Kentucky
Arkansas vs. Kentucky: How are both sides of John Calipari’s shocking move faring in Year 1?
Last April, on the eve of the men’s national championship game, John Calipari sent shockwaves through college basketball. With the sport focused on the looming heavyweight matchup of reigning champ UConn and Zach Edey-led Purdue, Calipari’s departure from Kentucky, where he had made four Final Fours and won a national title in 15 years as coach, to take over at Arkansas left fans and media members alike flabbergasted.
The ensuing Kentucky coaching search had its twists and turns, but it ultimately landed on beloved alum Mark Pope, previously the coach at BYU. Replacing the larger-than-life Calipari was an unenviable task, and the fact Calipari had landed with an SEC rival ensured the performance of the two coaches would be inextricably linked.
It also ensured Calipari’s return to Rupp Arena would be one of the most anticipated games of the 2024-25 season. Saturday is the Razorbacks and Wildcats’ only scheduled meeting this year, and if the returns of Chris Beard to Texas Tech and Ed Cooley to Providence taught us anything, it’s that college hoops fans will stage quite a spectacle to express their animosity toward a coach who abandons them for a league foe.
Of course, Kentucky fans are likely quite pleased with the tradeoff at this point. Pope’s energy and fan engagement — he brought back former UK coach Rick Pitino for the team’s preseason showcase in October, among other PR victories — has reinvigorated Big Blue Nation, and Kentucky’s 15-5 start with wins over Duke, Florida, Louisville and most recently Tennessee has only fueled the fervor.
Contrast that success with Calipari’s first Arkansas team, which needed six tries to notch its first SEC win of the year, and Kentucky fans figure to have plenty of ammunition Saturday. The Razorbacks are just 12-8 overall, and their 1-6 start to SEC play has them looking like a long shot for an NCAA Tournament berth.
So how did each squad get to Saturday night? Can the underdog Hogs play spoiler for their coach, or will the stars of Pope’s instant rebuild give Kentucky fans even more bragging rights over their departed boss?
Kentucky: Offense humming, starters hurting
Pope and Calipari had to rebuild their rosters from scratch this offseason, turning to the transfer portal to load up on instant-impact talent. But Pope’s haul has fit better together on the floor.
At BYU, Pope directed elite offensive units, emphasizing skill, spacing and unselfishness to put pressure on the opposing defense. His final squad in Provo ranked 14th in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency rankings, fueled by high-volume shooting (No. 4 in Division I in 3-point attempt rate) and pinpoint passing (No. 6 in assist rate).
His first Kentucky team is built similarly, with Cougars leading scorer Jaxson Robinson transferring in as a key building block. Robinson and Dayton transfer Koby Brea have given this Kentucky team two lethal perimeter weapons that command the defense’s full attention wherever they are on the court.
Every coach wants shooting — that does not make Pope unique. Neither does his five-out offense that strives to keep the paint open for drives and cuts by allowing all five players to operate from beyond the 3-point line. But structurally, his offenses have a more unconventional look. Kentucky constantly uses its centers as initiators at the top of the key, and Amari Williams (10th in the SEC in assist rate) and Brandon Garrison (25th) were perfect fits from the portal.
Williams’ skills allow Pope to use him in a variety of ways. He is most often a triggerman in dribble handoffs, but he flashed some vision as a pick-and-roll ballhandler against Tennessee on Tuesday:
As jumbo ball screen operators go, Williams is not quite on the level of Michigan 7-footer Danny Wolf, but he does add a different element to the attack. Defending the Wildcats is a special challenge because of their bigs’ pristine passing.
For Kentucky fans who enjoyed last year’s explosive offense, it’s been a welcome sight to have their new coach continue the fireworks show. The Wildcats have racked up at least 90 points in 10 of their 20 games.
It’s not all sunshine and rainbows for the Wildcats, though. The defense has been leaky, to put it generously, particularly inside the arc. In SEC play, Kentucky ranks last in points per possession allowed (1.17, a gruesome number) and 2-point field goal defense (opponents are shooting 57.6 percent).
Lingering injuries have clipped Kentucky’s wings somewhat, as well. Point guard Kerr Kriisa has been out since Dec. 7 with a Jones fracture in his foot, though his erratic play vacillated between a blessing and a curse in the first month of the season. More recently, lineup mainstays Lamont Butler and Andrew Carr have missed time; the Wildcats’ win at Tennessee on Tuesday was made all the more impressive by Butler’s absence and Carr’s limited minutes.
Per CBB Analytics, Carr and Butler rank second and third on the team in Net Rating. Kentucky is not its best self when they are not on the court. Their statuses are up in the air for Saturday’s showdown.
Arkansas: A humbling start to SEC play
Calipari had to fill out a blank roster upon taking over in Fayetteville, but he managed to bring some familiar faces from Lexington along to set his foundation. DJ Wagner, Adou Thiero and Zvonimir Ivisic followed him from Kentucky, and three former UK commits — Boogie Fland, Kevin Knox and Billy Richmond — flipped their pledges to Arkansas, as well.
