No. 19 Kentucky vs. LSU: Preview, Odds & How to Watch

It’s time for Senior Day, the Kentucky Wildcats out of eligibility breaking through paper hoops inside Rupp Arena for their final home games in blue and white. The opponent? Daimion Collins and the LSU Tigers, a homecoming for the former Wildcat with the program led by former Murray State head coach Matt McMahon.

Can UK wrap up the home schedule with one final victory? KSR has everything you need to know about the matchup.

Kentucky vs. LSU: How to Watch, Listen

• Date, Time: Tuesday, 7:00 p.m. EST
• Television: ESPN2 (Brian Custer, Daymeon Fishback)
• Home Radio: UK Sports Network – 630 WLAP, iHeart Radio (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
• Online Radio: iHeart
• Satellite Radio: Sirius 106 or 190
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

You can also follow the game via our new LIVE BLOG on the website, which will begin an hour before tip-off, or join the conversation on KSBoard

Early season rewind

Kentucky: KenPom 18

• 11/4: 103-62 W vs. Wright State
• 11/9: 100-72 W vs. Bucknell
• 11/12: 77-72 W vs. No. 6 Duke
• 11/19: 97-68 W vs. Lipscomb
• 11/22: 108-59 W vs. Jackson State
• 11/26: 87-68 W vs. Western Kentucky
• 11/29: 105-76 W vs. Georgia State
• 12/3: 70-66 L at Clemson
• 12/7: 90-89 W OT vs. No. 7 Gonzaga
• 12/11: 78-67 W vs. Colgate
• 12/14: 93-85 W vs. Louisville
• 12/21: 85-65 L vs. Ohio State
• 12/31: 88-54 W vs. Brown
• 1/4: 106-100 W vs. No. 6 Florida
• 1/7: 82-69 L at Georgia
• 1/11: 95-90 W at No. 14 Mississippi State
• 1/14: 81-69 W vs. No. 11 Texas A&M
• 1/18: 102-97 L vs. No. 4 Alabama
• 1/25: 74-69 L at Vanderbilt
• 1/28: 78-73 W at No. 8 Tennessee
• 2/1: 89-79 L vs. Arkansas
• 2/4: 98-84 L at No. 25 Ole Miss
• 2/8: 80-57 W vs. South Carolina
• 2/11: 75-64 W vs. No. 5 Tennessee
• 2/15: 82-78 L at Texas
• 2/19: 82-61 W vs. Vanderbilt
• 2/22: 96-83 L at No. 4 Alabama
• 3/1: 94-78 L vs. No. 1 Auburn

LSU: KenPom 78

• 11/6: 95-60 W vs. Louisiana Monroe
• 11/10: 74-61 W vs. Alabama State
• 11/14: 76-65 W at Kansas State
• 11/19: 77-68 W vs. Charleston Southern
• 11/22: 74-63 L vs. Pittsburgh
• 11/24: 109-102 W 3OT vs. UCF
• 11/29: 77-53 W vs. Northwestern State
• 12/3: 85-75 W vs. Florida State
• 12/8: 80-71 W vs. Florida Gulf Coast
• 12/14: 74-64 L vs. SMU
• 12/17: 99-53 W vs. Stetson
• 12/22: 86-70 W vs. New Orleans
• 12/29: 110-45 W vs. Mississippi Valley State
• 1/4: 80-72 L vs. Vanderbilt
• 1/7: 83-67 L at Missouri
• 1/11: 77-65 L at No. 23 Ole Miss
• 1/14: 78-74 W vs. Arkansas
• 1/18: 68-57 L at No. 11 Texas A&M
• 1/25: 80-73 L at No. 4 Alabama
• 1/29: 87-74 L vs. No. 1 Auburn
• 2/1: 89-58 L vs. Texas
• 2/5: 81-62 L at Georgia
• 2/8: 72-70 L vs. No. 25 Ole Miss
• 2/12: 70-58 L at Arkansas
• 2/15: 82-79 W at Oklahoma
• 2/18: 81-67 W vs. South Carolina
• 2/22: 79-65 L vs. No. 2 Florida
• 2/25: 65-59 L vs. No. 5 Tennessee
• 3/1: 81-69 L at No. 24 Mississippi State

Series History

Kentucky leads the all-time series 92-29, including an impressive 47-6 run when hosting LSU in Lexington. The Wildcats lost in Baton Rouge by a final score of 75-74 in 2023-24 — Antonio Reeves led the way with 25 points for UK while Tyrell Ward went for 17 for the Tigers.

Matt McMahon, in his third season at LSU, is 1-1 against the Wildcats overall while Mark Pope is set to coach against the Tigers for the very first time. Pope was a perfect 2-0 against LSU as a player, averaging 4.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in those two matchups.

Kentucky vs. LSU Odds

Spread: Kentucky – 12.5
Total: 157.5

KenPom and Bart Torvik both project wins for Kentucky, the former calling an 86-72 victory and the latter rolling with an anticipated score of 86-73. ESPN’s BPI likes the Wildcats by 11.2 points while giving the home team an 85.8 percent chance to pull off the win.

