Kentucky
Deadspin | No. 14 Kentucky looks to bounce back against struggling South Carolina
A promising start is turning into a rough patch and threatening to derail No. 14 Kentucky, leaving coach Mark Pope and his players to search for answers as they head into the homestretch of the Southeastern Conference schedule.
Pope is optimistic about a turnaround, and the Wildcats (15-7, 4-5 SEC) hope to find some solutions Saturday afternoon in Lexington, Ky., where they will host South Carolina (10-12, 0-9), the only winless team in conference play this season.
Kentucky started conference play with three wins in four games — all against ranked teams as the Wildcats knocked off Florida, Mississippi State and Texas A&M. Since that quick start, however, Kentucky has gone 1-4 in five games, including a 98-84 loss at No. 25 Ole Miss on Tuesday.
“I’m glad I get to do this with these guys, and we’re going to go find answers,” Pope said. “We’re going to have unbelievable success as we go, but this is certainly a hard space for us right now.”
The Wildcats allowed 90 points for the fourth time in SEC games, but unlike its 106-100 win over Florida or its 102-97 loss to Alabama, Kentucky did not have enough consistent offense to keep pace.
The Wildcats scored at least 80 points for the 14th time this season as Otega Oweh, who scored 24 points, topped 20 points for the third time in five games. Kentucky played without Lamont Butler (shoulder injury) for the third straight game, though the point guard took part in non-contact practice Thursday and might be able to play Saturday.
If Butler is unable to go, the Wildcats hope to see another strong showing from Amari Williams, who produced a triple-double of 12 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against Ole Miss.
Regardless of what the lineup looks like, the Wildcats are hoping to avoid a reprise of Tuesday, when they trailed by 23 at halftime and allowed 54.7 percent shooting after giving up 55.2 percent against Arkansas. It was the third time in SEC play that the Wildcats allowed their opponent to shoot at least 50 percent. Again, though, unlike its win over Florida, Kentucky faltered by shooting 38.7 percent in the opening half before shooting 63 percent in the second half.
“We’re going through a tough stretch right now,” Pope said.
No team in the SEC is experiencing a tougher time than South Carolina, which has five conference losses by five points or fewer. The latest was a 76-72 setback at home against No. 13 Texas A&M on Saturday, during which the Gamecocks recorded their most points in a conference game this season.
Four of South Carolina’s close losses are against ranked teams, including three of the past four. The Gamecocks fell by one point against Florida on Jan. 22, followed by a five-point setback against No. 14 Mississippi State three days later and then the four-point loss against Texas A&M.
“My goal always is, when you look up and it’s crunch time, that one way or another you’re right there with an opportunity to make a couple of plays and win the game,” South Carolina coach Lamont Paris said. “We did it again today. We found ourselves in that situation, and then we just struggled to make those plays.” South Carolina is hoping for a third straight productive showing from Collin Murray-Boyles. Boyles is averaging 20 points over the past two games while shooting 18-for-27 from the field.
“It’s very much an internal thing. We just have to figure it out – whatever that takes,” Murray-Boyles said of the losing streak. “We’re going to have to figure it out somehow, because the clock is ticking.”
–Field Level Media
GRAYSON, Ky. (WSAZ) – New information has been released in the search for a missing woman at Grayson Lake.
According to game wardens with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Marly Kinney, 19, of Ashland, was last seen at Grayson Lake on Wednesday afternoon.
They say search efforts are focused on the water at this time and include Kentucky State Police aerial support, drones, boats, and K9 assistance.
Crews suspend search for missing teen for the night
The search is now into its third day, with officials saying on and off rain has hindered their search and that a group of 50 volunteers are walking the banks of the lake to help in the search.
Search and rescue boats have been seen at the lake as well.
Officials say there are still many questions, including if Kinney is still alive and where exactly she went missing.
They also say they’ve been using a variety of equipment, including sonar and thermal detectors, as well as helicopters and underwater drones.
WSAZ received a statement from Kinney’s family Friday afternoon:
“We are very appreciative of the absolute surplus of support from law enforcement, search and rescue, 1st responders, and all of the community and its volunteers that are here with us and for us searching for Marly. We do not even know how to express our absolute gratitude to you all. We continue to have faith she will be found and brought back to us. We know we have the very best people doing all they can to bring her home.”
Anyone with information is asked to call 911.
We are still working to get more information.
Previous coverage can be found here.
Copyright 2026 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
13 things more likely to happen than winning the Powerball jackpot
Hoping to win the Powerball jackpot? Here are 13 things more likely to happen than becoming an instant millionaire.
The Kentucky Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Thursday, June 25, 2026 winning numbers for each game.
Cash Ball
02-08-24-32, Cash Ball: 09
Check Cash Ball payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 3
Evening: 6-3-0
Midday: 9-6-0
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 4
Evening: 5-7-6-0
Midday: 5-2-6-6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Millionaire for Life
03-13-14-34-45, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Courier Journal digital producer. You can send feedback using this form.
On Thursday, Kentucky’s home and away SEC opponents for the 2026-27 season were revealed and on top of learning the three opponents who they will play twice, there are some very intriguing matchups. In conference play, Kentucky will face six teams who are among the top 25 in many preseason rankings.
In SEC play, Kentucky will play Tennessee, Vandy and Ole Miss all both home and away. The home matchups include Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vandy. As for the road tilts, the Wildcats will face Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee and Vandy. Let’s take a look at some interesting developments from the schedule release.
John Calipari returns to Rupp Arena (again)
In Calipari’s first year with Arkansas, he got the best of Kentucky when he came into Rupp Arena and left with a 10-point victory, a game where you could really feel the tension all game long in the building from Kentucky fans, which translated onto the court with the players. Last season, it was Kentucky who shocked everyone when they stole one on the road against a top 20 Arkansas team after a rough up-and-down season up to that point. Now, the two will face off again as Kentucky will look to get the win in Rupp and make sure Calipari doesn’t get two in a row in the building. It’ll be another highly-anticipated showdown.
Kentucky hits the road at Texas
This is shaping up to be a major challenge for Kentucky next season and may even end up being one of the biggest games of the season. Texas is seen by many as a clear top 10 team, with some even having them within the top five and when you combine that with the fact that the game is on the road, the Wildcats will have their hands full. The Wildcats fell to the longhorns in the 2024-25 season, and it’ll be a much stiffer challenge this time.
Which game could be a trap?
We don’t have the game-by-game dates yet, so it’s hard to say with a lot of confidence, but opponent-wise, Georgia could really give Kentucky fits. In Pope’s first year, his team struggled handling the physicality of the Bulldogs and now, they’ve retained one of their best guards for another year and have added physicality through the portal. Mike White’s teams love to make opponents uncomfortable and they could do that once again down in Athens. Another sneaky team to watch is Oklahoma, who will have very good guard play. Kentucky will face both teams on the road.
Overall, it’s a pretty fair SEC schedule for a Kentucky team who has the capability of a return to being atop the conference once again. Mark Pope has such a system-fit squad and he can do some damage in the SEC.
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