Mark Pope whistled past the graveyard this week. He probably thought it sounded like a hopeful tune, but my ears detected more of sob story, set to a sad trombone.

Pope compared himself to John Calipari on his radio show, and he thought the comparison made him sound good. Say what?

In a four-minute monologue, Pope explained how, in his mind, his two seasons as Kentucky men's basketball coach deserve a little more love than Big Blue Nation is offering. Keep in mind, his Wildcats just got trounced in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

“This is what’s going to shock you," Pope said. "If you take the four years before we got here and compare them to the two years since we’ve been here, we actually have a higher winning percentage in the last two than we did in the four preceding (years, under Calipari) — barely, but a higher winning percentage.”

Whew, buddy, where to begin.

Let’s start here: Winning percentage, are you kidding me? Pope should know Kentucky doesn’t hang banners for a .639 winning percentage. That winning percentage will get him a buyout check from Kentucky, not applause.

The next time Pope wants to compare himself to Calipari, stop. Just stop. Big Blue Nation wanted Calipari gone at the end of his tenure. Pope admitting he’s "barely" performed better than the end of Calipari’s reign is not the compliment Pope thinks it is — especially, when you consider Pope has delivered none of the success Calipari previously supplied, before Cal fizzled and flopped in March his final few years.

Calipari has six Final Fours (four at Kentucky) and a national championship. Pope has three tournament wins. He’s never won a Sweet 16 game or an SEC title. End of comparison.

Oh, one more thing: Calipari’s current Arkansas team won the SEC tournament, and he’s strutting like a rejuvenated mafioso into the Sweet 16, while Pope uncorks excuses, cites his winning percentage, and comes armed with strength of schedule metrics to an offseason radio show.

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“Go do the math yourself,” Pope said, in defense of his record.

Yes, because if there’s one thing that’ll fire up a ravenous fan base, it’s whipping out a calculator and celebrating .639.

Calipari’s winning percentage his final four seasons: .635.

Well, glory be, I detect a whisker of progress!

Except, then you consider Calipari’s winning percentage his final three seasons was .703. I guess we’re not supposed to do that math.

To Pope’s credit, his Wildcats avoided the gut-punching first-round losses Calipari suffered to Saint Peter’s in 2022 and Oakland in 2024. That’s where the credit ends. Otega Oweh's banked-in 40-footer kept Pope's second season from ending with a first-round loss to 10-seed Santa Clara. Then, Iowa State busted out the whoopin' stick.

While we’re talking numbers, here are a few more: Calipari won 29 games his second season at Kentucky and went to a Final Four. He won 38 games his third season and delivered a national title.

That’s the bar. That’s the standard. That gets you a banner and praise. Not .639.

“We haven’t met our goals, clearly,” Pope said, “but we are making progress.

“We know where we need to go.”

So do I. To the Final Four, next season, or start packing.

Big Blue Nation doesn’t want to solve math problems. It cares about one number: One.

As in, it expects to be No. 1.

That’s what the Kentucky job demands. Same as North Carolina.