
Themen's basketball team representing theUniversity of Kentucky plays at theDivision I level of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in theSoutheastern Conference (SEC). The Kentucky Wildcats originally did not play within any athletic conference, before joining theSouthern Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1910. In 1921 they joined the newly establishedSouthern Conference. Eleven years later they would join the SEC as a founding member. The Wildcats play their home games inRupp Arena, named after their 16th head coachAdolph Rupp. They previously played inMemorial Coliseum,Alumni Gymnasium, Buell Armory Gymnasium, and began their existence playing in State College Gymnasium.[1][2]
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 inaugural1903–04 season to the most recent year,2022–23. Five Kentucky coaches, the most of any school, have led the team to anNCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship: Rupp in1948,1949,1951 and1958;Joe B. Hall in1978,Rick Pitino in1996,Tubby Smith in1998, andJohn Calipari in2012. Kentucky also received two retroactive national championships for the1932-33 and1933–34 teams coached by Rupp given by thePremo-Porretta Power Poll andHelms 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.[1][2][3]
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 inwinning 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 theBasketball Hall of Fame.[1][2]
Kentucky's current head coach isMark Pope, who has held the position since April 12, 2024.[2]
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Statistics are correct as of the2021–22 college basketball season.
Coaching awards are only listed if won while the individual was the coach of Kentucky.
| # | Name | Term | GC | OW | OL | O% | CW | CL | C% | RCs | CCs | NCs | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | W. W. H. Mustaine and others | 1903–1904 | 56 | 1 | 2 | .333 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 2 | Edwin Sweetland/R.E. Spahr | 1909–1910 | 12 | 4 | 8 | .333 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 3 | Harold Iddings | 1910–1911 | 11 | 5 | 6 | .454 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 4 | Edwin Sweetland | 1911–1912 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 1.000 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 5 | John J. Tigert | 1912–1913 | 8 | 5 | 3 | .625 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 6 | Alpha Brumage | 1913–1915 | 26 | 19 | 7 | .731 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 7 | James Park | 1915–1916 | 14 | 8 | 6 | .571 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 8 | William P. Tuttle | 1916–1917 | 10 | 4 | 6 | .500 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 9 | Stanley A. Boles | 1917–1918 | 11 | 9 | 2 | .792 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 10 | Andrew Gill | 1918–1919 | 14 | 6 | 8 | .428 | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | &&&&&&&&&&&-ec99 c7.7— | — | — |
| 11 | George Buchheit | 1919–1924 | 71 | 44 | 27 | .619 | 9 | 8 | .529 | 0 | 1 | — | — |
| 12 | Clarence Applegran | 1924–1925 | 21 | 13 | 8 | .619 | 6 | 2 | .750 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 13 | Ray Eklund | 1925–1926 | 18 | 15 | 3 | .833 | 8 | 0 | 1.000 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 14 | Basil Hayden | 1926–1927 | 16 | 3 | 13 | .187 | 1 | 6 | .143 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 15 | John Mauer | 1927–1930 | 54 | 40 | 14 | .740 | 24 | 6 | .800 | 5 | 1 | — | — |
| 16 | Adolph Rupp† | 1930–1972 | 1066 | 876 | 190 | .823 | 399 | 75 | .842 | 27 | 13 | 6: | BHOF (1969)[5] SEC (1964,1966,1968,1969,1970,1971,1972)[8] |
| 17 | Joe B. Hall | 1972–1985 | 397 | 297 | 100 | .748 | 172 | 62 | .735 | 8 | 1 | 1:1978♠ | SEC (1973,1975,1978,1983)[9] |
| 18 | Eddie Sutton† | 1985–1989 | 127 | 88 | 39 | .693 | 48 | 23 | .676 | 1 | 1 | — | SEC (1986)[12] |
| 19 | Rick Pitino† | 1989–1997 | 269 | 219 | 50 | .814 | 104 | 28 | .788 | 2 | 5 | 1:1996♠ | SEC (1990,1991,1996)[14] |
| 20 | Tubby Smith | 1997–2007 | 351 | 268 | 83 | .760 | 120 | 40 | .750 | 5 | 5 | 1:1998♠ | LOCA (2016)[15] SEC (1998, 2003, 2005)[17] |
| 21 | Billy Gillispie | 2007–2009 | 67 | 40 | 27 | .597 | 20 | 12 | .625 | 0 | 0 | — | SEC (2008)[18] |
| 22 | John Calipari† | 2009–2024 | 532 | 410 | 122 | .774 | 198 | 65 | .752 | 6 | 6 | 1:2012♠ | BHOF (2015)[19] SEC (2010,2012,2015,2020)[20] |
| 23 | Mark Pope | 2024–present | 36 | 24 | 12 | .667 | 10 | 8 | .555 | 0 | 0 | — | |
| Totals | 3192 | 2422 | 770 | 0.758 | 1097 | 321 | 0.773 | 55 | 33 | 8 | |||
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)