Kentucky-Little Rock Postgame Quotes
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY MEN’S BASKETBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE
October 16, 2026
Lexington, Kentucky, USA
Coach Mark Pope
Press Conference
Kentucky – 69, Little Rock – 49
MARK POPE: First, a special note. That we lost Coach Hagan. He is a legend in so many ways here. He was such a great friend of the program. He was a champion here. I thought it was really nice, it was nice that we could be in Rupp Arena altogether and have a moment of silence for him and our prayers go out to his family for sure. It was a really good not for our guys, I was so proud. For us to hold his team to 49 points when we turn it over 19 times, we are really excited about that. We walked in the game with our main focus being on the catch, on the catch, on the catch, we held them at 10% from the three-point line. And our contest rate in the first half was 81%, which is elite level. We dropped it 60% in the half because we got a little belligerent with fouls and we thought we were a contest legal team. I was pleased with us on the glass. I thought Malachi was great with 11 rebounds, Milan with 7. He had a chance, he was at 6 with 9 minutes left and he had a chance to set his all-time rebounding record. He tied it at 7. But I was really pleased with his effort on the glass. Justin McBride is the guy we were really pushing to make some contributions of the glass. He had 5 rebounds, so, I was pleased with that. Our ball screen defense in the first half, we were 81% win rate on ball screen defense, which is a really important metric for that. Our line of scrimmage was excellent in the second half. Then slid a little bit too. But overall I was really pleased with our defensive effort. You hold a team to 49 points with 19 turnovers giving them 12 points off turnovers, that’s an exceptional night. I thought we were really connected for most of the night. I’m proud of our guys. Excited to move forward. This is exactly what our guys needed. We so desperately needed to play against somebody else so that we can keep growing and learning. Couldn’t be more excited about what the guys did tonight.
Q Coach, you mentioned that 19 turnovers. Just what did you think of the ball movement, especially out of the gate there?
MARK POPE: Yeah, it’s so normal, you can almost predict it in this first night. If you think about our roster, we are so young. Which is why I’m so excited about us growing. We are eager, eager to grow. But you think you are starting a junior, a sophomore, a senior, essentially a freshman in college basketball, and a sophomore. It’s such a young group. With this group, as much as any group I’ve had, I was just excited to get them under the lights and get them kinda feeling the gym and feeling the crowd. And so it was really good for them. And we were sticky. You know the first half, we didn’t really get to a second side live ball play, which is we do every single day in practice. We didn’t get there until about 14 minutes left in the second half. I thought our guys got way better. We were a turnover machine and went for a 9 minute run with one turnover. That’s where we are going to live. I’m not overly concerned about it. We’ve been good at it, our guys have been working on it. I think that was more a product of this first time under the lights and feeling a little bit different, but our guys have been really solid protecting the ball.
Q How much does the live competition kind of help convince the guys of what you’ve been trying to tell them anyway, they kind of see it?
MARK POPE: Man, its so good. We just desperately need these games. We’ve talked about the last 10 days. These guys have worked so hard and they’ve grown so much. And we need to see other people right now. That’s why these three exhibitions are such a gift and we are playing three very, very different teams. It’s going to teach us a lot. This is the second half, the second three weeks of our three week training camp before we start the season and these games are massively important. I’m so excited to break into the film tonight. We will probably spend all night on the film and we will do a long film session with our guys. And then individual film before practice, and then individual film sessions after. And we finally have new data that’s fresh. We talked about this. One of the first things about the first three weeks of camp is that every time you have a good offensive possession, you are mad at your team because they were the ones guarding that good offensive possession. For once now we have great defensive possessions that I’m not frustrated about, you know, the team playing offense. So, this will be a fun film to dig into, I’m excited about it.
Q Coach, you talk all off season about the length of this team. Tonight you guys had 8 blocks, 9 steals. Are those the type of stats essentially you imagined when putting this team together with that length?
