Mark Pope's approach to big games will help his team stay grounded in big moments

Mark Pope will take the one game at a time approach.

Oct 15, 2024; Birmingham, AL, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope talks with the media during SEC Media Days at Grand Bohemian Hotel. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images / Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

Mark Pope, at a recent press conference, was asked about the upcoming game against the Duke Blue Devils, and he gave a perfect answer. The Wildcat's new head coach talked about how while that game is a big one, so is every game on their schedule, including the Blue-White Game, the exhibition games, and the first few games of the season before Duke.

Coach Pope and his players obviously know the importance of the game against the Duke Blue Devils, but they also know that if focus goes to that game too early in the season, they could drop a game to a team they shouldn't, and this could hurt NET rankings as well as KenPom.

Coach Pope and the Wildcats have a very tough non-conference schedule with games against Duke, Clemson, Ohio State, Louisville, and Gonzaga, so this team can't put their focus on one game. They need to take this schedule one game at a time.

This is exactly how a head coach needs to prepare his team for a game, and that is what Coach Pope has done. Luckily, Kentucky's team is full of veterans, so they won't have trouble keeping their focus on the game coming up every week, but having a coach with this mentality will always help.

The little things win basketball games, and having a coach like Mark Pope, who is always focused on the little things, is going to help him have a successful tenure at Kentucky. While this is all true, Big Blue Nation rightfully has the game against Duke bookmarked.