The men's basketball team representing the University of Kentucky plays at the Division I level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Kentucky Wildcats originally did not play within any athletic conference, before joining the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1910. In 1921 they joined the newly established Southern Conference. Eleven years later they would join the SEC as a founding member. The Wildcats play their home games in Rupp Arena, named after their 16th head coach Adolph Rupp. They previously played in Memorial Coliseum, Alumni Gymnasium, Buell Armory Gymnasium, and began their existence playing in State College Gymnasium.

There have been 23 head coaches in the history of Kentucky basketball. The program has played over 3,100 games across 113 seasons from the program's inaugural 1903–04 season to the most recent year, 2022–23. Five Kentucky coaches, the most of any school, have led the team to an NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship: Rupp in 1948, 1949, 1951 and 1958; Joe B. Hall in 1978, Rick Pitino in 1996, Tubby Smith in 1998, and John Calipari in 2012. Kentucky also received two retroactive national championships for the 1932-33 and 1933–34 teams coached by Rupp given by the Premo-Porretta Power Poll and Helms Athletic Foundation respectively. Seven coaches have won a conference regular season championship by having the best overall regular season record with the Wildcats: Ray Eklund, Rupp, Hall, Eddie Sutton, Pitino, Smith and Calipari. Seven coaches have won a conference tournament with the Wildcats: George Buchheit, Rupp, Hall, Sutton, Pitino, Smith and Calipari.

Rupp had the longest tenure at Kentucky, coaching for 42 seasons, and is the all-time leader in games coached (1,066) and wins at the school (874). Rupp's 874 wins were the most of any NCAA men's Division I coach at the time of his retirement in 1972. Eklund is the team's all-time leader in winning percentage, with a .833 winning percentage. Statistically, Basil Hayden has been the least successful coach of the Wildcats, with a winning percentage of .187. Five coaches have received national coaching awards while the head coach of Kentucky: Rupp, Sutton, Pitino, Smith, and Calipari. Four Wildcat coaches: Rupp, Sutton, Pitino, and Calipari have been inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Kentucky's current head coach is Mark Pope, who has held the position since April 12, 2024.

Statistics

+Key # Number of coaches GC Games coached OW Overall Wins OL Overall Losses O% Winning percentageCW Conference Wins CL Conference Losses C% Winning percentage RCs Regular Season Conference Champions CCs Conference Tournament Champions NCs National Championships ♥ Helms champion ‡ Premo-Porretta Champions ♠ NCAA tournament champion

+ Coaching awards † Elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame BHOF Basketball Hall of Fame NCHOF National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame LOCA Legend of Coaching Award NABC National Association of Basketball Coaches Coach of the Year N Naismith Coach of the Year USBWA U.S. Basketball Writers Association Henry Iba Award AP Associated Press College Basketball Coach of the Year SEC SEC Coach of the Year

Statistics are correct as of the 2021–22 college basketball season.

Coaching awards are only listed if won while the individual was the coach of Kentucky.

+ Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball head coaches # Name Term GC OW OL O% CW CL C% RCs CCsNCs Awards and others 1903–1904 56 1 2 .333 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 2/ 1909–1910 12 4 8 .333 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 3 1910–1911 11 5 6 .454 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 1911–1912 9 9 0 1.000 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 5 1912–1913 8 5 3 .625 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 6 1913–1915 26 19 7 .731 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 7 1915–1916 14 8 6 .571 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 8 1916–1917 10 4 6 .500 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 9 1917–1918 11 9 2 .792 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 10 1918–1919 14 6 8 .428 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7 — — — 11 1919–1924 71 44 27 .619 9 8 .529 0 — — 1924–1925 21 13 8 .619 6 2 .750 0 0 — — 13 1925–1926 18 15 3 .833 8 0 0 —— 1926–1927 16 3 13 .187 1 6 .143 — — 15 1927–1930 54 40 14 .740 24 6 .800 —— 16† 1930–1972 1066 876 190 .823 399 75 .842 27 6: 1933♥1934‡1948♠1949♠1951♠1958♠ BHOF (1969) NCHOF (2006)

NABC (1966)

USBWA (1966)

SEC (1964,1966,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972) 17 1972–1985 397 297 100 .748 172 62 .735 8 1: 1978♠ 18† 1985–1989 127 88 39 .693 48 23 .676 1 —BOHF (2020)

NCHOF (2011)

NABC (1986)

SEC (1986) † 1989–1997 269 219 50 .814 104 28 .788 2 5 1: 1996♠SEC (1990,1991,1996) 201997–200735126883.76012040.750551: 1998♠LOCA (2016) NABC (2003)

N (2003)

USBWA (2003)

AP (2003)

SEC (1998, 2003, 2005) 21 2007–2009674027.5972012.62500—SEC (2008) 22†2009–2024532410122.77419865.752661: 2012♠BHOF (2015) NABC (2009,2015)

N (2015)

AP (2015)

SEC (2010,2012,2015,2020)23Mark Pope2024–present362412.667108.5550 0— Totals 3192 2422 770 0.758 1097 321 0.773 55338

References