LEXINGTON – October 17, 2025 – Michael Willis
The Big Blue Faithful packed the historic Memorial Coliseum to watch their Wildcats in the annual Blue/White Game. While Big Blue Madness celebrates the start of the season, the B/W Game offers fans their first real glimpse of the Cats in competitive action. Even though it’s an inter-squad scrimmage, fans love seeing basketball return to the Bluegrass.
The women’s team took the court first, going through a mock practice after new head coach Kenny Brooks addressed the crowd, declaring, “We will be really good this year!” Judging by the practice drills, shooting shouldn’t be a concern for the Women’s Wildcats.
They then scrimmaged against the male practice squad in a highly competitive matchup. The White team (the women’s team) led 22–17 at halftime and maintained their advantage to win 43–32.
After player introductions and a brief speech from head coach Mark Pope, the men’s team took the court to close out the night. It turned out to be one of the most aggressive Blue/White scrimmages in recent memory.
At the end of the first 10-minute half, the Blue team led 26–14. Pope then announced that the first team to reach 34 points would win the game. The intensity remained high until freshman guard Jayland Lowe went down after a collision, holding his shoulder. He walked off the court to a warm round of applause from the crowd.
The Blue team ultimately secured the win with a dunk by Andrija Jelavic, bringing them to the 34-point mark.
In the post-game press conference, Pope was asked if he was surprised by his team’s competitiveness. He responded simply: “Nope, that’s what they do.”
Lowe’s condition remained uncertain immediately following the game. When asked about the injury, Pope said, “He tweaked his shoulder, so we’ll see. We’ll know more tomorrow. He is an incredibly tough young man, so whatever it is, he’ll battle through it well.”