Mark Pope and Wildcats recap big win at Tennessee, plus postgame notes

Kentucky bounces back in a big way in Knoxville.

After suffering back-to-back defeats, the Kentucky Wildcats were staring down the barrel of a three-game losing streak. That hadn’t happened since the COVID-marred 2020-21 season.

But as 10.5-pount underdogs to the Vols, it looked like a near-lock to happen, especially with Lamont Butler out, while Andrew Carr was only able to give two minutes off the bench while managing a bad back.

Mark Pope and his guys had other plans.

Thanks to 71 points from its five starters, highlighted by a combined 35 from Koby Brea (18) and Jaxson Robinson (17), Kentucky came away with a monumental 78-73 victory over the No. 8 Volunteers. The win improves Kentucky to 15-5 overall and 4-3 in SEC play, putting them in a tie for sixth place. Had they lost, the Cats would have been tied for 11th place.

After the game, Pope, Robinson, and Amari Williams met with the media to recap the game. Here are some highlights of what they had to say via UK Athletics and our own Dylan Ballard.

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And here are the postgame notes via UK Athletics.

Team Records and Series Notes

• Kentucky is now 15-5, 4-3 in the Southeastern Conference. Tennessee is 17-4 overall, 4-4 in the league.
• Kentucky leads the series 162-78. UK leads 60-53 in games played in Knoxville and has won the last three meetings in Thompson-Boling Arena.
• Mark Pope is 202-113 as head coach, including 15-5 at Kentucky.
• Next for Kentucky: UK returns home to play host to Arkansas on Saturday. The game will be at 9 p.m. and televised on ESPN.

Team Notes

• This was Kentucky’s sixth win this season against teams ranked in The Associated Press top 15 at the time of the game.
• Kentucky’s 78 points are the most Tennessee has yielded this season.
• UK scored 1.24 points per possession, an excellent mark against one of the nation’s best defensive teams.
• Kentucky shot 50 percent from the field, 25 of 50, and the Wildcats are 10-0 this season when hitting at least half their shots.
• Kentucky made 12 of 24 on 3-pointers. The Wildcats are 11-1 this season when making at least 10 long balls in a game.
• UK is 3-0 this season when shooting at least 50 percent on 3-pointers.
• The Wildcats did not have a great night at the foul line, but with the verdict in the balance, made 7 of their last 8 free throws.
• All five starters scored in double figures. UK is 10-1 this season when at least five players hit double digits.
• Kentucky limited Tennessee to 34.7 percent from the field (25 of 72). It is UK’s third-best defensive percentage of the season, best vs. an SEC opponent.
• Kentucky limited Tennessee to 24.4 percent on 3-pointers (11 of 45). UK is 9-0 this season when keeping the opponent under 25 percent from long range.
• Kentucky played, basically, without two starters as Lamont Butler did not play and Andrew Carr managed only 1:29 of action.

Player Notes

• Amari Williams assembled 10 points and a season-high-tying 15 rebounds, his fifth double-double of the season.
• It is his 11th double-figure scoring game of the season and his ninth game with rebounding double digits.
• He notched a whopping +20 in the plus/minus statistic.
• Koby Brea led the Wildcats with 18 points. He enjoyed a perfect shooting night from the field, 5 of 5 overall, including three 3-pointers.
• He has made a 3-pointer in every game this season and 35-straight contests overall. It is his 15th game this season with multiple 3-pointers.
• He also tied his season best for assists with three.
• Jaxson Robinson had 17 points, his fifth straight double-figure game and 15th of the season.
• He was 4 of 9 from beyond the arc and has now made at least three triples in five straight games.
• He also had a dogged effort on defense, forced to hound Tennessee star Zakai Zeigler while Lamont Butler missed the game because of injury.
• Otega Oweh scored 14 points, including 4 of 4 at the foul line in the final 30 seconds of the game. He is the only SEC player who has scored in double figures in every game this season.
• Playing a season-high 30 minutes, Ansley Almonor had 12 points, all coming on 3-pointers.
• It is his second consecutive game with four long balls.
• He also had a season high for assists with three.
• Trent Noah played nine minutes off the bench and made both his shots in the second half, a 3-pointer that gave UK its largest lead, and a loose ball scramble that he alertly converted into a layup.

In the First Half

• Kentucky’s starters were Jaxson Robinson, Koby Brea, Otega Oweh, Ansley Almonor and Amari Williams for the first time this season.
• Andrew Carr, Brandon Garrison and Travis Perry were the first substitutions at 15:19.
• Kentucky made four early 3-pointers in jumping out to a 12-4 lead.
• Six of UK’s first seven baskets were 3-pointers as UK led 21-16.
• Kentucky led 30-22 with three minutes remaining but Tennessee closed the half on an 11-0 run to take its only lead of the half, 33-30. Robinson paced the Wildcats in the first half with 11 points.
• UK is now 3-5 this season when trailing at halftime.

In the Second Half

• Kentucky began the second half with the starters.
• The Wildcats opened the stanza with an 11-2 run to retake a 41-35 advantage and never trailed again.
• Consecutive 3-pointers by Robinson and Trent Noah gave UK its largest lead at 55-44.
• Tennessee pulled within 74-73 on a 3-pointer with 28 seconds left.
• With 25 seconds remaining, Oweh made two free throws to make it 76-73.
• Tennessee missed a 3-pointer and Oweh was fouled with seven seconds left, making both foul shots for the final score of 78-73.