MARK POPE: I think we are barely touching the surface. You know, our ball screen line, scrimmage coverage, our coverage 3 was really good in the first half, and guys were open. It was just hard to see. I thought Malachi had a great presence, our guards were much better kind of had a screen by themselves early. And the second half it frayed a little bit. The star of our defense impact metric which is a combination of deflections, blocks, steals, and charges, charges don’t really exist in the game anymore. But, its really those three categories. Braydon Hawthorne was at 11 today. He was a double figure dim guy. Which he has a chance to be a difference maker. We were 32 deflections on the night. And so those numbers, our length numbers had a real impact on the game. This team, Travis has put together a good shooting team. He has 4 or 5 guys that averages 17, 18, 19 points a game and all of them were 34 to 39% shooting from 3 last year. And so for our guys to have enough impact on the game to help them on their way for a 2 for 20 shooting night from 3 is also part and parcel of our length. It’s a good sign for us.
Q Mark, –
MARK POPE: Do you see how he always smiled when he asks a question, I love it. I love it.
Q I do what I can. How important is it to have a guy like Milan who you can’t really rush him and he doesn’t really take bad shots, he doesn’t dominate the ball or need to have it long, just to kind of bring a calming presence on the floor?
MARK POPE: He’s going to be really important for our team. You can’t rush him because he doesn’t take bad shots because every shot he takes is impossible. He just makes impossible shots. His shots were really hard tonight. He just makes them. His gravity, that is what is so, you know, we had a minimalist playset tonight. We only had 7 actions the whole night, we limited ourselves and there was not a lot of creativity out there. But he is just a problem. His gravity is so elite and you got to chase him. They came in i’m sure with a focus on him because he is the best returning shooter in college basketball and he still is really difficult guard and teams have continued to send 2 and 3 defenders towards him and he’s getting better, he got downhill a couple of times I was really proud of. He had a barkly that he turned down late that I was excited about. You know, he’s a problem. And you are right, he doesn’t get rushed, he doesn’t get flustered. One night he’s going to go 0 for 7 and everyone in the gym is going to be concerned except for him. He’s like, I’ll probably finish 9 for 17. That’s just how he is.
Q I was going to ask you about Mason Williams. Is he progressing as fast as you want him to?
MARK POPE: Yeah, so Mason. It’s Interesting. I got really frustrated with Mason today. He’s 10 points, 4 assists, 1 turnover, he’s probably our most steady guard and I was just frustrated out of my mind, that’s the beauty of a freshman point guard. He’s got a really high ceiling. And we actually need him. He’s not going to get, you know, it’s fortunate for him, it’s a real gift to him that we don’t have time to wait for him. He’s got to come now. And he’s capable. And I’m really challenging him. I’m coaching him really hard right now because I have big expectations for him. If we are going to be really good, he’s got to be really good and he’s showing a lot of signs of that and he’s got too mature fast. And that’s hard to do. It’s hard to learn all the different facets of this game. But this game was a brilliant experience for him because he got to see how little things matter so much and that’s one of the things that you learn as a freshman. That there is little things, win and lose games, so there’s no little things. That’s easy to say and hard to understand. But this game helped him understand a little bit. But we have big expectations for him.
Q Mark, Kam Williams was out there warming up, looked pretty good. Do you have any updates on him at what the plan is for him?
MARK POPE: Kam had imaging again today, it was extremely positive. He’s on course. We are cautiously optimistic, because we’ve already been through this once. On this second surgery, the success rate is remarkable. The data on it is a remarkable rate. We are very, very optimistic. And with Trent, kind of struggling a little bit right now to regain his health. It makes it even more important that we get Kam back on time. So we are hopeful. Hopefully talking about several weeks to a month now, not months and months and it’s been a long time coming. And he had a good workout today. He was running and jumping in a very, very controlled place. As we’ve all seen together with Kam, we have to proceed really cautiously and we are not going to rush it. This is going to be a long-term recovery. When he gets back he’s going to make a massive difference for us.
Q Mark, Milan is such a unique shooter. When you talk about that gravity, what’s the key for other guys when you haven’t played with a guy like that to learn to play off it and use that gravity?
