Kentucky

VolReport – Tennessee vs. Kentucky: Game information, lineups, notes

Published

2 years ago

February 3, 2024

VolReport – Tennessee vs. Kentucky: Game information, lineups, notes

Tennessee and Kentucky enter Saturday’s clash in Lexington in similar positions.

The Vols and Wildcats–both ranked in the top 10 of the major polls–are coming off of surprising losses to unranked teams last week, leaving them with very little room for error in the SEC title race as the last full month of the regular season begins.

The outcome at Rupp Arena late Saturday night could go a long way in the final league standings.

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Despite another high-scoring night from Dalton Knecht, who posted 30-plus points for the fourth time in the last six games, Tennessee missed 10 shots at the rim and struggled at the free throw line in a rare 63-59 home loss to South Carolina.

Kentucky on the other hand didn’t have a problem scoring against Florida, but its defense couldn’t stop the Gators on the other end as it let a late lead slip away in regulation before losing 94-91 in overtime.

Tennessee and Kentucky feature two of the top offenses in college basketball as well as two of its most productive players.

For the Vols, it’s Knecht, who averages 20.1 points on the season and an even more impressive 28.4 points in conference play while forward Jonas Aidoo has been largely efficient in the paint.

Antonio Reeves paces the Wildcats with 19.5 points per game and headlines a lineup with three starters that average double scoring figures, including Reed Sheppard, who averages 12.0 points.

Though Vanderbilt and South Carolina found success in slowing down Tennessee in stretches, that likely won’t be the case vs. Kentucky. The stage is set for a fast-paced, up-tempo game that could challenge the Vols’ defense.

Here is a closer look at the match up.

Game Information

Who: No. 5 Tennessee (15-5, 5-2 SEC) at No. 10 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3)

When: Saturday, Feb. 3 | 8:30 p.m. ET

Where: Rupp Arena | Lexington, Ky.

TV: ESPN (Tom Hart, play-by-play; Jimmy Dykes, analyst)

KenPom Projection: Tennessee 80, Kentucky 78

Series: Kentucky leads, 160-77

Projected Lineups

No. 5 Kentucky (15-5, 5-2 SEC)

No. 10 Kentucky (15-5, 5-3 SEC)

Numbers Edge

POINTS PER GAME:

Kentucky 88.7, Tennessee 78.5

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE:

Kentucky 48.9%, Tennessee 44.6%

THREE-POINT PERCENTAGE:

Kentucky 40.1%, Tennessee 33.7%

ASSISTS:

Kentucky 18.0, Tennessee 16.8

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Everything Rick Barnes said about Kentucky ahead of key SEC road clash

REBOUNDS:

Tennessee 39.5, Kentucky 38.6

BLOCKS:

Kentucky 6.1, Tennessee 4.8

STEALS:

Tennessee 8.0, Kentucky 8.0

Pregame Notes

— Tennessee and Kentucky will battle for positioning in the SEC standings. With a 5-2 league record, the Vols currently stand alone in third place while the 5-3 Wildcats are in a three-way tie for fourth place with Ole Miss and Florida. Alabama holds the first spot at 7-1 while South Carolina and Auburn are tied for second at 6-2 each.

— Tennessee has performed well against top 10 teams. The Vols have won seven of their last 10 games vs. teams ranked in the top 10 with Zakai Zeigler playing especially well in those match ups, averaging 13.1 points per game in seven wins and 8.7 points in three losses. Zeigler was held well under his season average with 2 points vs. South Carolina but was averaging 14.3 points in the previous six games.

— Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht continues to carry the load offensively. After scoring 31 points in his last outing, Knecht has totaled 191 points over his last six games and his 20.1 scoring averages leads the SEC. He is just one of three Power Six players in the last decade to score 190-plus points in a six-game span.

— Tennessee is second in adjusted defensive efficiency, allowing just 102.1 points per its opponents 100 possessions according to KenPom. By the same metric, the Vols are 13th in adjusted offensive efficiency, scoring 119.1 points per 100 offensive possessions.

