Mark Pope's Kentucky squad is a "work in progress" after Mark Sears & Alabama Crimson Tide's domination

After Mark Pope's Kentucky Wildcats fell to Alabama Crimson Tide 96-83 on Saturday, he expressed his displeasure at his team's performance.

“Alabama is a terrific team, and they put us in tough situations that we didn’t respond well to on the defensive end,” Pope said. “It’s a work in progress. This is growth, guys. We talk about this all the time."

Pope spoke about his team's defensive performance against Alabama's Mark Sears, as reported by On3:

"It’s fits and starts, and this was not our best defensive performance tonight. Mark Sears had a lot to do with that and Alabama had a lot to do with that, and we had a lot to do with that.

NCAA Basketball: Vanderbilt at Kentucky - Source: Imagn

“We’re getting down into the stretch run and us getting better on this end of the ball is something that we’re obsessing about and we’re determined to do. If we do it well, then we’re going to have a good stretch.”

Despite the loss, Kentucky (18-9, 7-7 Southeastern Conference) remained 17th in the AP Top 25 poll on Monday. The Wildcats are in ninth place in the SEC with four games left to play this season.

Alabama (22-5, 10-3), which fell 110-98 at then-No. 15 Missouri on Wednesday, fell two spots to No. 6.

Mark Pope speaks on not having his key players available

Mark Pope opened up after the loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide on the difficulty he is facing not having his key players available to help his team navigate the season.

“I would like to handle them a lot better, but I do feel like we’re game three in, and we’re playing against a really good team on the road, and clearly, we have to get way better,” Pope said, as reported by Athlonsports. “And so, I’m proud of our young guys’ effort. They are getting better, and we’ve got to keep getting better faster.”

Texas A&M v Kentucky - Source: Getty

Kentucky has been without Lamont Butler, Jaxson Robinson and Kerr Kriisa because of injuries, significantly impacting the team. The return of the three will be a significant boost for Pope's team, but for now, he will need to rely on the young emerging players to step up and fill the gap.

The Wildcats will visit the Oklahoma Sooners on Wednesday.