Sometimes a college basketball season doesn’t turn on a buzzer-beater or a signature win, but on something far quieter and far more fragile. As winter settles in and expectations begin to shift, one familiar question is starting to hover around Mark Pope’s Kentucky Wildcats: what if they finally get to be whole? After weeks of stops, starts, and missing pieces, a single afternoon offered a glimpse of what Kentucky might look like when its most important players share the floor—and it was enough to make longtime observer Jamie Vaught believe this season could be defined by just one word.
That is the key word for Kentucky to have a memorable campaign. If the team’s best players such as Jaland Lowe, Jayden Quaintance and Otega Oweh remain healthy, there is no telling how far the basketball Wildcats will go this season.
Right now, after seeing Quaintance make his successful UK debut in Atlanta Saturday afternoon with his stunning performance against a formidable St. John’s team in the CBS Sports Classic, there is optimism among the Big Blue Nation that the Wildcats have a decent chance to reach the 2026 Final Four in Indianapolis.
But, before we get too excited, we know Kentucky, now 8-4 with four losses to ranked teams, has some work to do. Against St. John’s, we saw UK play at full strength for the first time this season. So, the Wildcats, when healthy, should be much tougher down the road in facing SEC teams.
In Kentucky’s 78-66 win over the Red Storm, Quaintance, who missed the team’s first 11 games because of an ACL injury, hit 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds, including five on the offensive glass, in 17 minutes. In addition, the 6-foot-10 transfer from Arizona State played excellent defense.
On his return after suffering a torn ACL in late February while at Arizona State, Quaintance said, “I felt great. I felt like my condition was good. I felt like my guys (training staff) had prepared me really well in all the practices months leading up to now. I felt good on the court. I felt like if I was able to have time to shine I felt like I would make it my moment, and I felt like I did that today.”
According to ESPN, Quaintance is ranked as ninth best prospect — a lottery pick — in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Point guard Jaland Lowe, who has struggled with recurring shoulder issues, had 13 points in 15 minutes, nearly all in the second half, after playing only seven seconds in the first half.
Named preseason SEC player of the year in October, Otega Oweh poured in a game-high 20 points and has scored in double figures in all 12 games this season.
On Quaintance, St. John’s Rick Pitino said in a postgame press conference, “I think he’s a big-time basketball player. They’re only going to get stronger with him and Lowe.
“I congratulate UK for the great second half. I think a big difference is the play when Lowe comes in the game, they’re a different basketball team. He makes people better. He is very tough to ver in pick-and-rolls.”
Pitino also questioned the news media’s recent coverage of the Wildcats.
“I think you all need to learn a little bit of a lesson as writers because you’re expecting Kentucky to be this great basketball team with all those injuries. So, you all need to learn a lesson because you can’t be a great basketball team without two of your best players, with no point guard, no big men,” explained Pitino. “I think everybody really exaggerates one game or two games or three games. Kentucky got blown out and usually Kentucky doesn’t get blown out of any game, okay.
“But you have to look at it when they come back, two gigantic pieces. I think they’ll be a very good basketball team. They’re going to have to keep playing smash mouth basketball and play like that physical team, and I give Mark (Pope) all the credit in the world because he’s a big believer in finesse, big believer at shooting the three, and he says, ‘Look, it’s not working, let’s change, man.’ So, I give him an awful lot of credit.”
Quaintance praised Lowe for his remarkable performance in the second half.
“I feel like Jaland brings a toughness and leadership to the game that we need,” said JQ. “Whenever he’s on the court, he’s telling everybody where to be, he’s making sure everybody is in the right spots, making sure everybody is making the right cuts. Offensively and defensively he’s a vocal leader and he’s like an effort leader. You can tell he is giving everything that he has. He’s been super huge for us offensively and defensively. It showed tonight.”
Kentucky coach Mark Pope believes his team is heading in the right direction.
“I think we have the right guys to do it,” said Pope, whose Cats defeated Indiana 72-60 over a week ago at Rupp Arena. “I’m really confident in this group. Hey, listen, I felt the same way every single day. I have so much confidence in this staff and in this group of players. It’s just been slow for us to grow up and embrace who exactly we are, and we’re in that process. We’re in the early stages of that process.
“This is an important day for us because we know back-to-back games, seeing some real physicality and some smash mouth basketball. Sometimes it’s ugly, but sometimes it’s beautiful like it was at moments in the second half of this game.”
This could be a fun winter if the Wildcats stay healthy.
