Kentucky Beats Troy as CBB Fans Applaud Mark Pope's 1st-Ever March Madness Win as HC

Kentucky defeated Troy in Friday's first-round matchup in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, emerging victorious by the final score of 76-57.

The No. 3 seed Wildcats didn't get off to a strong start, leading by only one point over the No. 14 seed Trojans with just over three minutes remaining in the first half. Head coach Mark Pope's squad ended the half on a 10-3 run, though.

Kentucky pushed its advantage to double digits in the second half and didn't look back, leading by as many as 25 points.

Junior guard Otega Oweh paced the Wildcats with 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting, adding eight rebounds and six assists.

Seniors Koby Brea and Andrew Carr were deadly from behind the arc, combining to score 26 points while shooting 5-of-9 from three-point territory.

As for Pope, Friday's result represented the first March Madness win of his head coaching career.

Fans praised his accomplishment.

Kentucky's defense was impressive throughout the contest, holding Troy to 34.9/25.0/55.6 shooting splits as a team. The Trojans also committed 11 turnovers compared to 14 assists.

The Wildcats now await the winner of Friday night's clash between Illinois and Xavier in the second round.