Mark Pope says the loss to Gonzaga made this Kentucky team 'redefine' themselves

Kentucky has looked like a completely different team since their loss to Gonzaga in Nashville on Dec. 5.

Dec 23, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Otega Oweh (00) chest bumps forward Mouhamed Dioubate (23) during the first half against the Bellarmine Knights at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

This Kentucky basketball team had a rough start to the season. They dropped their first four games against quality opponents, all of which ranked in the top 25, but they were in embarrassing fashion. Getting blown out for most of the game at Louisville, embarrassed in Madison Square Garden against Michigan State, showed no resilience in a rock fight against UNC in Rupp Arena, then had the biggest embarrassment of the season in Nashville against Gonzaga as they took a 35-point loss.

Since the Gonzaga loss, this Kentucky team has looked much different. A lot of that is due to finally getting healthy, as both Jaland Lowe and Mo Dioubate were on the court together for the first time since the Louisville game, as well as adding Jayden Quaintance to the fold against St. John's on Dec. 20, but they've also had a different attitude, even without Lowe on the floor. He is the engine of this team, and in those three games against quality competition without him (was limited against Gonzaga), this Kentucky team showed no fight. They would quit when punched in the mouth, with no leader to be able to create on offense and provide a spark on defense. But, Kentucky has not looked that bad since. Even with him in and out of the rotation, the offense can struggle, but their fight hasn't gone away, which was a problem a few weeks ago. They've found an identity to fall back on, and that is physical, aggressive basketball.

Mark Pope spoke with media on Tuesday ahead of the SEC-opener against Alabama, and when reflecting on the hardships of the season to get to this point of finally having an identity and getting their best players back on the floor, Pope thinks about that Gonzaga loss, which looks to be the turning point in the team's mindset totally changing. They felt their own fans booing them, not because they were losing bad, necessarily, but because there was no fight. That night in Nashville made this team 'redefine' themselves.

"I think the Nashville (Gonzaga game) debacle is something that touched us deep to our soul and kind of tested the the resolve of this group, and made us redefine who we were going to be as human beings and as a team. I think there's great takeaways from that. I think Indiana and St John's (games) with second halves that were elite level basketball in both cases, I think, confirmed some of the work that the guys had been doing and some of the direction we were going. And I think that the way our guys are comfortable approaching the game on offense and defense has been an evolving piece that we're learning about more every day."

Kentucky getting back to being healthy has certainly changed things, but this team's mindset has been encouraging even without Lowe, Dioubate, or Quaintance on the floor, but especially Lowe. All three are difference-makers, but now, at least when Lowe is off the floor the team shows effort and leans on defense, which discouraged them early in the season. This team has totally embraced a different style of play than just shooting, and that's helped, too, not trying to force themselves to lean on shooting to will them to wins.