WATCH: Kentucky coach Mark Pope shares sweet embrace with wife Lee Anne after victory over Duke
Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope enjoyed a dream outing at the State Farm Arena last evening, as his side handed the No. 6 Duke Blue Devils their first loss of the season. Despite coming into the game as underdogs, the Wildcats held their own, scoring a narrow 77-72 victory over the Blue Devils in the State Farm Champions Classic showdown last evening.
Following the game, Pope had a touching moment with his wife, Lee Anne. They shared a warm hug on the touchline, which was met with raucous cheers from the Kentucky faithful present at the State Farm Arena.
The 51-year old then acknowledged the Kentucky fans who made the long trip to Atlanta to watch the Wildcats score a famous victory, before exiting the arena by giving high-fives to fans near the tunnel.
Pope and Lee Anne completed 25 years of marriage this August. She has been a constant source support for Pope, referred to as the 'mom of the program' during his days as BYU's head coach. In fact, Pope even mentioned how Lee Anne helps him maintain his calm demeanor on the sidelines by handling the referees.
"What we’ve done is we had a really serious meeting with all the players and the whole staff, and we just agreed that we would let Lee Anne (Pope's wife) ahandle the refs and we're just gonna work on the game," said Pope.
Pope and Lee Anne have four children: Ella, Avery, Layla and Shay, and they often attend their father's games.
Pope leads Kentucky to famous win over Duke
Prior to Tuesday's game, Duke won nine of its last 11 games against Kentucky.
The Wildcats survived a massive 26-point effort from Duke's top recruit Cooper Flagg, securing the win in the final moments of the fourth quarter. Andrew Carr finished as the Wildcats' top scorer with 17 points, while Oklahoma transfer Otega Oweh finished with 15 points and six rebounds, including a pair of free-throws made in the final seconds of the game to ensure Pope's side went 3-0 in the season.
The Wildcats will return to Lexington to face the Lipscomb Bison in their next game on November 19 at 7 p.m. ET.