Big Blue Preview: Kentucky at Texas
No. 15 Kentucky is coming off a big win over fifth-ranked Tennessee. However, as head coach Mark Pope and his Cats prepare for a trip to Texas on Saturday, UK is battling injuries to a number of key players.
Jaxson Robinson missed Tuesday night’s game with a wrist injury, while point guard Lamont Butler was injured during the win over the Vols. Both players are ailing and Pope didn’t seem to think that either of the two would be likely to play on Saturday.
“Timing wise and recovery wise, and there’s also a little bit of a guessing part, in terms of just the best medical treatment at the best time,” Pope said. “They’re both pretty serious injuries. The guys are desperate to play and they’re desperate to get healthy, short-term and long-term, and kind of balancing all those out with the calendar, not just for the season but for the summer and for next year. Trying to fit all those pieces together, and see day by day what kind of returns they get from new medical treatments.”
While the Cats will miss both Butler and Robinson, there will be opportunities, and a pair of Kentucky kids stepped up their games against Tennessee on Tuesday.
Harlan County native Trent Noah, known to his teammates as the “Mountain Mamba”, had a career-high 11 points for the Cats in the win, while Lyon County native and Kentucky Mr. Basketball Travis Perry had a career-best eight points. Pope sees roles for both of these players, as well as fellow freshman Collin Chandler.
“Those three guys, it’s just time for them to step up and be great,” Pope said. “We’re relying heavily on them and that’s what they want and that’s what we want and it’s awesome. I have a lot of confidence in those guys and it’s just time for us to be better. I thought they all three were spectacular on Tuesday and we expect them to be great this weekend also.”
On Saturday, the Cats take on Texas and the SEC’s leading scorer, Tre Johnson. Pope has seen Johnson on film and is impressed at nearly everything he does.
“He’s a problem because he makes hard shots, he makes bad shots,” Pope said. “It’s hard to live with any shots with him. He’s an incredibly talented player. He plays hard, he gives great effort. He’s aggressive. A real challenge.”
Kentucky will likely be shorthanded again on Saturday and if the Cats are to stop Johnson and the Longhorns, they will need some of the youngers to fill in admirably.
Shorthanded Cats Outlast Vols for Season Sweep
Ansley Almonor and Otega Oweh each scored 13 points as No. 15 Kentucky topped fifth-ranked Tennessee 75-64 on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena.
Koby Brea, starting in place of the injured Jaxson Robinson,
scored 11 points and Trent Noah came off the bench to score 11 as well.
Kentucky (17-7, 6-5 Southeastern Conference) made 12 of 24 from beyond the arc, while the Vols made just 3 of 18 (16.7 percent) of their long-distance shots.
UK’s bench accounted for 26 points, including 11 from Noah and eight from Travis Perry.
Some additional notes from the game:
• This was Kentucky’s eighth game this season against a team ranked in The Associated Press top 15. UK is now 7-1 in those games, setting the school record for most top-15 wins in the regular season. The previous record was six top-15 wins in the regular season by the 2002-03 team.
• UK now owns five wins against AP top 10 teams this season, the most in Division I
• Kentucky limited Tennessee to 16.7 percent on 3-point shooting, making 3 of 18. UK is 11-0 this season when the opponent makes less than 25 percent.
• Kentucky had balanced scoring with nine players hitting the scoring column, eight of whom scored at least five points.
• The leading scorers, Ansley Almonor and Otega Oweh, had 13 points. The 13 points is the lowest high scorer in a game for UK this season. The previous “low” high scorer was Andrew Carr’s 14 points in the win over Brown.
• Kentucky made 50 percent from the field, 26 of 52. The Wildcats are 11-1 this season making at least half their shots. It was the first time UK has shot 50% or ter from the field in both regular-season meetings with Tennessee for the first time since 2008-09
• Kentucky made 50 percent from long range, 12 of 24. The Wildcats are 4-0 this season when making at least half of their 3-point tries.
• UK is 7-0 this season when making at least 12 triples.
• With Jaxson Robinson and Kerr Kriisa out, UK has played only seven games this season at full strength.
Kentucky Basketball Chapter XXIII: The Pope Era
Coaches around the country and the SEC likely heard the tune of Taylor Swift’s “I knew you were trouble when you walked in …” the moment Mark Pope stepped off the bus carrying him alongside more than 50 other UK men’s basketball alumni on April 14, 2024. It was the date of his introduction as the 23rd men’s basketball coach of the most storied program in college basketball in front of a filled Rupp Arena. And he’s in fact, been nothing but trouble for opponents in 2024-25.
Pope has been a thorn in the side of seven Associated Press Top 15 teams thus far, including five ranked in the top 10.
• The seven wins against AP Top 15 teams in the regular season is a program record, bettering the 2002-03 team who earned six wins.
• Five of those have come against top-10 teams, which is also a program record.
• With a win over No. 6 Florida on Jan. 4, he joined Adolph Rupp as the only coaches in program history to win each of their first three matchups vs. AP Top-10 teams.
• He’s done it in dramatic fashion as well. Pope and his squad overcame a 16-point halftime deficit to outlast No. 7 Gonzaga on Dec. 7, 2024. It matched the largest halftime hole overcome in program history.
• Making the mark even more impressive, the squad has captured only one win over a top-15 team at full strength. Lamont Butler missed the Gonzaga game, and Kerr Kriisa suffered an injury during the game with the Zags and has not played since. Only the 77-72 win over No. 6 Duke on Nov. 12, 2024.
Pope is already climbing the charts among league coaches with the seven wins over AP ranked teams. A breakdown of AP Top-25 wins among coaches at their respective SEC schools who coached their first three seasons at that program, while playing in the SEC. Porter Moser (Oklahoma) and Rodney Terry (Texas) are not included because they did not start their tenure at their respective schools as a member of the SEC.
Dennis Gates (Missouri) – 10
Todd Golden (Florida) – 9
Chris Jans (Mississippi State) – 8
Nate Oats (Alabama) – 8
Mark Pope (Kentucky) – 7
Rick Barnes (Tennessee) – 6
