Men's Basketball
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UK MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES
KENTUCKY at TENNESSEE
THOMPSON-BOLING ARENA | KNOXVILLE, TENN.
FEB. 15, 2022
ATTENDANCE: 21,678

Final Score: No. 16/13 Tennessee 76, No. 4/3 Kentucky 63
 
Team Records, Series Notes, Etc.

  • Kentucky is now 21-5 on the season, ending a six-game winning streak. UK is 10-3 in the SEC.
  • Tennessee has won five in a row, eight in a row in SEC play, and is 19-6 overall, 10-3 in the SEC. 
  • With the teams splitting during the regular season, UK leads the series, 158-76.
    • UK leads 57-53 in games played in Knoxville, ending UK’s two-game win streak in Thompson-Boling Arena.
  • Next for UK: the Wildcats return home for two games, beginning Saturday vs. Alabama. Tipoff is 1 p.m. and the game will be televised on CBS.

 
Team Notes

  • Kentucky, the nation’s leader in rebound margin, won the rebounding tonight 40-32.
  • UK led in offensive rebounds, 18-6, and second-chance points, 16-4.
  • The last time the Wildcats lost on the road as the nation’s No. 4 ranked team by the Associated Press was to No. 7 Tennessee in Knoxville, 71-52, on March 2, 2019
  • With TyTy Washington Jr. missing all but 45 seconds of the second half, UK has played just 12 complete games this season at full strength.

 
Player Notes  

  • Oscar Tshiebwe finished with 13 points and 15 rebounds.  

    • It is his eighth-straight double-double.
    • It is his 20th double-double of the season, ranking second in the nation in that category.
      • He is the seventh player in program history to have at least 20 double-doubles in a single season and the first since Julius Randle had 24 in 2013-14.
    • The nation’s leading rebounder has grabbed double-figure boards in all but two games this season.
    • He has 13 straight games with double-figure rebounds, longest streak with game-by-game rebounds available since the 1967-68 season.
    • Had two steals tonight, his 10th straight game with at least two thefts.
  • After missing the Florida game because of an ankle injury, Jacob Toppin came back strong with 11 points and six rebounds.
  • Davion Mintz tallied 11 points.
    • Over the last five games, he has averaged 12 points and made 13 of 28 from long range.
  • Kellan Grady tallied six points on a pair of 3-pointers.
    • Has made a 3-pointer in 20 straight games, most since Jamal Murray made a 3 in all 36 games of the 2015-16 season. 
    • Grady has made at least two 3-pointers in eight straight games.
    • Playing 37 minutes, he has led the team in minutes played in the last nine games.
  • TyTy Washington Jr. played 12 minutes but exited in the first minute of the second half and did not return. He finished with four points and three assists.
    • He has averaged 14.2 points in the 20 wins in which he has played this season, vs. 5.6 points per game in UK’s five losses.
  • Sahvir Wheeler, the SEC leader in assists, had five tonight to go along with eight points and four rebounds.

 
Coach John Calipari

  • Calipari is now 360-98 at UK.
    • UK is 66-42 against Associated Press ranked competition under Calipari.
  • Calipari has an 805-238 all-time on-court record. 
  • Calipari has tallied a 377-119 all-time record within conference play as a head coach and owns a 169-53 record since joining the SEC.
  • Calipari is 19-14 vs. Tennessee.  

 
In the First Half

  • The starting lineup was Sahvir Wheeler, TyTy Washington Jr., Kellan Grady, Keion Brooks Jr. and Oscar Tshiebwe for the 22nd time this season. That lineup now has a 17-5 record.
  • Jacob Toppin was the first Kentucky substitution at the 15:06 mark, the team-high 14th time this season that he has been first off the bench.
  • With UK leading 10-7, after a foul was called on Tshiebwe at the 16:14 mark, Calipari was assessed a technical foul.
  • With UK leading 17-15, Tennessee’s 17-1 run gave the Volunteers a 32-18 lead.
  • After Toppin’s layup at 13:57, the Wildcats didn’t make a basket for almost 11 minutes, until Davion Mintz swished a 3-pointer at the 3:00 mark. 
  • Tennessee went to halftime ahead 46-32.  UK is 1-3 this season when trailing at intermission.
  • Tshiebwe led UK in the first half with eight points and six rebounds.

 
In the Second Half

  • Kentucky began the second half with the starting lineup.
  • Early in the half, Tennessee lengthened its lead at 51-34.
  • Kentucky replied with a 9-0 run to pull within 51-43 but the Wildcats got no closer.
  • Ahead 53-45, Tennessee put the game away with a 12-0 run for a 65-45 bulge.

 
 
 

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