Late Rally Lifts No. 15 Vols Past No. 24 Cats
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Quade Green and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander each scored 15 points, but No. 24 Kentucky fell to 15th-ranked Tennessee 61-59 on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena.
Kentucky (17-7, 6-5 SEC) led 58-56 with 1:28 left in the game, but Tennessee got a three-pointer from Lamonte Turner to take a 59-58 lead with 26 seconds remaining. The Wildcats turned the ball over on their next possession, leading to an Admiral Schofield dunk, giving the Vols a 61-58 lead with just four seconds to go.
The Wildcats got the ball to Gilgeous-Alexander in the game’s final seconds, and he was fouled. After making the first free throw, Gilgeous-Alexander intentionally missed the second, but the Cats could not corral the rebound, and time expired.
Kevin Knox had 10 points for Kentucky and Nick Richards added five points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Both teams struggled from the field for most of the first half. Kentucky made just two of its first 14 shots from the field, both three-pointers by Green, while Tennessee hit seven of its first 23 shots. The Wildcats did not make a two-point field goal until a Jarred Vanderbilt dunk with 5:15 left in the half. From there, the offenses picked up the pace, with Kentucky hitting six of its last seven from the field and Tennessee making its last three shots.
Neither team led by more than three in the first 20 minutes. Kentucky held a 22-19 advantage with 2:22 left before halftime. However, Tennessee answered by scoring the next five points, taking a 24-22 lead with 1:09 remaining in the half. Kentucky tied the game on a dunk by Richards, but Tennessee’s Lamonte Turner hit a three with 10 seconds left in the half, giving the Vols a 27-24 advantage. However, Green raced to the offensive end and hit a jumper just before the buzzer, cutting Kentucky’s halftime deficit to 27-26.
In the second half, the offenses had more success early, with Kentucky hitting two of its first three shots, while Tennessee hit four of its first six attempts. The Vols would eventually take the game’s largest lead, 50-46, with 4:53 remaining, but Kentucky would rally to tie the game at 50-50.
Tennessee (18-5, 8-3) got 16 points from Turner and 13 from Jordan Bowden.
Kentucky returns to action on Saturday, when the Wildcats visit Texas A&M in College Station. Tipoff is at 8:15 p.m. and the game can be seen on ESPN.
