SEATTLE — Mark Pope graduated from Newport High School in Bellevue, Washington. It’s barely 12 miles from Climate Pledge Arena, where Pope, in his first year as Kentucky basketball‘s coach, will lead his team into a high-profile nonconference clash with Gonzaga.
Pope admitted he isn’t back in the Seattle metropolitan area much these days, so he’s “excited” for tonight. To see his high school teammates. To see his coach at Newport, Richard Belcher. And more.
“My parents don’t live in Seattle anymore, but a bunch of my siblings do,” Pope said. “I’ll get to see them. They’ll be at the game. Seattle is a great city, and I have a ton of love for it.”
Just don’t ask Pope about how many ticket requests he’s received.
“I don’t have an estimate on numbers that I’m going to give you, and I’m not going to tell you how much it’s going to cost me,” Pope said with a laugh. “It’s just fun. Just super fun.”
Pope and the Wildcats will enjoy the trip more if they come back with a win. Especially since they’re coming off their first loss of the season: a 70-66 road setback to Clemson on Tuesday.
Both UK and Gonzaga are ranked in the top 10 of the latest USA TODAY Coaches Poll; the Wildcats are No. 6, two spots ahead of the Bulldogs. Both also are 7-1 on the season.
One will improve to 8-1 tonight, while the other will fall to 7-2.
Who will it be?
Follow along below with live updates from Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle:
The contest between the Wildcats and Bulldogs will air on ESPN2. Jon Sciambi (play-by-play) and Jimmy Dykes (analyst) will have the call.
Authenticated subscribers can access ESPN2 via TV-connected devices or by going to WatchESPN.com, the WatchESPN app or ESPN+.
You also can stream ESPN2 on Fubo.
Tom Leach (play-by-play) and Jack Givens (analyst) will have the UK radio network call on 840 AM in Louisville and both 630 AM and 98.1 FM in Lexington.
You can also listen online via UKAthletics.com.
Betting odds: Kentucky is a 6½-point neutral-site underdog (-115) on BetMGM, which set the over/under at 166½ points (-110).
- Oct. 23: exhibition vs. Kentucky Wesleyan ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 123, Kentucky Wesleyan 52
- Oct. 29: exhibition vs. Minnesota State Mankato ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 98, Minnesota State Mankato 67
- Nov. 4: vs. Wright State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 103, Wright State 62
- Nov. 9: vs. Bucknell (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 100, Bucknell 72
- Nov. 12: vs. Duke (Champions Classic; State Farm Arena, Atlanta) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 77, Duke 72
- Nov. 19: vs. Lipscomb, (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 97, Lipscomb 68
- Nov. 22: vs. Jackson State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 108, Jackson State 59
- Nov. 26: vs. Western Kentucky (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 87, Western Kentucky 68
- Nov. 29: vs. Georgia State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 105, Georgia State 76
- Dec. 3: at Clemson (ACC/SEC Challenge) ∣ SCORE: Clemson 70, Kentucky 66
- Dec. 7: vs. Gonzaga (Climate Pledge Arena; Seattle), 10 p.m., ESPN2
- Dec. 11: vs. Colgate (Rupp Arena), 8 p.m., ESPN2
- Dec. 14: vs. Louisville (Rupp Arena), 5:15 p.m., ESPN
- Dec. 21: vs. Ohio State (CBS Sports Classic; Madison Square Garden, New York), 5:30 p.m., CBS
- Dec. 31: vs. Brown (Rupp Arena), 2 p.m., ESPNU
- Jan. 4: vs. Florida (Rupp Arena), 11 a.m., ESPN
- Jan. 7: at Georgia, 7 p.m., SEC Network
- Jan. 11: at Mississippi State, 8:30 p.m., SEC Network
- Jan. 14: vs. Texas A&M (Rupp Arena), 7 p.m., ESPN2/ESPNU
- Jan. 18: vs. Alabama (Rupp Arena), noon, ESPN
- Jan. 25: at Vanderbilt, 2:30 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2
- Jan. 28: at Tennessee, 7 p.m., ESPN
- Feb. 1: vs. Arkansas (Rupp Arena), 9 p.m., ESPN
- Feb. 4: at Ole Miss, 7 p.m., ESPN
- Feb. 8: vs. South Carolina (Rupp Arena), noon, ESPN/ESPN2
- Feb. 11: vs. Tennessee (Rupp Arena), 7 p.m., ESPN
- Feb. 15: at Texas, 8 p.m., ESPN
- Feb. 19: vs. Vanderbilt (Rupp Arena), 7 p.m., SEC Network
- Feb. 22: at Alabama, 6 p.m., ESPN
- Feb. 26: at Oklahoma, 9 p.m., SEC Network
- March 1: vs. Auburn (Rupp Arena), 1/4 p.m., ABC/ESPN
- March 4: vs. LSU (Rupp Arena), 7/9 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU
- March 8: at Missouri, noon, ESPN/SEC Network
Record: 7-1
- Ansley Almonor (forward, senior)
- Koby Brea (guard, graduate)
- Lamont Butler (guard, graduate)
- Andrew Carr (forward, graduate)
- Collin Chandler (guard, freshman)
- Grant Darbyshire (guard, junior)
- Brandon Garrison (forward, sophomore)
- Walker Horn (guard, junior)
- Kerr Kriisa (guard, senior)
- Trent Noah (forward, freshman)
- Otega Oweh (guard, junior)
- Travis Perry (guard, freshman)
- Jaxson Robinson (guard, graduate)
- Zach Tow (forward, junior)
- Amari Williams (center, graduate)
Gonzaga went 27-8 overall last season, posting a 14-2 mark in West Coast Conference play. Its season ended in an 80-68 loss to Purdue in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Bulldogs are 7-1 this season. They have wins over Baylor, Arizona State, UMass Lowell, San Diego State, Long Beach State, Indiana and Davidson; their lone loss was an 86-78 setback to West Virginia, in overtime, in the Battle 4 Atlantis event.
Click here to see the Bulldogs’ full 2024-25 schedule.
Want to learn the Bulldogs’ roster?
Click here for player bios and more.
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Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
