This UK basketball team is firing on all cylinders just in time for Louisville

Now that’s what Mark Pope assembled this Kentucky basketball team to do.

Three days after an offensive dud to start the regular season, Pope’s Cats returned to the Rupp Arena court for a date with Valparaiso on Friday night. This time, they weren’t messing around.

Kentucky hit its first six shots from the field. The Wildcats led by double digits before their eventual starting point guard, Jaland Lowe, even checked into the game to make his debut in a UK jersey. And once Lowe did step onto the floor, the onslaught continued.

By the end of the night, No. 9 Kentucky had defeated Valpo 107-59. The Cats set a new Pope era record with 58 points in the first half. They finished just one point shy of the program’s highest scoring effort from last season — a 108-59 victory over Jackson State — and this team’s 48-point win was also just one point short of matching that margin, which was the largest of Pope’s first season in charge of the Cats.

The tone was set before the first TV timeout.

Kentucky couldn’t miss on its end. All five starters — Denzel Aberdeen, Otega Oweh, Collin Chandler, Mouhamed Dioubate and Brandon Garrison — scored before Lowe checked into the game for the first time with 16:33 left. The Cats were up 13-3 at that point.

Lowe’s first offensive possession ended with him hitting Aberdeen for a corner 3-pointer. And he was the one who scored UK’s next basket, driving the lane with a brace on his right shoulder — injured during the Blue-White Game three weeks earlier — and hitting a layup for his first points as a Kentucky player.

“Obviously, getting him back is going to help change their team,” Valpo coach Roger Powell Jr. said. “He keeps everybody under control. He has great court vision. Makes plays. I mean, he had five assists, no turnovers. He’s a huge piece that they were missing.”

Lowe also had six points, a couple of rebounds and a steal in 18 minutes of action, his first as a Wildcat after transferring from Pittsburgh.

Kentucky didn’t really need him Friday night. But the Cats will lean on Lowe plenty as this season progresses.

“It felt amazing,” he said. “I remember telling (Otega Oweh) mid-game that it felt like a little fever dream. I just really couldn’t believe I was there. But, you know, it’s about time. I’ve missed too much time that I want back. But I’m glad I was finally out there.”

UK was impressive offensively right out of the gate — after scoring just 28 first-half points in a 77-51 win over Nicholls three nights earlier — but what happened on the other end of the floor against Valpo might have been more important. Instead of getting wrapped up in the fact that all of their shots were falling, the Cats managed to stay locked in on defense, too, smothering Valparaiso and forcing contested shots.

“They’re physical. They’re long. And their length was causing us a lot of problems,” Powell said. “I mean, we had some layups at the rim that, you know, we couldn’t finish, because they were making it difficult.”

That’s what Pope wants to see. And that’s what he’ll like to hear. Kentucky has now played four games against outside competition — exhibitions with Purdue and Georgetown, the season opener versus Nicholls — and, aside from a lapse in the loss to the Hoyas, this is now three opposing coaches that have praised the Wildcats’ physicality on defense.

“We’re trying to live on the defensive end,” Pope said. “It’s hard. It’s hard to guard. It is really challenging. And this team really challenges you, because their pace, their continuous movement. …

“I was really proud of the guys’ defensive effort. We had some lapses, which, I’d like us to keep this standard every single possession for the rest of our lives. And that’s our goal. But I was proud of the effort.”

Valpo missed six of its first seven shots and 10 of its first 12. The Beacons’ fourth bucket of the game came nearly 10 minutes into the first half. UK led 30-8 before that shot dropped.

Kentucky brought the intensity out of the halftime locker room, too, despite being up a ton. Valpo’s fourth basket of the second half didn’t fall until more than 12 minutes had passed. By then, Kentucky’s lead had ballooned to 45 points.

Once again, it was a collective effort.

Ten UK players played at least 15 minutes. None played more than 23.

Malachi Moreno — a freshman playing in just his second college game — was the unexpected leader in points (18) and rebounds (10). Collin Chandler went 4-for-8 from 3-point range and scored 14 points, which would have been his career high had he not dropped 15 on Nicholls in the season opener.

Oweh was steady, as usual, with 15 points, five rebounds and three assists. Mouhamed Dioubate had 14 points. Brandon Garrison scored 12 to go with four rebounds and four assists. Pope praised his defensive performance — and his growth as a player — after the game.

Denzel Aberdeen scored 12, too. He took just three shots from the field and five from the foul line. He made all of them. Freshman guard Jasper Johnson didn’t hit double figures, but he did score nine points — going 3-for-4 from 3-point range — and dished out a team-high five assists.

Kentucky was 11-for-28 from deep (39.3%) and 22 for 26 from the line (84.6%). The Cats had 27 assists on 37 made baskets. They held Valpo to 28.4% shooting and bullied the Beacons at every opportunity.

This was an absolute beatdown, at just the right time.

Everyone in the gym wearing blue and white — in the stands and on the court — knew exactly who was up next. That’d be Louisville, the No. 11-ranked team in the country and the Wildcats’ biggest rival.

The two teams will meet Tuesday night at the Yum Center in Louisville in a nationally televised game. The college basketball world will be watching, and the gym will surely be rocking.

The Cardinals have been beating up on lesser competition, too. First, Pat Kelsey’s team defeated South Carolina State 104-45 on opening night. Then, it put a 106-70 shellacking on Jackson State on Thursday. Everyone in the Yum Center that night also knew who was next.

As he was leaving the postgame podium, U of L forward Kasean Pryor decided to fan the flames. “We’ll see you guys Tuesday,” he said. “After a win.”

And as Pryor continued on his way out of the room, he directed an expletive at Kentucky.

“Honestly, no reaction,” Moreno said when asked about that soundbite Friday night. “We don’t pay attention to outside noise. We’re keeping everything in house, and we’re just prepping and getting ready for Tuesday.”

A few feet away, Lowe talked up Louisville and the turnaround Kelsey has orchestrated there.

“I love what Pat Kelsey has done over the last year,” he said, noting that he played against the Cardinals four times at Pitt. “You know, playing there last year was amazing. I tell these guys and everybody else that that was probably one of my favorite places to play at. And to play it now, with the Kentucky jersey on, I know it’s going to be 10 times different. And there’s a lot more pressure, but we know what it comes with. And by all means, it’s going to be a dog fight, but I’m super excited to go over there and play them again.”

Then Lowe was told what Pryor had said the night before. He claimed he hadn’t heard it yet.

“I mean, that’s cool,” he said. “I mean, they gonna talk. It’s a rivalry. You want that. That’s what makes it fun. So by all means, you know, they can chirp. I think we’ll save our chirping during the game and after the game.”

And Kentucky’s point guard paused right there, for just a moment, before finishing his thought.

“When we win,” he said with a grin. “And, you know, we’ll just leave it at that.”

This story was originally published November 8, 2025 at 12:01 AM.

Ben Roberts

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-429-2848

Ben Roberts is the University of Kentucky men’s basketball beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He has previously specialized in UK basketball recruiting coverage and created and maintained the Next Cats blog. He is a Franklin County native and first joined the Herald-Leader in 2006. Support my work with a digital subscription