Kentucky
Pope seeking solutions to Cats' foul woes, free-throw deficits
Five games into league play, Kentucky has a foul problem.
The No. 9 Wildcats are committing far too many of them in SEC games and are not drawing many of their own, leading to a major free-throw discrepancy.
On Monday during his weekly radio call-in show, UK head coach Mark Pope said the staff has spent “an insane amount of time” trying to find solutions.
“We’ve gone back and tried to categorize every type of foul that’s been called on us over the last five games, and we’re seeing some trends where we can really, really aggressively attack and make some strides,” Pope said.
The UK staff has a good opportunity to make adjustments this week as the Cats have an “open date” of sorts with no mid-week game. Their next game will come Saturday at Vanderbilt.
“As we did a sweeping review, kind of with video and analytics on the fouls, we found some trends that are really important,” Pope said. “I’m not going to talk about those publicly because I’m sure that Vanderbilt is watching right now. (laughs) But it has given us some real direction, and I think there’s a good chance that we have a chance to make some massive improvements.”
Kentucky (14-4, 3-2 SEC) boasts the No. 2 offense in the nation at 89.2 points per game and also ranks second in Ken Pomeroy’s offensive efficiency rankings, but the Cats are doing it without the benefit of the so-called “charity stripe.”
Pope’s squad currently ranks No. 151 nationally in FTA/FGA rate. That also puts them eighth in the new 16-team SEC.
Even more alarming is the staggering pace that league rivals are parading to the line. Kentucky ranks last in FTA/FGA defensive rate during conference play. In their two losses, the Cats have watched as Georgia and Alabama combined to shoot 72 free throws while they attempted only 39.
Overall, SEC opponents have attempted 150 free throws to Kentucky’s 113.
The shortcoming has contributed to UK losing two games in which it made more baskets than the opponent. In the case of Saturday’s 102-97 loss to the No. 4 Crimson Tide, the Cats won almost every statistical column with the exception of trips to the line.
Pope, who is in his first season at Kentucky after spending the last five at BYU in the Big 12 and West Coast Conference, says it has taken some time to adjust to the way games are called in the rugged SEC.
“You talk about learning this league and learning the whistle,” he said. “That’s a genuine thing. There are times when, internally and externally, I lose my mind with some of the officiating, but the truth is that usually, when you go back and watch the film, the officiating may not be what you’re used to or how you would correlate things with the book, but there is some things in the consistency of the officiating that, while it may be surprising to us, it’s teaching us a lot.”
GRAYSON, Ky. (WSAZ) – New information has been released in the search for a missing woman at Grayson Lake.
According to game wardens with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Marly Kinney, 19, of Ashland, was last seen at Grayson Lake on Wednesday afternoon.
They say search efforts are focused on the water at this time and include Kentucky State Police aerial support, drones, boats, and K9 assistance.
Crews suspend search for missing teen for the night
The search is now into its third day, with officials saying on and off rain has hindered their search and that a group of 50 volunteers are walking the banks of the lake to help in the search.
Search and rescue boats have been seen at the lake as well.
Officials say there are still many questions, including if Kinney is still alive and where exactly she went missing.
They also say they’ve been using a variety of equipment, including sonar and thermal detectors, as well as helicopters and underwater drones.
WSAZ received a statement from Kinney’s family Friday afternoon:
“We are very appreciative of the absolute surplus of support from law enforcement, search and rescue, 1st responders, and all of the community and its volunteers that are here with us and for us searching for Marly. We do not even know how to express our absolute gratitude to you all. We continue to have faith she will be found and brought back to us. We know we have the very best people doing all they can to bring her home.”
Anyone with information is asked to call 911.
We are still working to get more information.
Previous coverage can be found here.
Copyright 2026 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
13 things more likely to happen than winning the Powerball jackpot
Hoping to win the Powerball jackpot? Here are 13 things more likely to happen than becoming an instant millionaire.
The Kentucky Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Thursday, June 25, 2026 winning numbers for each game.
Cash Ball
02-08-24-32, Cash Ball: 09
Check Cash Ball payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 3
Evening: 6-3-0
Midday: 9-6-0
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 4
Evening: 5-7-6-0
Midday: 5-2-6-6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Millionaire for Life
03-13-14-34-45, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Courier Journal digital producer. You can send feedback using this form.
On Thursday, Kentucky’s home and away SEC opponents for the 2026-27 season were revealed and on top of learning the three opponents who they will play twice, there are some very intriguing matchups. In conference play, Kentucky will face six teams who are among the top 25 in many preseason rankings.
In SEC play, Kentucky will play Tennessee, Vandy and Ole Miss all both home and away. The home matchups include Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vandy. As for the road tilts, the Wildcats will face Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee and Vandy. Let’s take a look at some interesting developments from the schedule release.
John Calipari returns to Rupp Arena (again)
In Calipari’s first year with Arkansas, he got the best of Kentucky when he came into Rupp Arena and left with a 10-point victory, a game where you could really feel the tension all game long in the building from Kentucky fans, which translated onto the court with the players. Last season, it was Kentucky who shocked everyone when they stole one on the road against a top 20 Arkansas team after a rough up-and-down season up to that point. Now, the two will face off again as Kentucky will look to get the win in Rupp and make sure Calipari doesn’t get two in a row in the building. It’ll be another highly-anticipated showdown.
Kentucky hits the road at Texas
This is shaping up to be a major challenge for Kentucky next season and may even end up being one of the biggest games of the season. Texas is seen by many as a clear top 10 team, with some even having them within the top five and when you combine that with the fact that the game is on the road, the Wildcats will have their hands full. The Wildcats fell to the longhorns in the 2024-25 season, and it’ll be a much stiffer challenge this time.
Which game could be a trap?
We don’t have the game-by-game dates yet, so it’s hard to say with a lot of confidence, but opponent-wise, Georgia could really give Kentucky fits. In Pope’s first year, his team struggled handling the physicality of the Bulldogs and now, they’ve retained one of their best guards for another year and have added physicality through the portal. Mike White’s teams love to make opponents uncomfortable and they could do that once again down in Athens. Another sneaky team to watch is Oklahoma, who will have very good guard play. Kentucky will face both teams on the road.
Overall, it’s a pretty fair SEC schedule for a Kentucky team who has the capability of a return to being atop the conference once again. Mark Pope has such a system-fit squad and he can do some damage in the SEC.
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