Big Blue Preview: Kentucky vs. Auburn
All season, Kentucky head coach Mark Pope has praised Brandon Garrison and talked about how high his ceiling is. On Wednesday night, in UK’s 83-82 win over Oklahoma, Garrison showed that potential with one of his best games of the season.
Garrison had 12 points, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks in the victory. He played a key role down the stretch as the Cats pulled out a tight road game in the Southeastern Conference. Pope was impressed with Garrison on Wednesday.
“I thought he had an unbelievable defensive effort,” Pope said. “It was the best focus he’s had, the best energy he’s had. I thought he was really terrific.”
Pope knows that Garrison is a key cog in what this Kentucky team does on the defensive end of the floor.
“It means a lot to us. It’s actually really important,” Pope said. “I thought he was really special on the defensive end and he’s doing good things on the offensive end, too. I do think it’s a place where he’s growing. He’s made a huge jump from last year. I love the fact that he made multiple threes in the game at Oklahoma and all we want to talk about it his defense. That’s how impactful he was at the defensive end.”
Now, the challenge gets even bigger for Garrison and Kentucky as the Cats welcome top-ranked Auburn to Rupp Arena on Saturday (1 p.m. ET, ABC). Bruce Pearl’s Tigers are 26-2 overall and 14-1 in the SEC. Pope says that the Tigers do a lot of things very well.
“There’s a lot to see that makes them so good,” Pope said. “Most of the time, he’s got five guys on the floor who are capable of putting up 20 on any given night. They are incredible shot makers. They make difficult shots.”
Auburn’s best player is senior Johni Broome, a candidate for the national player of the year. Broome is averaging 18.8 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. He also leads the Tigers in assists and blocked shots. Pope knows that Broome is playing as well as anyone in the country.
“He’s a terrific talent,” Pope said. “He’s a veteran guy. He plays at a really high level. He can space out the floor and make shots there. His speed, he’s super, super physical. Really, really creative. Just a great player.”
Garrison, along with Amari Williams, will need their best defensive effort on Saturday to slow down Broome and the high-flying Tigers. Perhaps Wednesday’s game was a window to what’s to come for the UK interior defense.
Oweh’s Heroics Lead UK Past Sooners
Otega Oweh could not have scripted his return to Oklahoma any better. The former Oklahoma Sooner scored a career-high 28 points, including 23 in the second half, as No. 17 Kentucky held off Oklahoma 83-82 on Wednesday night at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman.
Oweh carried the Cats down the stretch. He scored UK’s last 18 points and 21 of Kentucky’s final 23 points, then blocked Oklahoma’s attempt at a game-winning shot with one second remaining to seal the victory.
Oweh, who played his first two years of college basketball at Oklahoma, enjoyed his return to the Lloyd Noble Center. He made 12 of 21 from the field, including 1 of 3 from beyond the arc and 3 of 5 at the free throw line to account for his 28 points. Kentucky (19-9, 8-7 Southeastern Conference) got 12 points, four rebounds, three steals and two blocks from Oklahoma State transfer Brandon Garrison.
Some additional notes from the game:
• Kentucky shot 50 percent from the floor (29-58). UK is 13-1 when shooting 50 percent or better
• Oklahoma shot 53 percent from the field (30-57)
• It was Kentucky’s second win of the season and first in SEC play when shooting a lower percentage than their opponent
• UK is 2-4 this season when the opponent shoots over 50 percent
• The Cats won despite just two players (Oweh and Garrison) scoring double-figures, the fewest to reach double-figures in a game this season
• Kentucky was 7-23 from behind the 3-point arc (.304)
• It matches the fewest made 3s in a win for Kentucky this season (Georgia State, Gonzaga)
• Wildcats improve to 3-6 in true road games on the season
• Oklahoma did not register a single blocked shot on the night, the third time a Kentucky opponent has gone without a block this season and the first time in SEC play
• The Cats forced 15 Sooner turnovers on the night, tied for the most by an opponent in an SEC game this season (Mississippi State, at Alabama)
Kentucky vs. No. 1
Saturday will mark the 122nd all-time meeting between Kentucky and Auburn. UK leads the series 98-23, including 51-2 in Lexington. The Tigers have not won a game in Lexington since 1988.
This matchup will mark the 14th meeting between the two teams when both are ranked inside of the Associated Press Top 25.
Kentucky leads the series 9-4 when the two teams are both ranked and owns a 4-0 record against the Tigers in top-25 matchups in Rupp.
Already winners of seven games against Associated Press Top 15 and five over top-10 teams in 2024-25 which are both program records, the Cats have a chance at additional history on Saturday against the No. 1 Auburn Tigers.
With a win, UK would tie the record for most regular-season wins against both AP Top-10 and Top-15 teams all-time among any program.
Should UK get a win against Auburn, it would mark the sixth win over a top-10 team this season, tying Syracuse (2009-10), Duke (1998-99) and Indiana (1992-93) for such victories.
It would mark the eighth win over an AP Top-15 squad, tying Indiana (1992-93) and Duke (1978-79) in that category.
All-time UK is 8-16 against No. 1 teams in the land. Kentucky has won two of its last three matchups vs. the No. 1 team in the country, including an 86-69 win over No. 1 Tennessee on Feb. 16, 2019 the last time the top-ranked team visited Rupp Arena.
