Jaxson Robinson: "We came in here like some dogs and did what we needed to do"

No one needed a big game more than Jaxson Robinson. Robinson had one of the worst performances of his career in Kentucky’s loss vs. Georgia on Tuesday, going 1-5 from the floor for just five points. In the days since, Mark Pope has defended the grad wing, who followed him from BYU to Kentucky, insisting that he will stay in the starting lineup. Tonight, he showed why.

Robinson scored 27 points, a season-high and one shy of a career-high, in No. 6 Kentucky’s thrilling 95-90 win over No. 14 Mississippi State. He was 9-12 from the field, including a scorching 7-10 from three-point range, in 30 minutes. Those seven threes tied Dontaie Allen for the most ever vs. Mississippi State. In his postgame interview on “SEC Now,” Robinson started by giving credit to his teammates, whom he said answered Mark Pope’s challenge to be tougher on the boards.

“We knew we had to come to this game and be tough. Mississippi State’s a tough team. Coach preached all game, especially leading up to this game, just about rebounding. I think Amari Williams was huge on the glass for us. We couldn’t have done without him, Ansley Almonor, Otega [Oweh], I could go down the list, but everybody showed up. That’s what it takes. When you’re at Kentucky, you know you’re gonna get everybody’s best shot. And I think we came in here like some dogs and did what we needed to do.”

That last line really applies to Robinson, who oozed confidence and silenced his doubters. Tonight was by far his best shooting performance of the season. He admitted to the “SEC Now” crew that he’s been going through a rough patch, and thanked his teammates and coaches for helping him push through it.

“Man, just keep going. To be honest with you, I’ve had a rough couple of games, especially after the last game, I didn’t have my best outing, but my teammates, my coaches, they just kept confidence in me, they kept instilling it in me and I came out here tonight, played free, played with confidence. And, I mean, I played great. So I can’t thank my teammates and my coaches enough.”

A lot of people questioned Kentucky’s — and Robinson’s — toughness after the loss to Georgia. Robinson was counted on to be a leader from day one in Lexington. There have been some bumps in the road, but tonight showed the Cats are still headed in the right direction.

“I’m the only player that came with Coach Pope, so just trying to set the example of what it means to wear this Kentucky jersey along with the rest of my guys. We’re still learning it, but I think we’re on our way, and tonight was a great step towards that goal.”

“We’ve just got to keep going, block out the noise and do it for each other, and for the state of Kentucky.”

Robinson received quite the reception in the locker room after the game. You love to see it.

The build-up to the locker room celebration…

This team is a blast. https://t.co/5zuFIdhjzZ pic.twitter.com/K3P4O30cLe

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) January 12, 2025

Kentucky guard Jaxson Robinson was lights out from deep putting up his best game of the season in a W over Mississippi State 🔥

▪️ 27 PTS
▪️ 9-12 FG
▪️ 7-10 3PT pic.twitter.com/47iw40TCsl

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) January 12, 2025