Jon Rothstein on Kentucky basketball: 'The ceiling has to be raised in Lexington'

Jon Rothstein believes the ceiling for Kentucky needs to be raised.

Kentucky head coach Mark Pope yells to his team as they face Alabama during the first half of a Southeastern Conference tournament quarterfinal game at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Friday, March 14, 2025. | Andrew Nelles / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

A lot of the time, the national media tries not to overreact to the exhibition games leading into the season, but Kentucky's performance in the win over #1 Purdue has raised eyebrows.

The national media all seem to agree that what Kentucky did in this game, with some important pieces not on the floor, was quite impressive.

Jon Rothstein, on his podcast Inside College Basketball, went off on a tangent, talking about how impressive this win was, and had some strong words for Big Blue Nation.

Oct 24, 2025; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope looks on during the first half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Here is what Rothstein had to say about Kentucky: "There has been so much made, and I have been someone who has talked about it ad nauseam about the depth that Kentucky is going to have this season, and we saw that depth firsthand against Purdue Friday night, even if it was just an exhibition game. The biggest thing I took away after not just watching Kentucky play great offense, which is going to be a constant under Mark Pope, but also the job that it did on the other side of the floor. The biggest thing that I took away after watching Kentucky beat Purdue and beat Purdue handily was the ceiling has to be raised in Lexington because this Kentucky win over Purdue who was the consensus number one team in America came without Jaland Lowe the Wildcats starting point guard and without Jayden Quaintance who again is still attempting to come back from a knee injury that he suffered at Arizona State before he transferred. I know that this is an exhibition game, but if Kentucky was good enough to do what it did against Purdue in an exhibition game without its starting point guard and potentially one of the best defenders in college basketball, you have to start thinking about the ceiling should be raised in Lexington."

Many are telling Kentucky fans not to overreact to this result, but they have every right to do just that. The Wildcats were shorthanded and dominated the Boilermakers from start to finish. They looked like the better team, and that gap can only widen when the Wildcats are at 100%.

Oct 14, 2025; 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

A lot was made of the Wildcats spending a ton of money on this roster, but it seems to be paying off. Mark Pope's team looked unstoppable vs. Purdue on Friday.

This is going to be an exciting season of Kentucky basketball, and it is scary to think how good this team will be with Jayden Quaintance back on the floor.