On one of men’s college basketball’s biggest regular-season stages, Kentucky coaching made a decisive difference as the No. 19 Wildcats upset No. 6 Duke 77-72 in the Champions Classic before an exuberant crowd of 16,107 at State Farm Arena.

Pope played two seasons at Kentucky, winning a national championship with the program in 1996 under legendary coach Rick Pitino. Following five seasons piloting BYU, Pope accepted the head job for the Wildcats this past April to succeed John Calipari.

Hating Kentucky isn’t cool or fun anymore because Kentucky’s coach is both. Mark Pope is relentlessly likable, which means Kentucky basketball has become likable. Adjust accordingly.

Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats made the trip to Atlanta, or as it is better known in Lexington, 'Catlanta,' to take on the #6 Duke Blue Devils, and the Wil

It wasn't an easy decision, but when Mark Pope decided to return to coach his alma mater, he took on all the pressure of UK fandom.

After a decade and a half with Kentucky, former Wildcats head coach John Calipari is no longer leading the program. Now the head coach at Arkansas, the longtime face of the team brought a few of his former players to a new school in the SEC. In his absence, former BYU head coach Mark Pope is now running the show for Kentucky.

When longtime Kentucky coach John Calipari left for Arkansas, replacement Mark Pope had only one way to build a roster: the transfer portal. Tuesday's win over Duke showed he made all the right choices.