Kentucky showed "sheer resolve" to fight back against Duke

The Wildcats made some important adjustments in the second half.

Nov 12, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Kentucky Wildcats players react after defeating the Duke Blue Devils at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Kentucky had their first big test of the season on Tuesday night against Duke, and the Blue Devils had them on the ropes for a big portion of the game. The Wildcats were down nine points at halftime, but they made some adjustments at the break and during the second half that helped propel them to the big win over No. 6 Duke.

It wasn't just the adjustments in general on the court. It was a big mental change, and Mark Pope says they came out in the second half with incredible "resolve" and determination. They showed it by clawing back and showing fight, making big plays to get the win.

"I was really proud of how the guys came out in the second half. We're always trying to monitor our energy on our team. The guys are really conscious of where they're letting their minds go. The last ten minutes of the first half was really frustrating. We gave up 46 points. That's not characteristic of us. It's not who we are as a team. We had 7 turnovers in the first half. That's not characteristic of us. ...What I was really proud of is guys went and sat in the locker room and all it was, was constructive. The guys do most of the fixing before I even get in the locker room. You could see that the way they came out to start the second half. It was just sheer resolve and determination."

- Pope on the 2nd half turnaround.

Pope knows it can be tough mentally to stay in it when you're struggling, but the competitiveness of this Kentucky team helps carry them. The incredible resilience of the team is a big part of what kept them in it and fighting back. The whole team makes that an emphasis.

"They have all fail-safes. There's fail-safes everywhere. Mostly the fail-safes just comes from their competitive spirit. We have a whole bunch of that. Andrew (Carr) mentioned this, but our guys have been really focused on, when things are going tough, it is the psychology of us as human beings that we start to communicate less, we start to get lost in our own heads, and literally and figuratively you start to turn away from the huddle. Our guys are incredibly intentional about fighting that and they're like, no we're gonna turn back to each other. You mentioned guys putting their arm around Jaxson (Robinson). That's not just natural. They're fighting actually to make that happen. That's one of the blessings of having beautiful guys on the team."

- Pope on the team's psychology.

Kentucky's mental state translated to their on-court success on Tuesday night, and now Mark Pope has his first signature win as the head coach of Kentucky. The Wildcats made key plays in key moments, and they stayed poised when their backs were against the wall.