"They're a dangerous team": Mark Pope gets frank on why Ryan Nembhard is an ace up Gonzaga's sleeve

After suffering its first loss of the season against Clemson on Tuesday, Mark Pope's Kentucky Wildcats will face Gonzaga, its second ranked opponent, in Seattle on Saturday. The first-year Wildcats coach talked about the matchup in Thursday's press conference, discussing Mark Few's strategies.

Pope also praised Bulldogs senior guard Ryan Nembhard, highlighting his strong play and assist-to-turnover ratio as key factors that make Gonzaga a formidable challenge.

"They're a dangerous, dangerous team," Pope said. "I mean Nembhard is, he's I don't know, he's a 10.3 to one right now. 10.3 assists a game. 10 to one assist-turnover ratio, that's ridiculous, those numbers are crazy and so they're really potent." (7:24)

Despite a career-low scoring average (10.6 points on 39.7% shooting), Ryan Nembhard is having his best stretch in his final year. He has transitioned into a reliable 3-point shooter (45.0%) and perimeter defender (1.9 steals per game) while leading Division I with 10.8 assists per game.

Nembhard's 86 assists are complemented by a 6.14 assist-to-turnover ratio, placing him second in college basketball this season. Few’s squad also ranks second in the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.12), trailing only Kansas (2.14). Kentucky (1.92) is ranked 8th.

Mark Pope is excited to meet old colleagues and family in Seattle

Before becoming captain of the 1996 NCAA championship Wildcats, Mark Pope played basketball for Newport High School in Bellevue, Washington, a 20-minute drive from Seattle.

The coach is eager for Saturday’s homecoming and looks forward to reuniting with his high school coach, teammates and family.

I don’t get to go back to Seattle that much, so I’m excited to go back," Pope said. "I’ll see a bunch of high school teammates and I’ll get the chance to sit with coach (Rich) Belcher, who I love so much, excited to see him."

"My parents don’t live in Seattle anymore, but a bunch of my siblings do, I’ll get to see them at the game. Seattle is a great city that I have a ton of love for."

The Kentucky Wildcats and the Gonzaga Bulldogs enter the game with 7-1 records. Unlike Mark Pope, Mark Few's squad is coming off a dominant 90-65 win over Davidson Wildcats, the Zags' third consecutive neutral -site game.

Kentucky will host Colgate after the contest while the Bulldogs will face the defending champions UConn Huskies.