Mark Pope’s frustration doesn’t seem to end. When everyone thought Kentucky would bounce back into the win column against a down-and-out Auburn (on a consecutive five-game losing streak), the unthinkable happened. The game officials called the Wildcats’ Collin Chandler for a “push-off,” which ultimately swayed things out of Kentucky’s grasp. College basketball analyst Jeff Goodman gave his honest take on the subject.

“This one could hurt. Because obviously, you’ve got a team now that’s kind of lost three in a row. They lost at home to Georgia in the last game. Now they lose this one when they probably could have, should have won it. And now you go to a dangerous game on Tuesday night at South Carolina, that if you lose that one, look at what they finish with, right? Vandy at home at Texas&M, Florida at home. All winnable, but all losable, so you know, you better make sure you don’t go kind of free-falling here at the end of the season.”

“If you’re Kentucky, you got to stay off that 89 line. If you want to try to win two games in the NCAA tournament, because to be honest, you lose, you win one, you lose the second game. That’s not a successful season. At least if you win two, you get to the second weekend. It’s not a complete calamity in terms of going into the season with as many resources as they did,” says Goodman, weighing on the Kentucky situation.

Now, at this point, you really seem to feel for Mark Pope. Three losses back-to-back – Florida 92-86, Georgia 86-78, and now Auburn 75-74 have made it difficult for Mark Pope and his team. This is the fourth 10-loss season in a row in Lexington, and two of which have come under Mark Pope himself.

The last time such a calamity struck was back in 2005-09, back when Tubby Smith and Billy Gillespie served as head coaches. Moreover, this also happens to be the first time Kentucky has lost three SEC games in a row since 2021. A 17-10 record so far doesn’t really do justice to a team that has eight NCAA championships to boot.

Pope’s team’s momentum touches upon Kentucky’s wild run in the 1988-89 season under Eddie Sutton, where they went with a 13-19 overall record that eventually led to Sutton’s resignation. Pope, at this point, feels like he is trying hard to stave off a disaster waiting to happen, and with teams like South Carolina, Vanderbilt, and Florida waiting in line, things can go either way, feels Goodman.

Mark Pope has a lot on his mind, which was evident with his outburst after the Auburn loss.

Mark Pope Goes on Foul-Mouthed Rant Against Auburn Game Officials

The Kentucky coach was not mincing his words after another tough defeat. Mark Pope didn’t hold back his emotions as he made his disapproval of the officiating known.

“[Athletic director] Mitch [Barnhart], if those mother——s try to fine me, s***w them, I did not say a word about how they cheated us,” said Pope in a conspicuously loud hot-mic moment after the game, which made people from the media chuckle.

It was understandable that Pope was not at all pleased with how things went down. While the Wildcats were looking at a clear victory with 10 minutes to go and a 6-point lead, losing seemed improbable, but basketball, being unpredictable as it is, had an entirely different script in store for the Wildcats.

Otega Oweh had another solid showing for the Wildcats as he went for 29 points on 11-for-20 shooting, but even then, victory was elusive. The 3-point shooting was another letdown as Kentucky couldn’t capitalize against the worst defensive team in the conference.

An abysmal 6-23 from outside the arc truly dented whatever chances they had, and now the Wildcats will have nothing else to do, but they’ll be kicking themselves over missed opportunities, as the road through the SEC only gets tougher.