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Lamont Butler injury update: Kentucky star guard's status vs. Tennessee revealed

IMG_0985by:Griffin McVeigh•01/27/25•

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Jan 18, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Lamont Butler (1) celebrates after making a three point basket during the second half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
Jan 18, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Lamont Butler (1) celebrates after making a three point basket during the second half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

One of the SEC’s best basketball rivalries is set to take place Tuesday. Tennessee will play host to Kentucky, the first matchup between Rick Barnes and Mark Pope. However, the Wildcats will be without one of the team’s star players in Knoxville.

Lamont Butler has been ruled out for the Tennessee game per the SEC availability report. The exact injury is not known but Butler has been dealing with a health problem for a couple of games now. Pope spoke on how hard the guard has been battling physically following Saturday’s loss against Vanderbilt.

“Yeah, Lamont has got a lot right now,” Pope said. “We all know what a warrior he is. Man, he is giving us everything he’s got right now but It’s hard for him, physically, right now.”

Butler is Kentucky’s second-leading scorer and top assist man, averaging 13.2 points and 4.8 assists per game. One of his best games of the season came on Jan. 18 against Alabama, dropping 17 points and eight assists while making six of 14 shots from the field.

Even in a rotation Pope might consider a deep one, the production from Butler is tough to produce. Especially against an opponent like Tennessee is is well known for being solid defensively. Barnes’ squad ranks as the No. 1 team in Adj. Defensive Rating per KenPom.

If there is a positive for Kentucky on the injury report, it’s that Andrew Carr is listed as questionable. Carr missed the Vanderbilt game but now has an opportunity to get back on the court.

Mark Pope speaks to challenge of playing SEC schedule

Mark Pope never fails to find the silver lining. The first-year Kentucky head coach did just that on Saturday after the Wildcats suffered a 74-69 loss to Vanderbilt on the road.

“That’s the great thing about this league. It’s such a fun, beautiful league. Every night is going to be the biggest challenge of your season,” Pope said. “It’s nice because you don’t actually have to convince your guys of that, it’s just every single game. I think every team is probably feeling some fatigue and frustration, and everyone is dealing with injuries, for sure. 

“We’re not far away. We have some real issues that we have to find some creative answers to, but we’re not far away. We did some really positive things tonight. Some things I was really proud of our guys (for).”

On3’s Grant Grubbs contributed to this report