In a matchup that felt more like a national championship preview than a mere exhibition, the Kentucky Wildcats sent a resounding message to the college basketball world on Friday night. Behind a team-first performance, No. 9 Kentucky dismantled the top-ranked Purdue Boilermakers, 78-65, inside the electric confines of Rupp Arena.

The victory wasn’t just a feel-good tune-up before the regular season; this was a blueprint for what Mark Pope envisions as a historic run deep into March. Sure, the stat sheet highlighted some familiar scoring punches. Freshman sensation Jasper Johnson erupted for 15 points, and eight players had six or more points.

Mo Dioubate, the lanky big man from Alabama, stuffed the box score with eight points and nine rebounds, showcasing the rebounding prowess that could anchor this revamped Wildcat frontcourt. Kentucky dominated the glass 42-30 overall, which is a good thing for a team that got shoved around at times on the glass last year.

But if you’re looking for the heart and soul of this win, the intangibles that separate good teams from title contenders, you won’t find them in the highlight reels of buckets. Head coach Mark Pope handed out his postgame hardware to a pair of unsung heroes whose impacts transcended the scoreboard. And in true Big Blue fashion, one of them didn’t even lace up for a single minute.

Enter Collin Chandler, the 6-5 sophomore guard who’s been quietly working through Kentucky’s transition under Pope. In just 16 minutes off the bench, Chandler posted modest lines: 1-for-3 from the field for two points, five rebounds, three assists, and a steal. But those numbers don’t tell the full story. Chandler finished with a game-high +15 plus-minus rating, meaning the Cats outscored Purdue by 15 during his time on the floor.

Pope didn’t mince words when breaking down what made Chandler the standout. “He was the highlight of the whole game for me. I would give him the MVP of the game,” Pope gushed in his postgame presser.

“That’s the defining feature of who, if this team wants to do something historic, that’s what we need. We need to champion it, we need to take pride in it. We need him to be like, ‘Yes, that was me.’ He was unbelievable.” It’s the kind of praise that resonates in a program built on blue-chip talent and national titles. Chandler wasn’t lighting up the stat sheet like a five-star scorer might, but he was everywhere: crashing the boards against Purdue’s towering frontcourt, delivering crisp passes that sparked fast breaks, and providing the defensive intensity that is going to be required every night.

This is about depth, toughness, and that elusive team chemistry that wins banners. And the runner-up MVP? He didn’t see the court.

If Chandler was the on-court MVP, then the runner-up award goes to a player who never left the bench. In a testament to the leadership vacuum Pope is thrilled to fill. Jaland Lowe sat out the entire contest nursing a nagging shoulder injury sustained during the Blue-White scrimmage earlier this month.

But in Pope’s eyes, Lowe’s absence from the floor only amplified his presence in the gym.“He was unbelievable on the bench, keeping guys engaged and talking,” Pope raved. “Our guys are working hard at it… and Jaland led that charge tonight.”

Lowe’s sideline energy is important to a team that can go 10 or 11 deep. He was firing up teammates during timeouts, dissecting plays with animated gestures, and kept the Wildcats’ momentum rolling even as Purdue clawed back in the second half. The injury news, thankfully, isn’t a long-term setback. Pope reported that Lowe’s recovery is progressing “epically fast,” with the guard already back to full-speed shooting in practice.

No live contact for at least another week, but if the timeline holds, Big Blue Nation could see Lowe suiting up as early as the showdown against Louisville on November 11. I

The title formula: Winning without the box-score glory

What does it say about a team when your top two “MVPs” are a low-scoring glue guy and an injured cheerleader? In Pope’s Kentucky, it screams championship DNA. Purdue, fresh off a Final Four run and loaded with NBA-bound talent like Braden Smith, came in as the hunted. Kentucky treated them like prey, outrebounding, outhustling, and outcoaching them from wire to wire.

We beat No. 1 Purdue not because of one guy dropping 30, but because the team played together. As Kentucky gears up for their second exhibition tilt against Georgetown on Friday, the buzz in Lexington is palpable. Rupp Arena hasn’t forgotten how to win big, and under Pope, it’s learning how to win right.

Drew Holbrook is an avid Kentucky fan who has been covering the Cats for over 10 years. In his free time he enjoys downtime with his family and Premier League soccer. You can find him on X here. Micah 7:7. #UptheAlbion