"One of the most special games of my life": Mark Pope makes his pick for best SEC tournament memory as a player

Ketucky's Mark Pope revealed his most cherished game as a player for the Wildcats on Wednesday. Without another thought, the first-year program coach named the 1995 SEC Conference title game against the defending champions Arkansas Razorbacks.

"Championship game against Arkansas, my junior year, will forever be one of the most special games in my life," he said. "Arkansas was defending national champions and we'd been going at it and I think we had lost it at their place on a last-second shot that we missed.

"We got down 17 and over the course of the game maybe we got down eight in overtime and the whole ... missed the free throw to win it and on the bench crying, can't check back into the game and Anthony Epps and the whole thing. Those are special, those are the type of games that let you walk into a room different."

Rick Pitino's Kentucky and Nolan Richardson's Razorbacks, which was known for its "40 Minutes of Hell" game style, battled for the SEC championship on Mar. 12, 1995. The Wildcats had already lost a close contest against Arkansas 92-94 less than eight weeks ago.

Mark Pope and the squad trailed 35-16 in the first 11 minutes of the game but then pushed to enter the break with a 50-44 deficit. With the game tied at 80, Rodrick Rhodes was fouled on transition and had the chance to seal the title. However, he missed both free throws with 1.3 sec left, forcing overtime.

The Razorbacks made the Cats pay by mounting a 7-0 OT run. However, behind Tony Delk's triple, and Antoine Walker and Anthony Epps' active hands, UK outclassed the Hoggs 95-93.

Image via Getty

Pope, the third-best scorer of the matchup, had 12 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

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What is next for Mark Pope and Kentucky?

Mark Pope began his Kentucky coaching stint with no returning players and crafted a roster purely out of recruitment and transfer portal. He led the school to a 21-10 record this season, earning the No. 15 spot on the AP poll and sixth place in the conference rankings.

The ultimate goal is a deep NCAA tournament play but the Wildcats currently prepare for their second-round SEC tourney game against Oklahoma on Mar. 13. A win would push them to the quarterfinal game against Alabama.