Kentucky
Who will win Kentucky basketball vs Missouri in SEC game today? Our expert prediction
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USAT’s Jordan Mendoza gives his teams to keep an eye on for ‘bubble watch’ as March Madness selection Sunday approaches.
Sports Pulse
As with every game, Kentucky basketball coach Mark Pope hopes his team walks away with a win in today’s regular-season finale at Missouri. Coupled with Tuesday’s senior night victory over LSU, Pope said a road win against Missouri would make him “feel good” heading into next week’s SEC Tournament.
But, win or lose today, “it won’t have any impact on our confidence overall or our belief in our guys,” Pope said.
“I think this league is really spectacular … so I think you want to get every single win you can, and you understand what it is,” Pope said. “And I think that it’s really imperative for everybody in this league that you understand how great the level of competition here is — and it shouldn’t ever affect your confidence.”
Aside from another win, Pope said his primary objective in today’s tussle with the Tigers is to “get through the game healthy.” (UK guards Kerr Kriisa and Jaxson Robinson are both out for the season with foot and wrist injuries, respectively.)
The Wildcats lead the all-time series, 15-3. But the squads have split the past four meetings.
And today’s contest between Kentucky (20-10, 9-8 SEC) and Missouri (21-9, 10-7) pits ranked foes against each other.
The Tigers are No. 19 in the USA TODAY Coaches poll and No. 15 in the Associated Press Top 25, while the Wildcats are 24th in the coaches rankings and 19th in the AP poll.
Here’s what to know about Kentucky’s SEC matchup against Missouri today in Columbia:
The contest between the Wildcats and Tigers on will air on ESPN. You can stream ESPN on Fubo, which offers a free trial.
Authenticated subscribers can access ESPN via TV-connected devices or by going to WatchESPN.com, the WatchESPN app or ESPN+.
UK and Missouri are slated to tip off at noon ET today.
- Oct. 23: exhibition vs. Kentucky Wesleyan ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 123, Kentucky Wesleyan 52
- Oct. 29: exhibition vs. Minnesota State Mankato ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 98, Minnesota State Mankato 67
- Nov. 4: vs. Wright State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 103, Wright State 62
- Nov. 9: vs. Bucknell (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 100, Bucknell 72
- Nov. 12: vs. Duke (Champions Classic; State Farm Arena, Atlanta) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 77, Duke 72
- Nov. 19: vs. Lipscomb, (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 97, Lipscomb 68
- Nov. 22: vs. Jackson State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 108, Jackson State 59
- Nov. 26: vs. Western Kentucky (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 87, Western Kentucky 68
- Nov. 29: vs. Georgia State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 105, Georgia State 76
- Dec. 3: at Clemson (ACC/SEC Challenge) ∣ SCORE: Clemson 70, Kentucky 66
- Dec. 7: vs. Gonzaga (Climate Pledge Arena; Seattle) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 90, Gonzaga 89 (OT)
- Dec. 11: vs. Colgate (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 78, Colgate 67
- Dec. 14: vs. Louisville (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 93, Louisville 85
- Dec. 21: vs. Ohio State (CBS Sports Classic; Madison Square Garden, New York) | SCORE: Ohio State 85, Kentucky 65
- Dec. 31: vs. Brown (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Kentucky 88, Brown 54
- Jan. 4: vs. Florida (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Kentucky 106, Florida 100
- Jan. 7: at Georgia | SCORE: Georgia 82, Kentucky 69
- Jan. 11: at Mississippi State | SCORE: Kentucky 95, Mississippi State 90
- Jan. 14: vs. Texas A&M (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Kentucky 81, Texas A&M 69
- Jan. 18: vs. Alabama (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Alabama 102, Kentucky 97
- Jan. 25: at Vanderbilt | SCORE: Vanderbilt 74, Kentucky 69
- Jan. 28: at Tennessee | SCORE: Kentucky 78, Tennessee 73
- Feb. 1: vs. Arkansas | SCORE: Arkansas 89, Kentucky 79
- Feb. 4: at Ole Miss | SCORE: Ole Miss 98, Kentucky 84
- Feb. 8: vs. South Carolina | SCORE: Kentucky 80, South Carolina 57
- Feb. 11: vs. Tennessee | SCORE: Kentucky 75, Tennessee 64
- Feb. 15: at Texas | SCORE: Texas 82, Kentucky 78
- Feb. 19: vs. Vanderbilt | SCORE: Kentucky 82, Vanderbilt 61
- Feb. 22: at Alabama | SCORE: Alabama 96, Kentucky 83
- Feb. 26: at Oklahoma | SCORE: Kentucky 83, Oklahoma 82
- March 1: vs. Auburn | SCORE: Auburn 94, Kentucky 78
- March 4: vs. LSU | SCORE: Kentucky 95, LSU 64
- March 8: at Missouri, noon, ESPN
Record: 20-10 (9-8 SEC)
