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The Kentucky Wildcats had to make a trip to Knoxville for their rematch with the Tennessee Volunteers
Kentucky came out of the gate strong, as Nick Richards threw down a big dunk, and Ashton Hagans knocked down to give the Cats a quick 6-0 lead.
However, Tennessee answered with a 9-0 run of their own to take the lead. From that point, each team battled back and forth and exchanged leads.
But with 8:23 left in the half, the Cats trailed 19-18 and PJ Washington left the game with his second foul.
From then on, the flights outscored the Cats 18-6 and took a 37-24 lead into the break.
It was just that kind of day for the Cats, as the Flights' lead swelled to 20 quick in the second half, 47-27.
Kentucky made a small run to cut the lead back down to 14, as a dunk by EJ Montgomery made it 50-36.
However, Tennessee answered with a question of their own, and the Cats were never able to get back to the air as they rolled to a 71-52 victory.
Thoughts on the game
Horrible shooting performance
One thing this team has done well this year, and it's a solid performance, no matter the opponent.
That was all in the world, as the Cats made a total of 14 field goals for the game. They were 14/44 (31.8%) for the game and 5/19 (26.3%) from three. It was just their second true road loss of the season.
The Cats also did not get knocked down as they were 19/29 (65.5%) from the line. While not bad, they need to be in charge of this.
When you're on the road and do not shoot well from the field, that's a recipe for a loss and that's exactly what happened in this one.
Keldon Johnson, Tyler Herro, and Ashton Hagans did not show up
When you go to the top of your game, it will be hard to win. Unfortunately for Kentucky, one of the three guys it is necessary to step up in one of their worst outings of the season.
Johnson, Herro and Hagans were combined in the double digits. They also had 10 turnovers combined vs. just seven turnovers and one steal.
It was really disappointing to see her in the forefront of the game. Arkansas on Tuesday. Perhaps the Achilles issue had been made in Knoxville.
For this team to make a deep run in March, at least two of the three show, every day, and when none of them do, you see what the result is.
This team needs Reid Travis back
Travis is the perfect player for a tough game.
In the first matchup, Travis was outstanding as he played excellent defense all game and almost finished with a double-double. He also was key in keeping Grant Williams throughout the matchup while also helping PJ Washington in the paint.
But without Travis, that paved the way for Williams to score 24 points on 7/13 shooting. It also made it tougher for Washington to defend the paint, and it ended up with two fouls within the first 12 minutes.
This team should be one of the best, and this team should look completely different.
This sets up for an excellent rubber match
Now that Kentucky is likely to be seeded in the SEC Tournament, it will be most likely to set up a Saturday, semi-final battle with the Vols.
Each team dominated their home court, and Schofield gave the Cats some extra motivation by choosing to dunk that ball as time expired.
If each team takes care of business, the third meeting of the season will be a very fun matchup. It does not matter which one of these teams gets a seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The Cats will hit the road again as they travel to Ole Miss on Tuesday night. That game will tip-off at 9:00 pm EST on ESPN.
Now, here are the postgame notes and milestones via UK Athletics:
Team Records and Series Notes
Kentucky falls to 24-5 overall and 13-3 in the Southeastern Conference, falling to the game behind Tennessee and LSU for the league lead.
· Tennessee is now 26-3 and 14-2 in SEC play.
· Kentucky still leads the most played series in school history 155-72.
o UK leads 54-52 in games played in Knoxville, Tennessee, but Tennessee has won a straight at Thompson-Boling Arena. That's UK's longest streak on the road to Tennessee since dropping seven straight in Knoxville from 1979 to 1985.
· UK is now 12-9 vs. Tennessee when both teams are ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.
· Next for Kentucky: The Wildcats enter the final week of the season, starting with a trip to Ole Miss on Tuesday. That game is slated for a 9 p.m. ET tip on ESPN.
In the First Half
Kentucky started the combination of Ashton Hagans, Tyler Herro, Keldon Johnson, PJ Washington and Nick Richards for the first time this season.
o Reid Travis missed his third straight game with a sprained right knee. His timetable for a return to at least two weeks from the injury, which occurred Feb. 19 at Missouri.
· UK jumped out to a 6-0 lead to start the game, featuring a slick lob pass from Herro to Richards for a dunk followed by a 3-pointer Hagans.
Tennessee answered with a 9-0 run that lasted 3:15 of game time. Richards ended up with a free throw.
· The Volunteers pulled in front 28-18 on a 9-0 run from the 8:38 mark to the 4:03 mark. Kentucky went scoreless for 4:59 until Richards hit the mark at 3:39 mark.
The Wildcats dealt with foul disorder nearly all half. EJ Montgomery picked up his second foul at the 9:55 mark mark and his third at 5:00, Washington was born with his second at 8:23, Johnson got his second at 5:16, and Richards picked up at 2:59 mark and No. 3 at 2:17.
When Washington went to bench with his second foul, the Wildcats were outscored 18-6 until halftime.
After a Johnson float at the 10:23 mark, Kentucky went without a field goal for 9:32 of game time Jemarl Baker Jr. hit a corner with 51 seconds left in the half.
· UK's six field goals and 23.1-percent shooting were both first-half lows this season
The six made field goals were made only in the second half. Missouri on Feb. 19.
o The 23.1 percent was a low for any half.
In the Second Half
· Kentucky opened with the same starting five: Hagans, Herro, Johnson, Washington and Richards.
· After falling behind by 20 points, the Wildcats went on 7-0 run – highlighted by five points from Immanuel Quickley – to cut Tennessee's lead to 47-34. The Wildcats would never get any closer.
· UK did not score the final 3:22 of the game.
Team Notes
· UK's road winning streak was stopped at six games. It was the longest road winning streak since the magical 2014-15 season.
Kentucky is now 5-3 vs. AP Top 25 opponents and 3-2 vs. top-10 foes.
· UK scored a season-low 52 points, four fewer than the previous low.
o It's the fewest points in the Wildcats have been scored in Vanderbilt on March 15, 2013, in the SEC Tournament.
Kentucky shot a season-low 31.8 percent.
o That's UK's lowest field-goal since 31.5 percent at Missouri on Feb. 3, 2018.
UK made just 14 file goals, tying the fewest field goals UK made in one game during the Calipari era (March 1, 2014 at South Carolina).
· After dominating the Volunteers 36-20 in points in the first matchup in Lexington, Kentucky scored just 10 on Saturday. Tennessee scored 28.
o UK fell to 3-2 when getting outscored in the paint.
· It's just the third time in 23 games UK has lost when winning the rebounding battle.
Player Notes
· PJ Washington led UK with 13 points despite foul trouble in the first half.
· He's scored in double figures in 13 of the last 14 game and 19 games overall.
· Nick Richards Started for the third time since Nov. 23 vs. Tennessee State. He scored eight points, hauled down seven rebounds and blocked three shots.
· He's blocked three shots in each of the three games
· UK dropped to 12-1 this season when Richards scores at least four points.
· Immanuel Quickley scored eight points on 3-of-5 shooting (2 of 4 from 3-point range).
It was his best scoring output when he scored 12 on Jan. 12 against Vanderbilt.
Calipari
· Calipari is 299-69 at UK, needing one more NCAA Division I to 300 wins at any school
· Calipari has a 744-200 all-time on-short record.
· Calipari fell to 57-29 vs. Top 25 opponents at Kentucky and 23-18 vs. the top 10.
· He is 80-52 when both opponents are ranked in the AP Top 25, including 49-25 at UK. He's 26-17 all-time when both are in the top 25 and 15-10 at UK.
· Calipari is 16-10 against. Tennessee in his career.
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