Kentucky narrowly avoided what would have arguably been the worst loss in program history Friday night.

The Wildcats needed a last-second 3-pointer from guard Alex Wilkins to escape with a 78-77 victory over Northern Arizona at Rupp Arena. Against a winless team that entered the night as a 30-point underdog, Kentucky came within seconds of suffering a loss that would have followed the program for years.

Coming off an 89-69 loss to Kansas in the Champions Classic on Tuesday, this was supposed to be an opportunity for Kentucky to respond, clean up its issues and get back on track.

Instead, the Wildcats delivered another embarrassing performance, one that nearly turned an already frustrating start to the season into a full-blown disaster.

Kentucky got the win, but the boos inside Rupp Arena, the growing frustration surrounding Mark Pope and the questions about this team’s direction aren’t going away.

Another Performance Kentucky Can’t Afford

There is no way to dress this one up. Kentucky should never have been in this position.

The Wildcats led by as many as 13 points in the first half and went into the break with a 45-37 advantage. However, whatever momentum Kentucky had built disappeared after halftime.

Northern Arizona came out of the locker room and immediately put pressure on the Wildcats. An 11-0 run gave the Lumberjacks a 51-48 lead, and Kentucky spent much of the second half trying to recover.

There were 13 lead changes and four ties throughout the game. Northern Arizona didn’t just hang around. It took control and put Kentucky in a position where the Wildcats needed a last-second shot to survive.

The defensive performance was particularly concerning.

Northern Arizona shot 27-52 from the field and knocked down 13 of its 26 attempts from 3-point range. The Lumberjacks entered the game averaging 67 points per contest but scored 77 against a Kentucky defense that continues to struggle with consistency.

Chris Komin was the biggest problem for the Wildcats. He finished with 25 points and knocked down 5 3-pointers, consistently finding ways to make Kentucky pay. Lucas Toukam added 18 points, giving Northern Arizona another reliable scoring option.

Kentucky also struggled to take advantage of its size on the glass.

The Lumberjacks outrebounded the Wildcats 32-20 and finished with 8 offensive rebounds compared to Kentucky’s 1. That is an unacceptable number for a team with Kentucky’s size, especially against an opponent it was heavily favored to beat.

The Wildcats did shoot 56.4% from the field and finished with 21 assists to just 4 turnovers. Those are positives, but they don’t erase the defensive breakdowns, poor rebounding and lack of consistency that nearly cost Kentucky the game.

Alex Wilkins Saves Kentucky From Disaster

If there is one player Kentucky can thank for avoiding an absolute disaster, it is Alex Wilkins.

With the Wildcats trailing 77-75 and less than 15 seconds remaining, Northern Arizona had an opportunity to put the game away at the free-throw line. The Lumberjacks missed the front end of a one-and-one, giving Kentucky one final chance.

The sophomore guard stepped back and knocked down a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds remaining to give Kentucky a 78-77 lead. Northern Arizona couldn’t answer, and the Wildcats escaped with a victory they had no business needing to fight so hard to get.

Wilkins finished with 14 points, joining Milan Momcilovic and Malachi Moreno as Kentucky’s leading scorers. Moreno added 6 rebounds and 6 assists, while Momcilovic also finished with 14 points. Ousmane N’Diaye scored 11, and Justin McBride added 10.

Wilkins deserves plenty of credit for delivering when Kentucky needed him most. He made the biggest shot of the night and prevented what could have become a defining loss for this program.

Rupp Arena Had Seen Enough

The frustration inside Rupp Arena was impossible to miss.

Boos could be heard throughout the game as Kentucky continued to struggle against an opponent that entered the night winless. As Northern Arizona kept making shots and pushing the Wildcats, the crowd’s patience continued to disappear.

The frustration reached another level late in the game, with chants of “Fire Mark Pope” heard inside Rupp Arena.

That is not something Kentucky fans expected to be hearing this early in the season, especially during a game against Northern Arizona.

But the reaction says plenty about where things stand right now.

Pope entered his third season with expectations of getting Kentucky back into national championship contention. Instead, the Wildcats have followed a 20-point loss to Kansas with a performance that nearly resulted in one of the most embarrassing losses in program history.

Losing to Kansas is one thing. Nearly losing at home to an overmatched Northern Arizona team is another.

The conversation surrounding Pope is heating up, and performances like this are only going to add fuel to it.

Mark Pope’s Postgame Comments Add to the Frustration

Perhaps one of the more surprising parts of the night came after the final buzzer.

Following a performance that had fans booing and questioning what they were watching, Pope offered a surprisingly positive assessment of the entertainment value of the game.

“I hope everybody at Rupp had fun. It was a pretty exciting game,” Pope said.

He continued by describing the game as “pretty entertaining, if not well executed.”

That is not exactly what a frustrated fanbase wanted to hear after watching Kentucky nearly lose to one of the worst teams in the country.

There is a difference between finding positives in a win and recognizing that the overall performance fell well short of expectations. Kentucky escaped, but that doesn’t change how poorly the team played for much of the night.

Pope did acknowledge some of the team’s biggest problems, particularly its lack of production on the offensive glass.

“We had zero offensive rebounds in the first half. One in the game. That’s not acceptable for us,” Pope said.

That is a fair assessment. Kentucky was physically outworked on the glass, struggled defensively and needed a miracle shot to avoid an embarrassing loss.

Pope also expressed confidence in the group moving forward, saying, “I think it’s going to be a fun team to follow.”

There is nothing wrong with a coach remaining positive about his team, and Pope deserves the opportunity to work through the issues with this roster. But the performance Friday night was unacceptable for a program with Kentucky’s expectations.

The Wildcats have plenty to correct, and those concerns aren’t going away simply because they found a way to win.

Kentucky Has Plenty of Questions to Answer

A win is a win, and Wilkins deserves plenty of credit for making the shot that saved Kentucky. But there is no reason to pretend this was anything other than an embarrassing performance.

The Wildcats needed a response after Tuesday’s loss to Kansas. Instead, they followed it up with a game that nearly resulted in an even worse outcome.

The defensive execution remains a major concern. The rebounding has to improve, and the team needs to show more physicality and consistency. Kentucky also has to find a way to put together a complete 40-minute performance instead of relying on individual moments to bail it out.

Pope and his staff have plenty to address. The criticism isn’t going to disappear after a performance like this, and the conversation surrounding his job is only going to get louder if these issues continue.

Kentucky returns to Rupp Arena Monday night to host Grambling State. That should be another opportunity to get things moving in the right direction, but at this point, Big Blue Nation needs to see more than another win against an overmatched opponent.

The Wildcats got away with one Friday night. They cannot keep playing this way and expect the results to go their way.

For more Kentucky news and coverage, follow me on X @DrewByousBBN.