KSR Today: Kentucky Takes Down Tennessee for ANOTHER Top 10 Win
Some Kentucky wins feel so good that it’s impossible to articulate their wonderfulness. In Mark Pope’s first season, he has five wins over Top 10 teams. His fifth was his second rivalry win, and this orange tastes oh so sweet.
Kentucky shot 50% against the best defensive team in the country and left their house with a win. Rick Barnes had a winning record over the Wildcats during his Tennessee tenure. He doesn’t anymore. The Wildcats went to the Food City Center without two starters and left with a 78-73 win.
Just as he did in the win over Gonzaga, Jaxson Robinson brought his A-game as the primary ball-handler, knocking down four threes to score 17 points. Koby Brea did not miss a shot in his 18-point performance and he went to the free throw line seven times; he entered the game with only 10 attempts all year. Otega Oweh was clutch down the stretch, all while dodging assault charges.
Kentucky made four three-pointers to jump out to an early lead, then let the Vols back in it with an 11-0 run before halftime. The Cats put their foot on the gas in the second half and led by as many as 11 points before things tightened up in the final four minutes. Tennessee finished the game 1-12 and Kentucky snapped a two-game losing streak.
Kentucky beat a Top 10 rival on the road. Bottle up this feeling and don’t forget it. The SEC can be humbling, but Mark Pope is taking advantage of every opportunity to deliver big wins to the Big Blue Nation.
A Kentucky Wildcat Celebrated his Birthday with a Win
The Big Man from Great Britain brought out some of his best basketball on his 23rd birthday. First half foul trouble sent him to the sidelines and that’s when things got sideways for the Wildcats. Amari Williams brought the Cats back to life after intermission by keeping the Vols off the glass and distributing the rock. Kentucky was +20 when Williams was on the floor as he tallied 10 points, 15 rebounds, and four assists in the victory over Tennessee.
“It was great. I’ve had a lot of games on my birthday throughout my college career and this is definitely the best one,” Williams said Tuesday night.
Zakai Zeigler Just Missed Another Three
Mark Pope’s defensive gameplan was clear: dare somebody not named Chaz Lanier to make three-pointers. It didn’t work too well initially — Igor Milicic was 4-8 from downtown — but it paid dividends down the stretch. The Vols simply couldn’t buy a bucket when they needed it most.
Tennessee entered the game shooting 33.4% from three (eighth in the SEC, No. 143 in D-I). The Vols shot 45 three-pointers, the most ever by a Kentucky opponent. They only made 11. Zakai Zeigler shot 1-11 from three-point land in his fifth career loss to Kentucky. The Cats were willing to let the Vols to shoot themselves out of the game and that’s exactly what happened.
“That’s what they were looking for and when we obviously weren’t making them, they were going to back up even more,” Rick Barnes said after the loss. “Why not?”
Who Did This?
No, that photo isn’t real, even though that’s what it felt like for most of the night in Knoxville. The hilarious photoshop that spread across the internet was from a cute postgame interaction between Brea and a young, friendly Vol fan who was willing to eat some humble pie to pose for a picture with the star of the game.
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The Kentucky Injury Report
Lamont Butler did not play against Tennessee. Andrew Carr logged only two minutes. Those are two of the most important players on this roster and Kentucky didn’t have either. The good news is they may be back soon.
During an Instagram Live celebration in the locker room, Kentucky’s starting point guard provided some reassuring words for Big Blue Nation. “I’ll be back soon.” Things feel a little more complicated with Carr as they work their way through his back injury. Mark Pope admitted that they’ve struggled to juggle the cost-benefit analysis, but hope the additional rest he’s received over the last few weeks will pay dividends down the road.
[READ: Injury Updates from Mark Pope on Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr]
More Coverage from the Kentucky Win over Tennessee
Kentucky Silences Rocky Top: Takeaways from a Masterpiece in Knoxville
Kentucky continues to play its best basketball against Top 15 teams
Checking the boxes: Mark Pope already tied a school record with another rivalry win
Pope is asking Amari Williams to do “an impossible job” and still succeeding
The Kentucky offense killed the Tennessee defense on the stat sheet
Mark Pope celebrated the win with a grandma on Facetime
Kentucky didn’ty make a field goal for the final 5+ minutes and still won
Incredible Highlights from the Win
Mark Pope’s Postgame Presser
The Cats love being ‘dogs in Knoxville
Recap at the Buzzer from the W
Robinson, Williams talk about the Win
Rapid Reaction with Steven and Jack in Knoxville
College Basketball on TV
TCU at No. 22 Texas Tech, 7:00, ESPN2
No. 1 Auburn at LSU, 7:00, SECN
No. 6 Houston at West Virginia, 7:00, ESPN+
No. 17 Wisconsin at Maryland, 7:00, BTN
DePaul at No. 25 UConn, 8:00, Peacock
Oklahoma State at Kansas State, 8:00, CBSSN
Xavier at Creighton, 8:00, FS1
No. 4 Alabama at No. 14 Mississippi State, 9:00, SECN
Texas at No. 23 Ole Miss, 9:00, ESPN2
Rutgers at Northwestern, 9:00, BTN
Nevada at Boise State, 10:00, CBSSN
UNLV at Utah State, 10:00, FS1
It’s Trivia Night at KSBar and Grille
You can watch all of tonight’s college basketball action and give your cranium a little exercise at KSBar and Grille. Trivia Night begins at 7 pm EST. While you’re answering questions and watching hoops, enjoy some wildly addictive wings on Wingsday. Dine-in and get boneless for .70 and regular wings for $1 each. It’s a win-win-win. Dig in at KSBar.
Beating Tennessee Feels So Damn Good
About a thousand words ago, I told you that it’s difficult to articulate just how wonderful it is to beat your Top 10 rival on the road. It’s a feeling that cannot be replicated or manufactured for sale in a store. It’s the metaphorical drinking of tears while scrolling online. And it’s the laughter that accompanies all of the satisfactory stats, like, “Tennessee has only lost five home games since the beginning of the 2021-22 season. Three of those have been to Kentucky.”
There’s a big game at Rupp Arena on Saturday. Seasons are ultimately judged by what happens two months from now. As for today, enjoy every second of it Big Blue Nation. Wins like the one over Tennessee are what makes being a Kentucky basketball so damn fun.
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