Mark Pope left BYU 10 months ago to return to his alma mater Kentucky, where he plied his craft at the direction of legendary coach Rick Pitino. Now, as head coach roaming the sidelines of Rupp Arena, that leap of faith is paying off big time.

Vols senior point guard Zakai Zeigler, who injured his right knee late in the first half, returned to action and scored 13 points but was only 1-of-10 from 3-point range. Igor Milicic led Tennessee with 19 points and nine rebounds, while Lanier had 15 points and was 3-of-10 on 3-point tries.

It’s impossible to dispute the impact Rick Pitino has had in his 54-game tenure with St. John’s. The Johnnies were playing as well as anyone last year when the NCAA Tournament decided to treat the Big East like a mid-major. The three games they’ve lost this year have been by five skinny points.

Kentucky's Mark Pope started his coaching career at Rupp Arena with 11 straight wins. How does that start compare to other first-year UK coaches?

The No. 8 Vols will host the No. 12 Wildcats on Tuesday, but this matchup is different from years past. For the first time in 15 years, John Calipari will

Before Mark Pope’s first visit to Memorial Gym as Kentucky’s coach, he strolled down memory lane to recall some funny moments from road games as a player.

After defeating No. 14 Mississippi State and losing at No. 1 Auburn last week, the Volunteers are taxed this week with home games against No. 12 Kentucky and No. 5 Florida. Tennessee is No. 8 in the latest Associated Press poll, dropping two spots after Saturday night's 53-51 setback against Bruce Pearl's Tigers.

A sophomore, part-time starter, Wilcher is averaging three triples per game and shooting 30.5 percent from distance.

As No. 9 Kentucky prepares to take on Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium this Saturday, Mark Pope is gearing up for his first visit back to the iconic venue since his days as a Wildcat.

The No. 9 Wildcats took advantage of a rare week off to heal up for the rest of the season. Kentucky coach Mark Pope said the Wildcats (14-4, 3-2) will have a healthier roster available when his squad returns to the court Saturday at Vanderbilt.

LEXINGTON — John Calipari and Rick Pitino aren't just the two most well-known ex-Kentucky ... Kentucky's most recent leader prior to Mark Pope, former coach John Calipari guided the program for 15 seasons. He left as the school's second-winningest ...

No. 6 Kentucky won at No. 14 Mississippi State ( 95-90). Dropped to No. 8 due to a loss at Georgia the prior week, UK then came home to beat No. 11 Texas A&M (81-69) but lost 102-97 to No. 4 Alabama.