Initially, many Kentucky fans weren’t sold on Pope, whose BYU team made an early exit from the NCAA Tournament last March. He didn’t have the sexy resume, wasn’t drenched in

The Kentucky Wildcats are transitioning into a new era under Mark Pope. Even so, they’re still a blue-collar program, and, as such, they’re expected to compete at the highest level. That’s why it’s been so frustrating to watch them get off to slow starts and dig themselves into big holes to start games.

There’s more at stake in Tuesday night’s Kentucky-Tennessee basketball game than simply a win against an SEC rival.