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Tyler Hansbrough Continues to Hate on Kentucky, Says He’s “Selling Kentucky, 100 Percent”

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© Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Two weeks ago, Kentucky was coming off back-to-back embarrassments to Alabama and South Carolina. Since then, Kentucky has rattled off four straight wins, including a marque win at Tennessee.

In their winning streak, the Wildcats are notably playing a different lineup led by Cason Wallace at point guard, and look like a completely different team. Their impressive turnaround has put them on the bubble, and with several key opportunities left on the schedule, they could solidify themselves back in the tournament.

Yet, not everybody is sold, including former North Carolina Tar Heel, Tyler Hansbrough.

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Following Kentucky’s 69-53 win over Vanderbilt – arguably Kentucky’s best all-around performance of the season – The Field of 68 live-streamed their podcast ‘After Dark’, where they talk about the stories in college basketball.

When the topic of Kentucky came up, Hansbrough was quick to give his thoughts on the Wildcats, continuing the same sentiment that he has carried all season.

“I’m selling Kentucky. 100 percent,” Hansbrough said. “They have no shooters. They are scrambling to find a lineup that works. Cal has done an awful job coaching this year. I don’t see them as a tournament team.”

While Hansbrough went with a bold take to receive the “heat of the Kentucky fans” as he called it, he went on to talk in more detail later in the episode.

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“I think there is such a big hole in their shooting and also their depth. Their shooting has been a struggle all year… I don’t think they have the depth or the shooting to make a deep run.”

In reality, Kentucky is ranked 51st in the country in three-point percentage (36.9%), which is actually the best percentage in the SEC by more than two percent. However, depth is a valid concern, especially given how much the team has had to rely on the lineup of Wallace-Reeves-Fredrick-Toppin-Tshiebwe to turn things around.

On the same stream, analyst Terrence Oglesby, took the opposite position and is buying in on the Cats.

“They’re the third-best offensive-rebounding team in the country… They might have some off-shooting nights but they’re going to get a lot of extra opportunities. They’re bigger now with the lineups. Sahvir can be the lightning rod that comes off the bench that mixes things up and gives you a change of pace for 12-15.”

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Take listen to the whole segment below (51:41-58:30).

Men's Basketball

How a Call with Mark Pope Led Denzel Aberdeen to Kentucky

After winning a national title at Florida, Denzel Aberdeen committed to Kentucky without ever visiting campus—thanks to a revealing three-hour call with head coach Mark Pope.

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Chet White | UK Athletics

As a junior, Denzel Aberdeen was a key part of Florida’s national title run. But a certain phone conversation convinced him to leave his home state and head north to Lexington in hopes of experiencing that feeling once again.

He had never set foot in Lexington before deciding to become a Kentucky Wildcat — and he didn’t need to. All it took was one phone call — three hours long, on Easter Sunday — with head coach Mark Pope to convince him that he belonged in blue and white.

“Our phone call lasted about three hours, to be honest,” Aberdeen said, meeting with the media in Lexington for the first time earlier this week. “A lot of it was just getting to know me and getting to know the school, the university, getting to know him (Pope), how their style was, a lot of film. Once I saw that, I was like this looks like a great guy to play for.”

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The two went on to discuss Aberdeen’s role at Kentucky in more depth, including how Pope envisions him fitting into Kentucky’s new system — a system that, according to Aberdeen, is very similar, if not better than the one he just left.

“We had a lot of great players at Florida, especially the tall bigs. Bigs that love to run there, and we have just as much here; our bigs love to run, they play defense, and they play at a fast pace. So I think the things that we’ve got here are just as good, or even better,” Aberdeen said.

Averaging 7.7 points and nearly 20 minutes per game off the bench for the Gators last year, it’s clear to see what Aberdeen brings to the team: experience, versatility, calmness in the backcourt, and championship pedigree. Pope’s phone conversation with Aberdeen wasn’t just impactful on the court — it also speaks volumes to what he is doing off the court in pursuit of the goal he laid out in his introductory press conference: to hang banners.