MARK POPE: Yeah, that is a learning process 100%. One is the process for the guys delivering the ball also. It opens up so much. Milan is a guy, I will give you specific examples. He’s really fun to play a keep game with and if you are running a zoom action and Milan is running off and your bigs gotta show, your guards gotta show. Its a fun time for a keep and we have good keep guys in Malachi and Frack and Reece. So, that’s one, there’s like 100 little tweaks like that, that are really good and when he’s playing a wide game and coming off of a stag or ball screen, it’s really interesting because your fives are going to be drawn out of position. And so it’s opportunity instead of us playing a rescreen game like we do all the time, it makes the role game really a piece of it. His gravity in the post, we didn’t show him in the post, but he’s a problem in the post. Man, he’s really skilled and he’ll barkley in the post for us and kind of start at the three-point line and back guys down. But we can also cut him in the post and that’s something we are excited about exploring more and more in his gravity is real there too. So as the guys know him more and more, it’s going to get increasingly fun to play with him. Thanks guys, have a great night.
KENTUCKY BASKETBALL POSTGAME QUOTES
KENTUCKY VS. LITTLE ROCK
RUPP ARENA – LEXINGTON, KY.
OCTOBER 16, 2026
#4 Mason Williams, G
On joining a team with veteran players as a freshman …
“I watch the guys and what they do. I pay attention to how Milan speaks, when he goes to practice. A guy that has done big things, he’s just someone to really pay attention to. Just paying attention and being coachable are the biggest things.”
On his relationship with his dad compared to other players…
“He coaches me the same way as everyone else. He’s my dad, there’s no sugar coating. We did a workout 25 minutes before the game he didn’t do with anyone else. The only different thing is we are related, but he doesn’t do anything different.”
On Coach Pope’s thoughts on his performance ..
“He’s always going to be pushing me. I know that if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t care. I want to play for a coach that truly cares and wants me to be great.”
#22 Milan Momcilovic, F
On process of learning a new team’s style of play …
“I think obviously it’s a learning opportunity right away. It’s the first scrimmage of the year, so it’s obviously not going to be how we want it. A lot to learn from, so I still go to pick my spots on where I’m going to get my spots.”
On how he feels taking on responsibly and a leadership role for the team …
“I’m not a vocal leader at all. It’s not me, it’s Diallo. I think my responsibility is I am probably one of the more established players on this team. I’ve played in a lot of big games. I played at a power five level, averaged double digits, so I think my responsibility is coming in and kind of showing that I’ve been here before.”
On how beneficial these first three scrimmages will be for the team …
“It’s very beneficial. You bring a lot of new guys in, a lot of transfers. It’s a whole new team. I think the factor of three scrimmages first before a real game is very beneficial. We’re going to see how the rotations play out, who should get what minutes. Just being a part of these games is good. You learn a lot from it and you kind of see what we need to work on.”
Little Rock Head Coach Travis Ford
Opening Statement …
“You know, I played this game because I want to bring my team to experience Rupp Arena, the Kentucky fans, and as I told them the last couple days, this is the memory of a lifetime here, and I wanted them to experience that because there’s nothing like it in college basketball. And the other thing, the other reason we scheduled it is to see who we are as a basketball team, because I didn’t know coming in exactly, because when you put 15 new players together, a new coach, it’s hard to tell when you’re just going against yourselves every day. So I’ve been emphasizing that we just need to compete, play hard, be physical, be aggressive. We knew our execution would probably be a little slow, a little off-but I was proud of how we competed. I was very proud of how we played with some aggressiveness and some physicality. I thought our defense gave us a chance tonight. Our defensive rebounding for a team that’s the biggest team. You can’t simulate their size. That is the one of the bigger teams I’ve ever played against or coached against. Smallest guy on the court. A lot of times 6’6 when they’re point guard is physical, very physical. They’re big inside. They’re big on the wings. That’s hard to simulate in practice. And it took us a little while to get in the game. It took us a little while to get used to that size and physicality. They were a very physical team as well, very physical. But I was proud of how our team competed. I thought we competed. I think our defense gave us a chance. The difference in the game was the three-point line. You know, you’re going to have a tough time when you only make 2 threes and your opponent makes 12. But I tell you, I told our team, I think we’ll go back and look at the film and we’ll study it. We’ll learn from it. We’ll grow from this and use this opportunity to make ourselves a better team. But a lot of the threes, I tell you, we’re kind of desperate. Like we had, we were making a run back and cutting it to maybe single digits in the second half, and they miss a shot, and we’re about to get it rebounds from about 35 feet, and Milan catches it, throws it in for 30. That happened three or four times on us. They were kind of backbreakers. It kind of takes your momentum away. It kind of takes your energy away for just a second. But those were big threes, and I think Kentucky is going to be big at that this year. I think that three-point line is going to be a huge strength of their team. But I was proud of how our team competed. It was great to be back home. It was great to be in Rupp Arena again. Such a special place.”
