Considering how down Mark Pope has been after some of Kentucky’s losses this season, he actually was pretty composed when he took the podium following the 73-68 defeat. For ten minutes, Pope tried to explain what went wrong with his team in the final four minutes. Kentucky blew an eight-point lead, letting Missouri finish the game on a 15-2 run en route to the Tigers’ first-ever win at Rupp Arena.
“We just didn’t make the plays we needed to,” Pope said after a lengthy breakdown of Kentucky’s failures in the final four minutes. “So, really frustrating, but I am grateful for our guys’ fight.