South Toledo mining operation was improperly working in a residentially-zoned area.

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Ohio

A punk-rock comeback: Melt’s Matt Fish ready to open new Ohio City restaurant

Published

1 day ago

May 29, 2026

Press Room

A punk-rock comeback: Melt’s Matt Fish ready to open new Ohio City restaurant

CLEVELAND, Ohio — A critically acclaimed name in Cleveland’s food scene is making a comeback of sorts and entering a new era in the food and restaurant business.

After the official closure of Melt Bar and Grilled locations across the area in late 2024, founder Matt Fish is stepping back into the restaurant business with a brand-new concept in Ohio City.

More Melts close

Fish is preparing to open “Proof Public House” inside the former Proof BBQ space along Lorain Avenue.

The new restaurant and bar is expected to officially open in mid-June after recently obtaining its food service license.

The announcement was just made on the restaurant’s official Instagram page this week.

But Fish says this project is very different from Melt’s previous projects, with more than a dozen locations across Ohio.

“I’m starting from scratch. Brand new concept. Brand new feeling, brand new attitude,” Fish said. “I wanna get back to basics.”

Fish describes Proof Public House as a punk rock-inspired neighborhood bar and restaurant with elevated comfort food, craft drinks, and an evolving seasonal menu.

“I’ve always wanted to get back to my roots,” Fish said. “I’ve always wanted to get back to a small place and recapture that magic of what Melt Bar and Grilled was when it first opened up.”

The longtime chef and restaurateur says music and creativity will help define the atmosphere and capture the essence.

Fish grew up on punk rock music and is also a drummer.

He says Cleveland’s history and punk rock roots make this latest project feel even more special.

The menu, he says, will feature chef-driven comfort food with rotating seasonal dishes and a specialized beverage program.

“Just have fun with the menu,” Fish said. “The beverage program will be very seasonal. It’s gonna be very evolving.”

Although many fans still associate Fish with the iconic grilled cheese sandwiches that helped make Melt Bar and Grilled a Northeast Ohio staple after opening in 2006, he says this new chapter is about moving forward.

“That part of my life is over and gone, but it was something special to so many of us,” Fish said.

Still, longtime Melt fans may notice subtle nods to the past.

Fish hinted there would be occasional “odes to Melt” appearing on the menu in the future, in some capacity.

He also credits former Proof BBQ and current Visible Voice Books owner Dave Ferrante for encouraging him to jump back into the hospitality business.

Fish quietly consulted on projects behind the scenes after Melt’s closure, including work connected to Visible Voice.

“I want to do something for myself, do something for the City of Cleveland, do something for my family and friends,” Fish said.

Proof Public House is expected to announce an official opening date soon.

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