Mark Pope found another No. 9 to add to his National Championship numerology

Mark Pope is manifesting the number nine wherever he goes. From the “No. 9: The Assignment” banner hanging in the practice facility to Kentucky being No. 9 in the Preseason AP and Coaches Polls, it’s clear that a ninth national championship is at the top of Pope and the team’s minds as the season approaches. Pope found another nine to add to the list — even if it’s a bit of a stretch.

At his press conference on Thursday, Pope talked about how happy he was that the NCAA changed the rules to allow Division I teams to play each other in the preseason and that next year, they can add another game to the schedule to take the total to 32. He views it as getting one step closer to his goal of 40 or 41 regular-season games (the latter being his old jersey number, of course). As he finished his thought, he couldn’t help but add another bit of numerology.

“Speaking of numbers, I’ve got a little number for you. So again, if you pay attention, 27 Kentucky ball players are on NBA opening day rosters, the most in all of college basketball. And, we set a record for the most made threes in the history of Kentucky basketball last year, and 27 divided by three is nine.”

Pope left the room as though he dropped the mic, with reporters chuckling in his wake. On one hand, you have to commend him for leaning into the bit, but knowing Pope, I bet it’s become more than that, a quest to find the No. 9 wherever he can. Wait until he has an actual box score to pore over. I can’t wait for the night when Trent Noah, who wears No. 9, scores nine points in nine minutes with a plus/minus efficiency of +9. What if it happens in Kentucky’s ninth game of the season, vs. Gonzaga in Nashville? Mark Pope might tap dance on the podium.

“I was elated that we came in at No. 9,” Pope said of Kentucky’s AP Preseason Ranking last week. “We see 9 everywhere we go. We think 9 is in our future destiny. We’re chasing it hard. I was really elated with that.”

Here’s another nine Pope can add to the list: the last time Kentucky won a game in Indianapolis, the site of this year’s Final Four? March 2017 against Wichita State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. By the time this March rolls around, it will have been nine years ago. With all these nines aligning, maybe we can finally break the Indy curse.

Until then, expect Pope to keep looking for the No. 9, and cheering on Kentucky’s 27 players in the NBA — although, if you count players who transferred to other schools like Johnny Juzang, that number is higher. But let’s not mess with destiny.

“I’m so proud of our former players and what they’re doing in the league right now,” Pope said to start today’s press conference. “Once again, we open the league with the most NBA players on opening day rosters. Really proud that two of our guys, Koby Brea and Amari Williams, are on that list. 27 guys now, which is the most, and I’m excited for those guys as they move forward. All of these guys have been so great to us, and they represent Kentucky so well, and we’re going to add a bunch more.”

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