Fans Upset Over Kentucky Basketball's News After Mark Pope's First Season
Kentucky and Louisville basketball fans woke up to surprising news on Wednesday: their annual rivalry game will be moved up to Tuesday, November 11, 2025, at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville.
This marks the earliest meeting in the series' history, which dates back to 1913.
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In 2024‑25, Kentucky (24-12, 10-8 SEC) reached the Sweet 16 under new head coach, Mark Pope, while Louisville (27-8, 18-2 ACC) enjoyed a major turnaround under first‑year coach Pat Kelsey, earning a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
By shifting the Kentucky-Louisville rivalry game into early November, both programs not only kick off their non‑conference slates with maximum intrigue but also set the stage for one of college basketball's most compelling in‑state showdowns before the season's midpoint.
Fans were quick to react to the news.
One commenter posted, "Interesting," met with another user with, "We're gonna play the basketball game before the football game!!??"
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Another Kentucky fan said, "Wanted to go ahead and get the belt to ahh over with quicker," while one other remarked, "Ez dub."
One user said, "Why so early and on a Tuesday?", to which another responded, "But like why?".
Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope.© Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
Kentucky entered 2024-25 under Pope after John Calipari's departure.
Along the way, the Wildcats ranked as high as No. 4 in the AP poll and finished the year No. 12.
Louisville, on the other hand, hired Kelsey and reached the ACC tournament final, falling to Duke, and earned a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament, where they were upset by Creighton in the first round.
For fans, recruits and media, this big rivalry game now arrives as one of college basketball's earliest, and potentially most consequential, matchups of 2025-26.
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Related: Duke's Jon Scheyer Gets Major Recruiting News on Four-Star Recruit
Related: Kentucky Makes Decision on Coaching Staff After Mark Pope's First Season
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