That core helped the Hogs get off to a solid 11-2 start, including a needle-moving win over Michigan at Madison Square Garden in December. Like every other SEC team, Arkansas entered league play with clear expectations of making the NCAA Tournament.
The SEC gantlet has gotten the best of the Hogs, though, as a 1-6 start to the conference slate has dropped Arkansas from any tournament projections. The offense has been a disaster, ranking last in both 2-point percentage and 3-point percentage against SEC competition.
Considering how potent Calipari’s final Kentucky offense was, this unit is a clear disappointment. Notably, the architect of that free-flowing system, assistant John Welch, took the associate head coach job at Fresno State this offseason. Calipari replaced him on the staff with old friend Kenny Payne, the former Wildcats assistant who most recently oversaw Louisville’s catastrophically poor run from 2022 to 2024 as head coach.
The Razorbacks’ hopes of a stretch-run rally took a hit when reports emerged in January that Fland would be sidelined for the remainder of the season (the program has announced only that he is out “indefinitely”). The incendiary freshman guard had immediately seized an alpha role as a scorer and creator, averaging 15.1 points and 5.7 assists per game. Per CBB Analytics, Arkansas was 24.5 points better per 100 possessions with Fland in the lineup.
Without him, the Razorbacks must recalibrate. Wagner’s responsibilities grow as a ballhandler, and FAU transfer Nelly Davis must backfill Fland’s scoring. Davis, who made the Final Four as the Owls’ leading scorer two years ago, responded with a season-high 18 points, albeit with shaky inefficiency, in last Saturday’s 65-62 loss to Oklahoma.
The Razorbacks’ ensuing week off might have given Calipari crucial time to tweak the Razorbacks’ approach without Fland. Still, Arkansas faces an uphill climb to reach its postseason aspirations. KenPom has the Razorbacks favored in just one of their next six games.
Emotions will be running high at Rupp Arena on Saturday night. Big Blue Nation will have all day to work itself into a fever pitch before the 9 p.m. ET tip. Calipari told reporters he expects to be booed, and similar treatment likely awaits the trio of Wildcat defectors (Thiero, Wagner and Ivisic).
But in the end, the game will be decided by the players on the court. Kentucky’s vulnerabilities in the paint could be the matchup advantage Arkansas needs to spark its offense. Thiero’s athleticism at the four spot could be a problem, especially if Carr remains limited by his back injury. Davis, though, faces a stiff challenge in the Wildcats’ top defender, Otega Oweh, a sublime athlete who will be tasked with making him uncomfortable all night. The Hogs must also bring their full focus defensively, or Williams and Garrison will slice them up with precise passing.
Kentucky is hoping to continue its climb up the seed list; the Wildcats earned a No. 3 seed in The Athletic’s most recent bracket projection. Arkansas, on the other hand, is grasping for a lifeline on its 2024-25 season. Going into Lexington and stealing a win would certainly give the Razorbacks a push in the right direction.
(Photos of Johnell Davis and Jaxson Robinson: Megan Briggs, Johnnie Izquierdo / Getty Images)
LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 10, 2026) — Growing up in Grayson County, Hollie Hagan always knew she wanted to help people. She just wasn’t sure what that looked like.
Like many students entering college, Hagan originally envisioned a career in healthcare. She planned to study nutrition and dietetics, inspired by time spent volunteering at her local food pantry. But an internship with the Grayson County Health Department during her senior year of high school introduced her to a field she hadn’t even realized existed — public health.
“I had no clue what a health department does or even what public health was,” Hagan said. “Then I got there and saw all the ways they were helping people, both directly and indirectly. I thought, ‘This is something I really want to be a part of.’”
That experience changed everything.
Alongside her coursework, she has served as a College of Public Health senator in the Student Government Association, has moderated public health panels and is participating in the Rural Public Health Scholars Program, a combination of course- and fieldwork that places students in rural communities to work on projects aimed at improving health outcomes.
But throughout those experiences, one goal has remained constant — returning to the community that helped shape her.
“I’ve realized that with public health you can make an impact on any level,” said Hagan, who is also a Lewis Honors College student. “For me, I want to be at the local level helping people.”
That desire has been evident since she first arrived at the Grayson County Health Department.
Josh Horton, public health director for the Grayson County Health Department, said Hagan quickly distinguished herself through both her work ethic and willingness to learn.
“Hollie has always been a very capable person,” he said. “You just give her instructions, and she runs with it.”
While Hagan entered her high school internship knowing she was interested in leadership, Horton watched her interests evolve as she gained firsthand experience in public health.
“When she came back to us and said, ‘I want to do something in public health,’ that was a reminder of why we’re doing what we’re doing,” Horton said. “Our goal has always been to inspire people to go into public health. We’d love for them to come back to Grayson County, but as long as they end up serving somewhere in public health, we consider it a win.”
For Hagan, public health offered something she hadn’t found elsewhere — the opportunity to create ripple effects that improve the health and well-being of entire communities.
