If you think beating a high-ranked opponent in a game would be enough to help a team climb higher in the ranks, you are wrong! Because for the Kentucky Wildcats, it wasn’t.

Despite knocking off No. 22 St. John’s over the weekend and improving to 8–4, the Wildcats were left on the outside when the Week 8 list of the AP Top 25 Men’s College Basketball Poll was released on December 22. While they received more votes (78) than any other unranked team, they are still not quite there yet. And for a roster reportedly valued at nearly $22 million, that gap between perception and expectation continues to loom large, as this was their only victory against a Top 25 team in the season so far.

Early in the season, when opportunities for statement wins were there, the Wildcats weren’t able to cash in. Losses to Louisville, Michigan State, North Carolina, and Gonzaga shaped the national perception, as those games weren’t just losses; they became reference points.

Before the game against the Red Storm, the Wildcats were 0-4 against high-ranked teams, which also has coach Mark Pope under a lot of fire, and a mark like that won’t just go away after a single win. So when Kentucky finally delivered, voters treated it cautiously.

In their biggest games, defensive lapses from the Kentucky Wildcats’ men turned manageable moments into uphill battles, while offensive droughts stalled momentum at the worst possible times. Offensively, Mark Pope’s team is currently averaging 83.8 points per game, positioning them 80th nationally.

Until Kentucky strings together consistent performances against high-level competition, wins like St. John’s will be viewed as promising rather than persuasive. And for a program that measures itself by banners and belief, they will get the chance to prove themselves in their upcoming games when they lock horns with teams in their conference.

What’s next for the Kentucky Wildcats?

Sitting with eight wins and four losses, the Wildcats still have one more game to end their non-conference run on a good note. In just a few hours, the team will play against the Bellarmine Knights in their next game at Rupp Arena. But this should be an easy win for them, as ESPN has given the Kentucky Wildcats a 99% chance to win.

But the real tests begin immediately after.

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Once non-conference play wraps up, Kentucky’s schedule turns from a tune-up to a trial. The Wildcats are set to face:

• No. 14-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide on January 2.
• Missouri Tigers on January 7.
• Mississippi State Bulldogs on January 10.

Those games will go a long way in defining whether Kentucky’s recent momentum is real or not. There is, however, a major positive development for Mark Pope’s squad. The Wildcats are finally whole!

After missing nine months while recovering from a torn ACL, Jayden Quaintance has returned to the lineup. In his first game back, he logged 18 minutes, scored 10 points, and grabbed eight rebounds, instantly giving Kentucky the depth it had been missing. With Quaintance back in the rotation, Pope now has the frontcourt flexibility that makes this roster as dangerous as it looks on paper.

And the head coach knows what that unlocks.

“We’re going to become a really explosive offensive team. We’re going to! It’s been a little bit hard. It’s been a hard path for us for a hundred different reasons. But in the meantime, it’s such a massively important part of helping us be functional offensively, and our guys are willing to do it. We’re blessed with this cohort of bigs that are willing to just go seal for 30 seconds,” coach Pope said in a post-game interview after their recent win.

If the Wildcats want to stop being college basketball’s most expensive “almost,” the answer is simple: win the games that matter. And starting in January, every one of them will.