LIVE BLOG: No. 1 Auburn at No. 17 Kentucky

Auburn 78, Kentucky 58 at the under 8:00 timeout

Back-to-back drives by Lamont Butler cut into Auburn’s lead. The Wildcats got within 13, but the Tigers quickly stretched the gap back to 20 at the media timeout.

With 7:50 left in the game, fans still can’t watch on ABC at home, and some fans in Rupp Arena are already heading home.

Miles Kelly hit another 3

Technical difficulties at Rupp

As you might have guessed, there are some issues with the TV feed. According to the ESPN in-studio team, there are technical difficulties at Rupp Arena. Until they are fixed, those of us watching at home will get to see Texas Tech vs. Kansas. Just what everyone wants.

ABC’s feed goes out

It’s not just you. ABC’s feed of the game just cut out, putting us all in the dark or in a loop of commercials. Even they’ve seen enough. According to the stat feed, they’re in a media timeout at Rupp.

11:38 2H – Auburn 70, Kentucky 54

11 straight points by Koby Brea

Kentucky needed a big game from Koby Brea to have a chance at the upset. Brea is now rolling, scoring the last eleven points (two threes, a layup, three free throws) for Kentucky. It’s probably too late.

12:37 2H – Auburn 68, Kentucky 51

Another review!

Officials are headed back to the monitor to see if Amari Williams was hit on a screen by Chris Moore. After taking a look, it will remain a common foul on Moore. It was the sixth review of the game.

In other news, Kentucky is ice cold:

This is what they play on the elevator TVs on the ride down to hell pic.twitter.com/wHwAB17qKE

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) March 1, 2025

Today’s Y: Wayne Turner

My prediction of 88 honorary Ys didn’t come true. Wayne Turner served the honors on Alumni Weekend, one of 88 former Cats in the house today. Here’s hoping the 1996 and 1998 national champion being recognized at midcourt serves as some kind of spark in this game.

Score Update: 15:59 2H – Auburn 58, Kentucky 39

Kentucky scored its first field goal in eleven minutes a few moments ago, a baseline jumper by Koby Break. Unfortunately, Miles Kelly followed it up with a three-pointer, during which he was fouled by Otega Oweh. That’s Oweh’s fourth foul of the game. Ouch.

Text Machine ain’t happy (same)

Text your observations to 859-587-3828 (standard messaging rates apply).

Kentucky’s sloppy play continues

It’s hard to beat the No. 1 team in the country even when you’re playing your best game. It’s impossible when you keep shooting yourself in the foot. Kentucky has had six possessions this half and six turnovers to match it since halftime. That brings Kentucky’s total today to 16. The Cats have yet to attempt a field goal. Gross.

16:59 2H – Auburn 55, Kentucky 37

Dylan Cardwell picks up his fourth foul

Good news: Dylan Cardwell just picked up his fourth foul with 18:25 to go. That could open up some opportunities for Andrew Carr and Amari Williams. Lamont Butler hit both throws. The Cats need all the help they can get, down 14.

18:25 2H -Auburn 51, Kentucky 37.

HALF: Auburn 49, Kentucky 34

Kentucky got as close as six with five minutes to go, but Auburn is firmly in control at halftime, leading by 15, 49-34. Officiating (three monitor trips so far) has led to a very clunky first half.

The Cats are playing decent offense — Johni Broome has just one point off a free-throw — but offense has eluded them so far. Kentucky is 9-27 (33%) from the floor so far, 1-9 from three, and turned the ball over 10 times, leading to 13 Auburn points. The Cats didn’t score a field goal in the final 7:21 of the half. Auburn has hit some absurd shots, going 7-16 from three and 16-32 from the field.

Amari Williams leads the way for Kentucky with 12 points and 9 rebounds, the only Cat in double figures. Miles Kelly leads Auburn with 17 points (five threes), followed by Chad Baker-Mazara with 16 and Tahaad Pettiford with 11.

Flagrant 1 on Lamont Butler

With 1:47 to go in the half, officials headed to the monitor again to review Lamont Butler and Chad Baker-Mazara’s collision at the rim on Butler’s layup attempt. Baker-Mazara stayed on the floor clutching his jaw for a few moments. Officials decided to call a Flagrant 1 on Butler for an “unobserved action.” So, not the incidental forearm to the face? I hate this.

1:47 1H – Auburn 42, Kentucky 32

Text Machine hates the officiating (same)

And to think Bruce Pearl said Kentucky gets a home whistle. Text your observations to 859-587-3828 (standard messaging rates apply).

Score Update: 3:30 1H – Auburn 38, Kentucky 31

The good news: Johni Broome keeps missing. Auburn’s star forward is 0-4 from the floor and even 0-1 from the free-throw line, subbing in and out with two fouls. The bad news: Kentucky needs to capitalize. The Cats have missed their last four field goals and made just one of the last seven. Kentucky hasn’t made a field goal in almost four minutes.