“I think it’s important to learn about health at a community level,” she said. “You’re not just learning how to treat one person. You’re learning how to impact everyone in a community, which I think is just so amazing and unique.”
Her time at the College of Public Health has given Hagan opportunities to grow both as a student and a leader. One of those experiences came when she moderated the Big Blue Public Health Illumination Seminar Series on Summer Safety and Emergency Preparedness, bringing together public health professionals and community leaders for a discussion on issues affecting Kentucky communities.
Hosting her first public health panel was intimidating, she said, but it quickly became one of her most rewarding experiences.
“Once the conversation got going, I found myself learning just as much as everyone else in the room,” Hagan said. “We had such a great group of panelists, and it really highlighted the work happening in rural communities.”
Among those panelists was Horton, who saw Hagan confidently guide conversations around the very work she’d experienced during her internship.
“To see her take what she learned here in Grayson County and then lead a panel discussing those ideas at the university was exciting,” he said. “It’s rewarding because it reminds us why we invest in students.”
This summer, Hagan has returned to Grayson County for her fieldwork portion of the Rural Public Health Scholars Program, continuing to build experience in environmental health — an area she now hopes to pursue professionally as a registered environmental health specialist.
Long term, she sees herself building a career in rural public health.
“I like being on the go,” Hagan said. “I like being out in the community, doing site visits, talking with people and making a difference.”
For Horton, that commitment reflects something deeper than career ambition.
“It takes a certain heart to stay in rural public health,” he said. “There are opportunities to go elsewhere, but people who choose rural communities do it because they want to serve. Hollie has that same heart.”
Looking back, Hagan never expected a high school job-shadowing experience and a food pantry volunteer position would lead her to public health. Now, she hopes other students discover the field just as she did.
“If you want to have a larger impact, come to the College of Public Health,” she said. “You’ll learn how to improve the health of an entire community.”
For Hagan, that community has always been Grayson County—and she hopes one day to return home and help it thrive.
FRANKFORT, Ky. (WKYT) – The Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet has released new information regarding the release of the man convicted in the death of Logan Tipton.
Ronald Exantus, 42, will be released from the Kentucky State Reformatory on July 29. Still, before that, he may be subject to involuntary hospitalization due to his not being found guilty by reason of insanity on one count of murder and one count of burglary.
According to a letter sent on June 5 by the cabinet to Chief Circuit Court Judge Jeremy Mattox, Commonwealth’s Attorney Kelli Kearney, and Department of Public Advocacy Directing Attorney Josh Miller, the court has the opportunity to begin involuntary hospitalization proceedings against Exantus, as mentioned in the judgment against him.
READ THE LETTER BELOW
Per Kentucky law, when a defendant is found not guilty by reason of insanity, the court shall order an involuntary hospitalization; the court may also order a 10-day detention period to allow proceedings to be initiated.
The cabinet states in the letter that it does not have the authority to initiate the proceedings because Exantus was found guility but mentally on three counts of assault.
WKYT has reached out to the Woodford County Commonwealth’s Attorney and the Department of Public Advocacy to ask whether involuntary hospitalization procedures are being initiated in this case. We have yet to hear back.
Copyright 2026 WKYT. All rights reserved.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Kentucky state lawmakers held a town hall Wednesday night at the South Central Regional Library in south Louisville to hear directly from residents about concerns over hyperscale AI data centers — one of several public meetings on the issue in recent months, but the first organized by legislators themselves.
State senators and representatives convened the meeting on their own time, during the legislative off-season, ahead of January’s session.
“This is a time to bring people together, allow community to have their voice heard, and us take that information back so when it does come time for January, we have the right information in order to create policy that is going to be good for our constituents,” said Sen. Keturah Herron.
Residents, advocates, and organizers packed the library to raise concerns about energy demand, water use, noise, transparency, and whether costs would be passed to everyday utility customers.
Rep. Lisa Wellner cautioned that the legislative fight ahead would be difficult.
“The utilities lobby is very, very powerful in Frankfort…These are going to be the same powerful moneyed forces we’re going to be up against with these hyperscale data centers,” Wellner said.
Sen. Gary Clemons, a 30-year chemical industry veteran, drew a comparison between the potential impact of AI data centers and the effects of factories already bordering some Louisville neighborhoods.
“I negotiate with multi-million, billion dollar companies every day. I’m ready to go toe-to-toe with them now, if we’re ready to do it,” Clemons said.
U.S. Rep. Morgan McGarvey also attended the meeting.
“I am sick and tired and done with out-of-state corporations coming into our state, our home, our community — and using our resources, wasting and exploiting our people for their gain,” McGarvey said.
Attendee Virginia Bush, who came with a list of concerns about the city’s draft regulations, said halting data centers entirely was not realistic but that inaction was not an option.
“We know it’s not realistic to stop all of them, because people use the data in their everyday life…but they need to be regulated so that these things aren’t causing damage to the communities and to the environment,” Bush said.
Copyright 2026 WAVE. All rights reserved.
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