It’s no secret that Kentucky men’s basketball has struggled with first-half consistency this season, primarily against high-major opponents. The Wildcats have trailed at halftime in nearly every game against a quality opponent this season, usually by double-digits. The two exceptions have come against schools from the same state: a five-point lead over Mississippi State and a six-point lead over Ole Miss — both ending in victories for UK. 



Kentucky has managed to mount successful comebacks in a handful of those games where they were down at the intermission, but something about getting off to good starts has eluded this group. The numbers back it up, too. 



<a href="https://cbbanalytics.com/stats/41097/teams/103765/overview">Per CBB Analytics</a>, Kentucky has a net rating of 4.6 this season in the first half, a number that ranks 14th among all SEC teams. But in the second half, UK’s net rating skyrockets to 26.2, which ranks first in the conference. In those first halves, Kentucky is shooting 28.9 percent from beyond the arc, compared to a 39.3 percent clip from deep in the second half. UK is scoring nearly nine points more per half in the second half (45.0) than in the first half (36.2).



Head coach <a href="https://www.on3.com/rivals/coach/mark-pope-132332/">Mark Pope</a> is searching for ways to fix these nagging first-half issues, which he believes start in the practice gym. 



“We’re trying crazy stuff in practice right now, trying to shore up some things,” Pope said Thursday. “We’re gonna have a different format to practice than we ever have before, just because we’re trying to address our current needs right now.”



One of those current needs (on a list that feels longer than it should be) is not falling into significant holes less than 10 minutes into games. Kentucky was down 11 to Vanderbilt earlier this week before seven minutes could run off the clock. Pope acknowledged this is a real issue for his group, but he’s keeping the actual changes to practice under wraps for now. 



“We’re trying to simulate some in-game stuff in a different way that we haven’t done,” Pope said. “Clearly, our first halves, we haven’t performed the way we want to all season long, really in high-major games. We’re just going to try some things, some other things, we’ve kind of been taking shots to see if we can make some progress, but I think we’ll get there.”



Hopefully, those changes make an impact sooner rather than later. 



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Jan 24, 2026; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope celebrates after an offensive possession during the second half against the Mississippi Rebels at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

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