Mark Pope and Matt Painter share a similar mentality when it comes to scheduling quality opponents. Both coaches want their teams to face challenges throughout the season in order to be prepared for the NCAA Tournament. That shared philosophy was a major factor in Kentucky and Purdue scheduling an exhibition game ahead of the 2025-26 season.
On Oct. 24, Purdue will travel to Lexington for an exhibition matchup against Kentucky at Rupp Arena. It will be a fun preseason matchup featuring a pair of teams expected to be ranked in the top-10 nationally to start the year.
During the week, Pope was asked about Kentucky’s decision to schedule Purdue for an exhibition contest. The game may be five months away, but the second-year leader of the Wildcats is already excited about the opportunity.
“This is what I know,” he said in a video posted by Kentucky Sports Radio. “This is going to sound terrible and uncalculating, but I love playing great teams all the time. I love it. I think it’s really important. Anytime there’s any chance we can get great teams to come into Rupp, we’re going to take it. If it’s in the exhibition season or the preseason or the conference season, we’ll take it.”
Playing a top-tier opponent on the road is nothing new for Painter and the Boilermakers. Each of the last three seasons, Purdue has traveled to play a Power Five team in an exhibition game. In 2023, the team made the trip to Fayetteville to play Arkansas. Last year, Purdue journeyed to Omaha for a preseason clash with Creighton.
In ESPN’s way-too-early rankings for the 2025-26 season, Purdue is tabbed as the No. 1 team. Kentucky is ranked No. 10. Pope said he’s also happy that fans in Lexington will get to watch a high-quality matchup in October.
“I’m just excited for (Big Blue Nation) that we get to walk in here in late October and play the No. 1 team in the country. I’m really excited about that,” he said. “I’m excited about that for our fan base. We’re working on another exhibition game that I think is going to be terrific. I’m excited for it, for our fan base.
“I’m excited about it for college basketball. I’m excited about it for our guys, because when you play against great teams, it teaches you so much about yourself.”
Pope also spoke highly of Painter, who has built Purdue into one of the top programs in the country. The Boilermakers won back-to-back Big Ten regular season titles in 2023 and 2024 and reached the National Championship Game to conclude the 2023-24 campaign.
With the return of Braden Smith, Trey Kaufman-Renn and Fletcher Loyer — along with multiple key additions from the transfer portal and on the recruiting front — many believe Purdue is the favorite to win the national title in 2026.
“Matt Painter is — I don’t know if he’s the best coach in college basketball, but he’s certainly got to be counted among the top couple. What he’s done at Purdue is incredible,” Pope said. “I have so much respect for him, and he makes life really difficult for the teams that play against him, because he’s got a very unique, distinct style of play and style of coaching. In every front, that’s going to be so fun.”
Both Purdue and Kentucky finished last season with 24-12 records, and both reached the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament. It should set up a fun matchup in October, even if the result doesn’t show up on either team’s record.
MACKEY ARENA POPS UP AT NBA COMBINE: A handful of former Big Ten basketball players were asked about the toughest road environment in the league. Purdue’s Mackey Arena popped up multiple times. CLICK HERE
SON OF FORMER BOILER COMMITS TO BUTLER: Bryson Cardinal, the son of former Purdue men’s basketball star Brian Cardinal and women’s basketball guard Danielle (Bird) Cardinal, has committed to Butler. CLICK HERE
BOILER BANTER PODCAST: Purdue Boilermakers on SI publisher and writer Dustin Schutte provides a few notes on the recruiting front and shouts out the men’s and women’s golf teams. CLICK HERE
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