Missouri 88, Kentucky 81: One factor working against the Wildcats today is their lack of luck in road games; they are 3-6 in such affairs this season. And consider the Tigers’ dominance at home, winners of 18 of 19 outings at Mizzou Arena in 2024-25. (Missouri’s lone home setback: Texas A&M earned a 67-64 win last month.) While the environment won’t be friendly to the visitors, neither will the hosts be hospitable on the floor. Which is the area of greatest concern for the Wildcats. With Kriisa and Robinson sidelined the remainder of the season, it heaps even greater responsibility on the (hurt) shoulders of Lamont Butler to run the offense. As he continues to nurse himself back to health, however, he can’t play all 40 minutes. That’s where freshman Travis Perry, a more natural off-ball guard than primary distributor, has been called upon to run the point to give Butler a breather. When opponents see Perry on the floor, they’ve gone out of their way to attack him. Expect Mizzou’s opportunistic defense to also focus on making Perry’s life a nightmare: The Tigers produce the most steals per game (9.7) of any SEC team. They’ll swipe the ball away from Perry a few times this afternoon. And in a game where every possession will count, those empty trips offensively will cost Kentucky in the end. Chalk up a single-digit victory for the Tigers on the day they honor their senior class.
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Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
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.
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.
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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Kentucky
Kentucky is poised to land either Donnie Freeman or Sebastian Rancik this weekend, per report
Jones posted on Twitter that “Kentucky will have (absent a major change) either Freeman or Rancik by tomorrow,” while also noting the Wildcats still need to add another shooter and another big to round out the roster.
One of the top targets is Donnie Freeman, a 6-foot-9, 205-pound sophomore forward transferring from Syracuse. Freeman arrived in Lexington on Tuesday night and began his visit on Wednesday before leaving without a commitment. While there was concern he could land at UConn, that visit has since been canceled, leaving Kentucky and St. John’s as the top teams.
Freeman averaged 16.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game last season, while adding nearly a block and a steal per contest. He shot 47.4% from the field but 30.2% from 3-point range across 23 games.
The other option is Sebastian Rancik, a 6-foot-11, 220-pound sophomore forward transferring from Colorado. Rancik visited Kentucky starting Wednesday through Thursday and brings a versatile skill set, averaging 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2 assists per game while shooting 33.1% from 3.
Either Freeman or Rancik would provide a significant boost at the power forward position for head coach Mark Pope. Kentucky has already added guards Zoom Diallo and Alex Wilkins in the portal.
Kentucky football coach Will Stein reflects on new position
Will Stein was officially introduced to fans and media as the head coach for the Kentucky Wildcats, replacing Mark Stoops.
LEXINGTON — Kentucky football had its first spring game under new coach Will Stein at Kroger Field on Saturday.
The offense, in blue jerseys, had its moments. So too the defense, donning white uniforms.
Ultimately, the blue squad earned a 23-18 victory in a game called just after noon because of inclement weather.
Stein admitted he “got emotional” as he charged onto the field prior to kickoff.
“I know it wasn’t a real game, but when I ran on the field, I definitely — man, I felt it,” he said. “It was like a wave running over me. And very, very, just cool.”
While it doesn’t count in the standings, Stein walked away pleased.
“I think we got a lot of really good work,” he said. “That’s the goal of spring is to improve with fundamentals and technique, learn how to practice, learn what winning edges that we need throughout spring to go into summer and fall and prepare the team for play. And we came out of the scrimmage clean. There (were) no injuries, which to me, that’s the biggest win of the day. I could (not) care less about the score.
“If we come out clean, that’s good. The Wildcats won.”
New starting QB Kenny Minchey looked about as expected, with sharp passes evened out by moments of inconsistency. Martels Carter Jr., a defensive back who is lining up at running back this spring, scored a touchdown and had several nice runs.
And the defense forced multiple three-and-outs and also picked off one Minchey pass on a two-point conversion.
This story will be updated.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
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