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: For Jahmai Mashack, challenge of facing Kentucky offense ‘definitely exciting’

— Kentucky beat Tennessee in two regular season meetings a year ago. The Wildcats won the last meeting at Rupp Arena, 66-54 on Feb. 18, 2023. Prior to those losses, Rick Barnes was 10-7 vs. the Wildcats and had won at least one game per season in the previous six years while winning twice in 2017-18 and 2021-22.

— Tennessee has been successful against ranked Kentucky teams under Barnes. The Vols are 6-1 vs. Wildcats teams ranked in the top 10 over the last seven years and are 6-2 when both teams are ranked AP Top 25. Tennessee holds a 3-1 edge over Kentucky in games where both teams are ranked inside the AP Top 10 under Barnes.

— Kentucky is ranked 10th in adjusted offensive efficiency per KenPom, averaging 119.9 points per its 100 offensive possessions but the Wildcats have struggled defensively. In adjusted defensive efficiency, they are giving up 101.1 points per their opponents 100 possessions, which ranks 75th nationally.

— Kentucky guard Antonio Reeves has been its offensive headliner. Joining Knecht as one of three SEC players on the Wooden Award Midseason Top 20 Watch List, Reeves averages 19.5 points per game and has scored 20-plus points in 10 games. He finished with 19 points vs. Florida.

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Kentucky

Kentucky will get a visit from a forward with three-point upside

Published

9 hours ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Kentucky will get a visit from a forward with three-point upside

Over the weekend, it was reported that the Kentucky Wildcats and coach Mark Pope had interest in former James Madison forward Justin McBride. Now, per Jacob Polacheck of Kentucky Sports Radio, McBride will take a visit to Lexington.

The report states that McBride will visit with Kentucky on Wednesday, Apr. 22. He had previously stated that he wanted to visit, but had to clear up some transcript issues first. It appears that things are worked out there now.

McBride is a 6’8″, 230 lb forward who has versatility. He averaged 15.3 points and 5.6 rebounds last season, but also made 40% of his three-point attempts, making him the kind of stretch big Pope likes to use. He could start, or be a valuable player off the bench.

Pope needs some recruiting wins, and he needs some depth for next year’s team. Right now, there are still more questions than answers, and Big Blue Nation is getting restless. We will update this story after his visit and more news becomes available.

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Kentucky

Vanderbilt baseball’s series win vs Kentucky revelatory

Published

21 hours ago

April 20, 2026

Press Room

Vanderbilt baseball’s series win vs Kentucky revelatory

Entering the weekend, Vanderbilt baseball had gotten swept in its only SEC series in which it hadn’t won the first game.

So the Commodores had a tough task in a series they badly needed after dropping the opener 5-2 on a walk-off grand slam after Vanderbilt’s best healthy starter, Connor Fennell, pitched well.

But the Commodores (24-17, 9-9 SEC) rebounded to take the series with an 8-7 win in the second game and a 13-6 win in the finale April 19. They did that despite not having any pitcher go more than three innings in either game. Though the pitching was still shaky at times — they issued more free passes than strikeouts in both of the wins — they worked out of enough jams to let the offense go to work.

Here’s what we learned from the series.

Will Hampton proves an unlikely hero for the offense

Vanderbilt got strong performances from a few of its typical top performers, including Braden Holcomb (6-for-13, four doubles) and Brodie Johnston (4-for-12, two home runs, three walks). But one of the biggest hits of the series came from the unlikeliest of sources.

Logan Johnstone was held out of the finale after colliding with Mike Mancini in Game 2, and in his place coach Tim Corbin opted to go with redshirt freshman Will Hampton in left field. Hampton had recorded just six college plate appearances, all of which were in nonconference games.

But Hampton reached in all three of his plate appearances against Kentucky, first on a single, then a walk. In the sixth inning, with the score tied, he came up with the bases loaded and two outs and blasted a grand slam, giving Vanderbilt its first lead.

