DJ Wagner out, Zvonimir Ivisic unlikely to play against No. 5 Tennessee

The expectation leading into tonight’s game against No. 5 Tennessee was that Kentucky would be without starting point guard DJ Wagner. The freshman has been dealing with a nagging ankle issue that kept him out of the Wildcats’ previous game on Wednesday against Florida.

During his pregame radio conversation with Tom Leach, head coach John Calipari confirmed that Wagner will sit once again when Kentucky hosts the Volunteers at 8:30 p.m. EST (ESPN) inside Rupp Arena. Additionally, Calipari also said that freshman Zvonimir Ivisic is likely out too, stating that the 7-foot-2 big man is dealing with an illness.

“Unless there’s some kind of emergency I probably won’t play (Ivisic),” Calipari said. He added that Wagner is still a “couple of more days” away from returning.

On the bright side, Calipari did confirm that freshman Justin Edwards will be able to take the floor against the Vols. Edwards sat out the game against Florida with a quad issue.

Kentucky is 0-2 on the season without Wagner in the lineup. Through 18 games played this season (all starts), he’s averaging 12 points and 3.7 assists in 28.4 minutes per game while shooting 43.5 percent from the field. As for Ivisic, he’s appeared in just four games for the ‘Cats since getting cleared to play by the NCAA on Jan. 20. The Croatian big man is averaging 4.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per outing.

Next man up…