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Following Kentucky’s 89-80 victory over James Madison on Friday night at Rupp Arena, head coach Mark Pope had plenty of praise for Zoom Diallo and the support he has received from Big Blue Nation.
Diallo continued to build on his strong start to the regular season, finishing with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field, including 1-of-2 from beyond the arc. He also recorded three rebounds, two assists, and one steal.
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After a difficult exhibition season that included criticism from some fans on social media, Diallo has started to find his rhythm while receiving plenty of encouragement from the Kentucky fanbase.
Pope believes that support has made a difference, emphasizing how much Diallo loves his teammates and the locker room while highlighting the guard’s ability to bring the team together.
“This young man, as we have talked about, is really special in the sense of, like, he just loves this team and this locker room,” said Pope. “And he is doing whatever he can to bring guys together and lift guys up every single day. We win, in large part, we are a better team when our fan base is elite, and our fan base decided to show up for Zoom a couple of days ago, and that is why we win.
“Our fan base has power to actually help us win, and this is a great example. Zoom is feeling engaged with our fan base, and that is a really powerful thing, and I just never want our fan base to lose the insight that they have so much power to affect winning and losing, and when they are rallying behind our guys when they are having a tough time, when they are lifting them up during a tough time.
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“It makes a difference. We have the most powerful fan base in all of the world, and they can make an incredible difference, and Zoom Diallo is a great example, so kudos to our fan base for being so great and so responsive in that way.”
Pope’s comments show just how much he values the relationship between his players and the fanbase. He believes that when Kentucky fans rally behind…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/mark-pope-praises-zoom-diallo-110500244.html
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Publish date : 2026-11-07 11:05:00
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