Kentucky Projected Starters

#1 – Lamont Butler
6-2 – 208 – GUARD – GRAD SENIOR
12.4 PPG, 4.5 APG, 2.9 RPG

#00 – Otega Oweh
6-4 – 215 – GUARD – JUNIOR
15.7 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 1.4 SPG

#4 – Koby Brea
6-7 – 215 – GUARD – GRADUATE STUDENT
11.2 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.2 APG

#7 – Andrew Carr
6-11 – 235 – FORWARD – GRADUATE STUDENT
10.1 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.8 APG

#22 – Amari Williams
7-0 – 262 – CENTER – GRADUATE STUDENT
11.0 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 3.1 APG

LSU Projected Starters

#3 – Curtis Givens III
6-3 – 185 – GUARD – FRESHMAN
4.9 PPG, 1.6 RPG, 1.5 APG

#5 – Cam Carter
6-3 – 190 – GUARD – SENIOR
16.9 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.6 APG

#0 – Vyctorius Miller
6-5 – 185 – GUARD – FRESHMAN
8.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 1.2 APG

#4 – Dji Bailey
6-5 – 195 – FORWARD – GRAD. SENIOR
8.6 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.6 BPG

#10 – Daimion Collins
6-9 – 200 – FORWARD – JUNIOR
8.6 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.6 BPG

Statistical Comparison

(via Kentucky’s game notes)

Interesting stats from UK’s game notes:

• Amari Williams is averaging 41.0 points-assists-rebounds per 40 minutes, the fifth-most in Division I. That total is the third-most by a UK player dating back to 1996-97 and fifth-highest by an SEC player during that same time span
• Kentucky has nine Quad 1 victories in 2024-25, which is tied for fourth-most in the country.
• Mark Pope is just one win shy of securing his seventh-career 20-win season as a head coach
• Jaxson Robinson’s season-ending wrist injury means Kentucky will finish the year with just seven games at full strength factoring in Kerr Kriisa’s absence since early December

Pregame Storylines

SENIOR DAY AT RUPP ARENA

It seems like yesterday the players were arriving on campus for summer workouts in June ahead of Mark Pope’s first season in Lexington. Now, the seniors are preparing for their final game at Rupp Arena — Senior Day scheduled for Tuesday vs. LSU. That group includes Ansley Almonor, Koby Brea, Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr, Jaxson Robinson and Amari Williams while Kerr Kriisa is expected to explore a medical redshirt to play a sixth season of college basketball. UK is 52-6 all-time in games when seniors are honored.

DAIMION COLLINS RETURNS TO LEXINGTON

Once a five-star signee for Kentucky, Collins’ time in Lexington did not go as planned, averaging 2.4 points and 2.0 rebounds in 7.7 minutes over two seasons before entering the transfer portal. Dealing with tragedy as a Wildcat — he lost his father to begin his sophomore year at UK — he got a fresh start at LSU before dislocating his shoulder just six games into the season, leading to a redshirt year. Now in year four as a redshirt junior, Collins is averaging career-highs in points (8.6), rebounds (4.4) and blocks (1.6).

JAXSON ROBINSON TO UNDERGO SEASON-ENDING SURGERY

Suffering further damage to his injured wrist in a fall at Oklahoma, Robinson’s time at Kentucky has unfortunately come to an end, undergoing season-ending surgery on Wednesday — a procedure that will wrap up his eligibility in college basketball. But first, the fifth-year senior will participate in Senior Day festivities ahead of the LSU matchup. He finishes his lone season at UK averaging 13.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists while shooting 43.2 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from three.

A MUST-WIN FOR THE CATS?

That phrasing is overused, but this one is a wildly important for Kentucky if it wants to maintain its current status as a top-eight seed in the SEC Tournament — securing a single bye, at minimum — while staying in the conversation for a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Losing seven of the last 12, the Wildcats are still hanging on thanks to the strength of schedule and the benefit of the doubt with injuries, but the good standing could be short-lived if Kentucky adds a Quad 3 loss immediately before postseason play. This game is seen as the ninth-easiest game on the entire schedule with UK entering the matchup as a 12.5-point favorite. Win this one and you avoid taking a single bad loss all season with a Quad 1 opportunity waiting for you on Saturday at Missouri — potentially a tenth on the year.

Join The Discussion on KSBoard

Want to interact with the KSR crew during the game? Consider joining the conversation on KSBoard, where we’ll be sharing live updates while also answering questions and providing real-time analysis (and probably complaining about the officiating).

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Rapid Reaction on the KSR YouTube Channel

Miss the game? KSR’s got you covered with a Rapid Reaction live from Rupp Arena on the KSR YouTube Channel. We’ll also have wall-to-wall postgame coverage on the website, including highlights, comments from Mark Pope and the players, stats, and takeaways.

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