Otega Oweh picks up his third foul (and it’s a cheap one)

Kentucky’s hanging around, but Otega Oweh just picked up his third foul, a very cheap one trying to rebound Andrew Carr’s missed free throw attempt. Can’t do that.

5:00 1H – Auburn 38, Kentucky 31

Officials call double foul after review

Officials just went to the monitor again to review a hook and hold on Brandon Garrison. After looking at it, they decided to make it a double foul on Garrison and Johni Broome, who now has two fouls. Kentucky’s got the ball.

If you look at the replay, it looks like it should have been reversed to a flagrant foul on Broome, but what do I know?

Denver Jones headed to the locker room with a rolled ankle

Something to keep an eye on: Auburn senior guard Denver Jones is headed to the locker room after rolling his ankle. He averages 11 points per game.

KOBY BREA hits Kentucky’s first three of the game

It took almost 13 minutes, but Kentucky finally hit a three. Koby Brea connected on his third three-point attempt of the game to pull Kentucky within eight. Lamont Butler is headed to the line after this timeout to shoot two. The Cats are trying to hang in there, but Auburn is just really, really good. All the self-inflicted wounds early in the game did not help.

6:38 1H – Auburn 34, Kentucky 26

Koby Brea dunk prompts a Bruce Pearl timeout

Here come the Cats! A dunk by Koby Brea just put an exclamation mark on a 6-2 Kentucky run, which pulls the Cats within six with 8:52 to go in the first half. Johni Broome is the frontrunner for National Player of the Year, but so far, Amari Williams is winning that matchup. He has nine points and six rebounds already. Broome is scoreless, 0-3 from the floor, with just one 1 rebound.

8:52 1H – Auburn 27, Kentucky 21

Otega Oweh picks up his second foul

More bad news: Otega Oweh just picked up his second foul, which will send him to the bench. Trent Noah is now in. Kentucky is trying to claw back but Auburn is answering every bucket. Add Chad Baker-Mazara, who has scored Auburn’s last eight points, to the list of Tigers who are on fire at Rupp.

9:51 1H – Auburn 27, Kentucky 16

The last time Auburn won at Kentucky

Auburn hasn’t beaten Kentucky at Rupp Arena since 1988. That streak may come to an end today, but we can still enjoy these pictures of Bruce Pearl and Mark Pope from the late 1980s when Pearl was an assistant at Iowa and Pope was still in high school.

Score Update: 11:50 1H – Auburn 21, Kentucky 9

Same score as the last update at the second media timeout, although Andrew Carr is headed to the free-throw line. Kentucky has failed to hit a three-pointer so far, going 0-4, while Auburn has hit four, all by Miles Kelly. Kelly has 14 of the Tigers’ 21 points. Kentucky also has five turnovers to Auburn’s two.

Gotta find some offense.

We have our first review of the game

There’s a pause in the action as officials review a foul on Chris Moore, who showed officials a bloody lip claiming it should be on Williams. Officials disagreed. Williams just hit one of two free throws to pull Kentucky within 12. Williams has scored Kentucky’s last three points, stopping Auburn’s 12-0 run.

12:23 1H – Auburn 21, Kentucky 9

Miles Kelly just banked in two threes back-to-back

Miles Kelly is a problem. The Auburn guard just banked in TWO threes back-to-back to put the Tigers up 13. He has four threes so far. STOP HIM!

14:20 1H – Auburn 19, Kentucky 6

Kentucky gives up six quick points

There have been better segments than that one. Auburn’s Miles Kelly hit a three and when Otega Oweh was throwing the ball in bounds, Chad Baker-Mazara got a steal and laid it in, drawing a foul. He just completed the three-point play to put Auburn up seven.

15:04 1H- Auburn 13, Kentucky 6

Score Update: 15:39 1H – Auburn 7, Kentucky 4

Auburn is up by three at the first media timeout, but maybe not for long. Chad Baker Mazara fouled Otega Oweh on Oweh’s shot attempt, meaning he’ll head to the free-throw line after this timeout.

Kentucky’s doing its job on the defensive end so far, holding Auburn to 2-6 shooting, but needs to make some more shots of its own, just 2-5 from the floor. Koby Brea is 0-2 from three so far.

Auburn strikes first, Kentucky responds

Auburn got off to a hot start, with Miles Kelly swishing a three right after the Tigers won the tip. Kentucky responded, with Andrew Carr getting the Cats on the board first. Otega Oweh gave Kentucky a 4-3 lead with a beautiful bucket inside off a pass by Amari Williams. Auburn is back on top after two free throws by Denver Jones following a foul on Lamont Butler.

16:57 1H – Auburn 5, Kentucky 4

Text Machine Reassurance

Text your observations to 859-587-3828 (standard messaging rates apply).

