Expectations have changed drastically for Mark Pope at Kentucky in year two

In year one, the expectations for newly hired Kentucky head coach Mark Pope were not that high. He had to put together a roster made up of transfer portal players and only had about a month to do it.

Despite all of this and dealing with injuries all season long, the Wildcats found a way to earn a three seed and make it to the Sweet 16. Pope did an excellent job getting the fan base fully behind him in year one, but the expectations in year two have changed, and Pope is ready.

The Wildcats will head into the 2025-26 season as a top ten team, and this means Coach Pope's team will have top ten expectations.

The roster is packed with talent all over the floor, including a few five-star freshmen and a player in Jayden Quaintance who will be a top five pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

Once again, the SEC schedule won't be forgiving, and the Wildcats have some tough non-conference opponents like St. John's, Louisville, Indiana, Michigan State, and Gonzaga.

Last season, making the Sweet 16 exceeded expectations for year one of the new staff, but this season, this team needs to make it past the Sweet 16, and Coach Pope is up to the challenge.

At Kentucky, the expectation should always be to make Final Four runs and win National Titles. That has not been the case of late, but as Coach Pope likes to say, he understands the assignment and is ready to take Kentucky basketball back to what it should be.