Mark Pope’s mind games were in full force as he challenged Kentucky’s big men to shut down Bucknell’s 7-foot preseason All-Patriot League center, Noah Williamson, in a ruthless way.
Pope’s strategy? Light-hearted trash talk during practice to fire up his players and push their limits. And it paid off in a big way.
“I’m just making stuff up, telling Amari (Williams) ‘Oh yeah, he said he’s gonna drop 30 on you,’” Pope joked, a tactic that might’ve sounded playful but was designed to spark something more. “It wasn’t true, it was just funny,” said Kentucky forward Ansley Almonor. But the challenge was real, and the Wildcats’ big men responded with aggression and focus.
Williamson, fresh off a monstrous 32-point performance just days earlier, was stifled from the start against Kentucky’s towering defenders. The Wildcats’ physicality dominated him. Every shot inside the paint was met with a wall of size, and from beyond the arc, his looks were rushed and off-target.
The result? A disastrous 7-point, 5-rebound performance on 3-12 shooting (and a brutal 1-8 from deep), leaving Williamson powerless in just 24 minutes. “It was a little personal,” Almonor admitted. “Coach got in their heads, and they shut him down. It worked.”
Kentucky’s defense was suffocating, with Amari Williams, a three-time CAA Defensive Player of the Year, leading the charge. Pope praised Williams for his intense focus, which helped put Williamson in foul trouble early and force him to the bench just minutes into the game. Without him, Bucknell’s offense crumbled, allowing the Wildcats to dominate on the glass and build an insurmountable lead.
By the time Williamson returned, Kentucky had already put Bucknell in a 13-point hole. Pope’s mental warfare was a game-changer, and Kentucky’s defense turned it into a blowout, with the Wildcats cruising to a 100-72 win. The message was clear: under Pope’s guidance, Kentucky isn’t just about size—it’s about winning the mental battle too.