Rupp is rocking

Rupp is best in games like this, and even with the early tip, it’s not disappointing. Hit play below and pretend you’re there.

Kentucky runs out ready to take on the #1 team in the land.

It’s ELECTRIC in here 🔥 pic.twitter.com/3vMRDoAJT9

— Mario A Maitland (@MarioMaitland_3) March 1, 2025

Kentucky’s Starting Lineup

With Jaxson Robinson out, Koby Brea will move into the starting lineup. Brea is much better at Rupp than on the road, averaging 12.6 points, including 3.1 made threes, per game at Rupp and 8.1 points (1.6 made threes) out of it.

01 Lamont Butler
00 Otega Oweh
04 Koby Brea
07 Andrew Carr
22 Amari Williams

Mark Pope says Lamont Butler is doing “great”

We got a not-so-promising update on Jaxson Robinson’s wrist this morning, but Pope gave a very good update on Lamont Butler’s shoulder. Pope told Leach that Butler did not suffer any setbacks in his return to play at Oklahoma.

“He’s great. He really hasn’t had any setbacks. He’s feeling good aspects. I expect him to play great tonight.”

Mark Pope on how to slow down Johni Broome

Mark Pope started his pregame chat with Tom Leach answering the question many fans have today: how will Kentucky slow down Johni Broome? The fifth-year senior is a frontrunner for National Player of the Year and could be the X-factor in today’s game.

“He’s multifaceted. He’s an unbelievable offensive rebounder,” Pope said of Broome. “He’s a veteran guy, savvy. He knows where the point of attack is, so he doesn’t waste a ton of energy on the stuff that is less important. He’s one of the best shot blockers in the country.”

Today’s game is also in ESPN 4K

Kentucky vs. Auburn is on ABC, the Cats’ first game on ABC since the game vs. Michigan in London in 2022. There is another way to watch it. The game will be shown on ESPN 4K if you get that through your cable or streaming provider. If you watch that feed, you won’t have to see commercials; the cameras will stay on Rupp during breaks, meaning you’ll get to see the atmosphere in Rupp instead.

Today’s game is also getting the ESPN All-Access treatment, meaning Mark Pope and Bruce Pearl will be mic’d up and cameras will be allowed in the locker room and in the huddles, giving fans an even closer look at a big-time showdown.

Here are all the details on how to watch and listen:

Two of three College Gameday hosts pick Kentucky vs. Auburn

We just got done crapping on College Gameday, but two of the three hosts picked Kentucky to upset Auburn. Jay Williams and Seth Greenberg like the Cats over the Tigers today at Rupp. Jay Bilas is calling the game so he did not pick.

The GameDay crew make their picks 👀 pic.twitter.com/NylokIVaPG

— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) March 1, 2025

ICYMI, Jaxson Robinson scuttlebutt

If you missed Matt Jones’ post on KSBoard and his comments on the pregame show, there is some Jaxson Robinson scuttlebutt to pass along today. Matt is hearing that Robinson’s wrist injury may be season-ending. Per Matt’s sources, the early word is that Robinson needs surgery, but he would like to play the final stretch of the season so he’s going to see a specialist out of state early next week. Fingers crossed for good news.

Robinson and Kerr Kriisa are the only players on the final SEC Availability Report.

Saturday AM Bracketology update

It’s Joe Lunardi Season. Kentucky is holding steady as a No. 3 seed in his latest update, the No. 10 seed overall. Auburn, of course, is the No. 1 seed. In Lunardi’s mind, the Tigers could forfeit their remaining games and still be a No. 1 seed. The Cats will do their best to give them an L today.

Today’s officials…

…are Joe Lindsay, K.B. Burdett Jr., and Chuck Jones, per Aaron Gershon. Kentucky is 2-1 in games called by Lindsay this season (Duke, Alabama, Tennessee) and 2-1 with Burdett (Georgia State, Texas A&M, at Vanderbilt). This is the first Kentucky game Jones has worked this season.

College Gameday will go to Duke/North Carolina (again)

College Gameday notoriously picked Duke vs. North Carolina in Durham over Kentucky vs. Arkansas in Rupp a month ago. With one weekend left in the regular season, they’re going with the Blue Devils and Tar Heels AGAIN, even though North Carolina is not good.

No. 17 Kentucky at No. 14 Missouri would have been a fine option, but that’s not even the point anymore. No. 6 Alabama at No. 1 Auburn is also that day and would be a far superior choice. Gameday gonna Gameday.

88 former players back for Alumni Weekend

It’s Alumni Weekend at UK, and the Kentucky Basketball program is going all out. According to the official UK pregame show, 88 former players are in town for today’s game. Goose Givens said that the program has put a special focus on welcoming former players back this season, with Mark Pope especially encouraging them to come to speak to his current squad. We’ve seen that with former players serving as the Y at most games this season. I would imagine UK will recognize the former players in some form or fashion today. 88 honorary Ys?