After two years away what’s changed in the game…
“What’s changed? Well, there’s a lot that’s changed. I said, you know, this is my 28th year as a college head coach. In my first 27, I thought I experienced everything, but I never had to put 15 players together. A big recruiting class in the past was five or six. I’ve gone back and looked at it. Like a big recruiting class was that. Putting 15 guys together is something I’d never done. So that was a first. I enjoyed the challenge. I told people when I took the job, and we had a press conference, and a great crowd out, and people in Little Rock were excited about this program, very excited, and it’s why I wanted to be a part of it. But we had a great press conference, great day, a lot of a lot of media, just a wonderful day. And I can remember going back to my office after it was all over, exhausted, and sitting at that desk thinking, I gotta go find 15 players now. And at that time, I’m thinking, what did I do? But when I dove into it, literally the next day, I loved the challenge of it. I loved it. I’ve told people I really enjoyed the challenge of putting this team together. I’ve learned a lot along the way that we’ll do differently for going forward for next year’s team and different things like that, because we know every year you’re going to have a different looking team. We hope we can keep some of these guys around. But I love the challenge of putting this team together. 15 new guys. We did it in about a month and a half, probably. I think we only lost maybe one or two players that we brought on campus. We got commitments quickly and moved with it, and we did it a lot on video and relationship building and people that I knew and took their advice and trusted them. And I told our team, I just told our team in the locker room, I didn’t know really what to expect tonight. I really didn’t know what to expect, but I had my checklist of things I was looking for, and they checked almost every one of those boxes. If we can do those things, and the things we did well tonight are things we can control, the things we did not do well tonight, we can’t. The missing shots, things like that, are not always under your control. And that was the biggest thing, missing shots and playing against felt like five, seven footers out there, we can get better at that. What we weren’t good at tonight was execution. We’ll get better at execution. We’ll get better at that, but we got to have the fight.”
What do you think of the combo of Malachi and Milan …
“Malachi Moreno I’m a big fan of. Big, big fan. I think his best basketball is probably ahead of him. But he’s great. I say that because I know him very very well, very personally, knowing his family, and I just think the world of him as a as a person, incredible family. Recruited his brother really, really hard. His brother married one of my best friend’s daughter, so I’ve known Malachi for a long time, and highly encouraged him to come here. And he’s just going to get better and better. And Milan is, it’s hard to describe. I don’t know of any too many players in my head, and I’ve been around this game my whole life that can make shots like he makes them. I watched him on film, watched all his Iowa State games, and watched all kinds of stuff and the shots he makes are incredible. When you can shoot the three the way this team can, and you look at what a lot of these players did in the past, it always that gives you a chance. You put defense stuff behind it, which they do. Very good defensively. Very good physical defensive basketball team. But Milan is a hard guy to guard. Very hard to guard because he can get a shot off in so many ways, and he gets it off quickly at 6’9. So, you know, yeah, those are two great players, and you had several, you know, a bunch of other guys that are great players on their team. I think they have a chance to be a really good basketball team.”