Tyler Baird learns the ups and downs of being a closer

Freshman Tyler Baird has been Vanderbilt’s closer for the past three weeks, recording his first save April 2 against Texas A&M. But he learned the pitfalls that can come with that role in Game 1 against Kentucky. Summoned for an eight-out save with the Commodores leading 2-1, he retired the first five batters, but loaded the bases with nobody out in the ninth. He struck out the next two batters but then gave up the walk-off grand slam.

Baird returned for Game 3, this time attempting a five-out save and coming in with runners on first and second and one out with a three-run lead in the eighth inning. He allowed both inherited runners to score, but kept the lead and then had a scoreless ninth inning after Vanderbilt scored three runs in the top of the inning.

Baird’s emergence has been key for the Commodores, and the Game 3 bounce-back was especially important.

Vanderbilt’s RPI shows improvement

On April 15, Vanderbilt was 95th in RPI, a mark that wasn’t going to cut it for NCAA Tournament selection. But with a road series win against a Kentucky team that started the week in the top 20 of RPI, the Commodores moved all the way up to 75th, according to Warren Nolan.

While Vanderbilt will need to keep moving up — a top-50 mark would be ideal — the series win did a lot. In the next two weeks, it will face two top-five RPI teams in Alabama and Texas, giving more opportunity to improve its standing.

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.

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Kentucky

Missing on this PF in the transfer portal could be a good thing for Kentucky

Published

1 day ago

April 19, 2026

Press Room

Missing on this PF in the transfer portal could be a good thing for Kentucky

Power forward has been one of the positions that Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats have to fill with Andrija Jelavic and Mo Dioubate gone. The two players that Pope has had on campus at the power forward position are Syracuse’s Donnie Freeman and Colorado’s Sebastian Rancik. Both are really good players, but Freeman is better by a wide margin.

It has felt that entire time that Kentucky wanted Rancik as the backup to Freeman or a backup plan if they weren’t able to land Freeman. Well, Rancik just picked Florida State, so perhaps this is a sign that the Wildcats will land Freeman.

Feb 11, 2026; Lubbock, Texas, USA; Colorado Buffaloes forward Sebastian Rancik (7) looks to pass the ball against the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the first half at United Supermarkets Arena. Mandatory Credit: Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images | Michael C. Johnson-Imagn Images

Big Blue Nation was torn on Rancik, but I do believe he would have been a really solid backup power forward. I personally didn’t want him to be the starting four for this team. It is clear that he wanted to go somewhere where he could be the guy at the four, so he will be heading to the ACC to play for FSU.

Now that Kentucky has missed on Rancik, it is very important that the Wildcats land Freeman soon. The problem with waiting on some of these players is the fact that the portal isn’t slowing down. If Pope targets two power forwards and misses on both of them, most of the good fours in the portal will be gone.

There will be some panic in Lexington if the Wildcats are not able to land Freeman, but I do believe the Wildcats are in a good spot to land the elite power forward. From the beginning, Freeman has been my top player for Kentucky in the portal, as he, plus Malachi Moreno, will give the Wildcats an elite frontcourt.

Mar 7, 2026; Syracuse, New York, USA; Syracuse Orange forward Donnie Freeman (1) warms up prior to the game against the Pittsburgh Panthers at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

If Pope is able to land Freeman and Tyran Stokes to pair with Zoom Diallo, Alex Wilkins, Moreno, and Kam Williams, this could be the start of a really good team in Lexington. Hopefully, an announcement for where Freeman will transfer comes soon, and hopefully, this will be to play for Pope at Kentucky.

Fans of rival teams will say Pope “whiffed” on Rancik, but if this whiff was because the Wildcats are set to land Freeman soon, then it was more than worth it for Kentucky. If the Wildcats are able to land Freeman, it will officially be time for Big Blue Nation to start getting excited about the 2026-27 season. I expect a decision from Freeman to come within the next day or two.

Rancik would have been a solid backup four in Lexington but Freeman has been the guy from the beggining for this staff so if Kentucky lands him all is well. If the staff misses on Freeman not landing Rancik will look bad.

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