This phone call wasn’t just about Denzel Aberdeen. It was a glimpse into Pope’s player-first, transparent coaching approach, which could define his era at Kentucky — and potentially make this season a special one, with Aberdeen playing another key role in a deep NCAA Tournament run.

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“I know the goal is to win No. 9,” he said. “I know the fans want that, we want that, all the staff and coaches want that. That pushes us. We know what we gotta do when we come here and put on that Kentucky jersey. Just playing for the University of Kentucky is a big thing. Being here is a blessing, and I can’t look back.”

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Men's Basketball

La Familia’s Lexington Regional Bracket Revealed

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Israel Schill | KY Insider

Kentucky’s alumni team, La Familia, has officially unveiled the bracket for The Basketball Tournament’s (TBT) Lexington Regional.

The No. 1 seeded alumni will face off against Stroh’s Squad (Bowling Green) in the opening round on Friday, July 18 with a late 9:00 p.m. ET tip time.

The Lexington Regional will take place at Memorial Coliseum from July 18-22, where Kentucky will host a plethora of teams looking to grab some gold.

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Familiar teams, such as Eberlein Drive, who former Wildcat Archie Goodwin used to play for and who have been around since the beginning of TBT, will lead the bottom of the bracket. In the second round, Big Blue Nation may see a way-too-early SEC matchup, technically, with the Auburn Tigers’ alumni team, War Ready.

The name is definitely fitting, obviously a play on Auburn’s “War Eagle” call, but as a whole defines the type of play that the TBT unleashes against every competitor.

When asked about who the “alpha dog” will be on this year’s team, someone who is going to be ready to go to war, general manager Twany Beckham admitted he emphasized finding guys like that during the offseason.

“That was one thing, you know when we lost last year, I feel like that Ohio State team, I’m not gonna say punked us because our guys played extremely hard,” said Beckham before head coach Sean Woods budded in and said “they were more physical.”

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“When I sat down after the season was over last year I sad to myself, ‘I want nine to 10 dogs’, and I think we did that with this roster,” Beckham added.

The winner of the Lexington Regional will play the winner of the Louisville Regional in the quarterfinals on Monday, July 28, at 6 p.m. ET on FS1, the team also announced recently.

Below is the entire bracket for the 2025 tournament:

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Men's Basketball

Top Guard Prospect Taylen Kinney Takes Official Visit to Kentucky

Perhaps the most highly touted guard in the 2026-27 class, Taylen Kinney has begun his visit to Kentucky – Mark Pope is on the clock.

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Taylen Kinney takes his official visit to Kentucky.
USA TODAY NETWORK

Directly following his involvement with Mark Pope and Jasper Johnson at the USA U19 basketball camp, Taylen Kinney has taken an official visit to Kentucky.

One of the top guards in the nation, Kinney is a native of Newport, Kentucky. As a result, naturally, both Louisville and Kentucky are in strong pursuit — among pulls on both sides, one potential advantage Kentucky has over their in-state rivals is Kinney’s extensive past ties to the aforementioned Jasper Johnson.

The two blue bloods manned the backcourt together for the Overtime Elite RWE team during the 2024-25 season. With Johnson being the first to pull the trigger in taking on the blue and white, the onus is on Kinney to potentially rekindle the duo’s dominant guard play in a new setting.

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Given Jasper’s potential for multiple years in Lexington, the likelihood that he could impact Kinney’s recruitment is all the more tangible.

The 6-foot-2 floor general stayed firmly put in the 2026-27 class, despite rumors of a reclassification, ranking atop national lists across the board as arguably the best available at his position. And while a timetable for Kinney’s ultimate decision hasn’t yet shaken out, it’s clear that the blue and red rivals each hold a powerful stake in his recruitment.

Regardless of the rumors, if Mark Pope gets a guy on campus, there’s a solid shot the Cats can capitalize on a commitment. When one battle ends for Kentucky’s staff, the next begins — if nothing else, it’s clear that the team has already started working towards as solid a roster next season as they put together for the one that’s about to begin.

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