At one point, I had outlined a fairly long entry for the Heath Post to be called "The Two Mitches," about why Kentuckians so often find themselves being led by folks like Mitch McConnell and Mitch Barnhart. It was going to be a rumination on conservatism, aristocracy, tradition, and populism. But now I don't have to write it up.
Tuesday, March 3, 2026
Mitch Barnhart is retiring in June
Pope's victory over Vanderbilt effectively ensured that UK would get into the NCAA Tournament, and thus ended any chances that Barnhart would have to make a change in the men's basketball program after the season. Now Barnhart has made clear that he will be retiring in June, which means that Pope's fate will be in the hands of the new AD, who will presumably wait to see how Pope does next year.
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Reports indicate that Barnhart will be paid $950,000/year to be an advisor to the UK Athletic Department.
ReplyDeleteMatt Jones now reports that Barnhart will not be involved in UK athletics. "His position is on Academic side about helping make UK a top place to put students in jobs and careers in sports workforce."
ReplyDeleteHuge game for the Cats tonight: on the road at an A & M team desperately trying to play its way into the tournament. These are usually some of the hardest possible games to win.
ReplyDeleteBut UK needs this game as well, because their next (and last) regular season game is an almost-certain loss to Florida.
ReplyDeleteSo we have two desperate teams. I will be very surprised if the Cats pull this one off.
ReplyDeleteOne thing is for sure: this game will probably take more than two hours.
ReplyDeleteK-Pom has the Aggies winning 79 to 78.
ReplyDeleteSince the Aggies joined the SEC, UK is 5-3 in College Station. Four of those games went to overtime.
ReplyDeleteI like this iteration of the Aggies. They play a wild, scrambling style that I enjoy.
ReplyDeleteCats were up 30-18, but it's now 30-28 with 4:39 left.
ReplyDeleteAggies take a 31-30 lead with 4:19 left. That's a 13-0 run. Cats call time.
ReplyDeleteWhatever Pope's merits as a coach, I've never seen any other coach whose teams look so different over the course of a game. Almost every game features wild runs by both teams. I wish someone would explain that.
ReplyDeleteAggies end the half on a 27-3 run, and lead 45-33 at the half. I don't think I've ever seen Kentucky play worse. But at least Mitch Barnhart is happy.
ReplyDeleteI think UK looked exhausted at the end of the first half, and I thought that maybe the Cats have a problem in fast-paced games.
ReplyDeleteUK has played 13 games this year with 70 possessions or more. Five of those games were wins over Nicholls St., Valpo, Loyola (Md.), Tennessee Tech, and NC Central. In the other eight games, UK went 1-7. The only win was against South Carolina, the worst team in the SEC.
ReplyDeleteIn the 16 games with fewer than 70 possessions, UK went 13-3, losing only to UNC, Mizzou, and Georgia. So my theory shows some promise.
ReplyDeleteWith 18:10 left in the game, A & M leads 53-36. That's a 35-6 run for the Aggies.
ReplyDeleteKentucky should never lose to one of these scramble teams, because this type of game should reward a team with superior talent. But UK no longer has that type of talent.
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