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Mark Pope jokes about shoe-throwing incident vs. Jackson State, upsets wife

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby: Grant Grubbs11/23/24grant_grubbs_
Mark Pope during Kentucky's win over Bucknell - Dr. Michael Huang, Kentucky Sports Radio
Mark Pope during Kentucky's win over Bucknell - Dr. Michael Huang, Kentucky Sports Radio

On Saturday, fans in Rupp Arena were left scratching their heads after Jackson State forward Dylan Canoville threw his shoe at Kentucky‘s Brandon Garrison, trying to knock the ball out of his hands. Evidently, fans weren’t the only ones confused.

Following Kentucky’s 108-59 win over the Tigers, head coach Mark Pope commented on the unusual incident.

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“We got to see shoes flying in the air. It was a magical evening,” Pope said. “Uh oh, Lee (Pope’s wife) said I shouldn’t have said that. I thought it was fantastic.”

Garrison didn’t allow the odd moment to throw him off his game. The Oklahoma State transfer finished the game with six points, eight rebounds, six assists, three steals and a game-high three blocks.

He was far from the only Wildcat who put on a show against Jackson State. Koby Brea led Kentucky with 22 points while shooting 5-8 from beyond the arc. Brea’s outstanding performance from 3-point range was nothing new.

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Brea has connected on 20-of-his-27 attempts from downtown this season. Otega Oweh and Jaxson Robinson also combined for 35 points in the Wildcats’ win on Friday evening. Mark Pope was happy with his team’s performance.

“It’s a great night. Proud of our guys,” Pope said. “Thought they did a ton of good things and it was fun. You know, we got to see everything. We got to see a ton of transition and a ton of shots and all kinds of fireworks from all of our guys.”

With the win, Kentucky improved to 5-0 on the season. The Wildcats’ defense was just as impressive in the win as their offense. They held Jackson State to just 33.3% shooting from the field and a poor 19% from deep.

In total, Kentucky tallied 13 steals against the Tigers and nine blocks. The ‘Cats didn’t hesitate to capitalize on Jackson State’s mistakes, scoring 43 points in the fast break.

Up next, Kentucky will square off against Western Kentucky at 6:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The game will air live on ESPNU.