Lightning never strikes twice… unless you’re wearing blue in Nashville.

For the second time in mere weeks, Kentucky had a game come down to the wire with the Oklahoma Sooners and were saved at the buzzer by a heroic bucket from Otega Oweh. The former win was on the road, marking an important crux in the ‘Cats chase for higher seeding.

The latter came in the form of the Wildcats’ first conference tournament win in more than three years. To say the least, the win meant a lot to both the team and the program. Celebration is certainly in order.

Though, as has become the norm in this injury-ridden season, there’s another, less fortunate side to this coin: Lamont Butler has gone down once again, appearing to re-aggravate his left shoulder injury in the first half of his first SEC Tournament game.

After taking heavy precautions, adding the brace, and sitting out his fair share of time already, it seemed that the worst was behind Kentucky’s team-leading point guard. He talked about being at “85-90%” just a few weeks before he left the game last night, only to return to the bench in a warm-up shirt. He was confirmed to be out for the rest of the match shortly after.

So what now? According to Mark Pope, who noted that Butler underwent imaging on his shoulder at halftime, he’s “praying like crazy” that Butler can “find his way back onto the court at some point this year.”

An Unfair Game

“It just doesn’t seem fair,” he said, following the game. “This is not a fair game… man I would like for him so badly to be able to step on a court again, so we’ll see how it goes.”

“We’ll see.”

Regarding his current status, ‘Cats fans have little more to go off of than Pope’s hopeful outlook going forward. But while the waiting game sucks, it’s something that Kentucky fans are more than used to by now.

And in the meantime, the Crimson Tide are on deck in Nashville, and the big blue nation isn’t going anywhere. The Wildcats that remain will tip off against Alabama tonight at (hopefully) 9:30 p.m. on ESPN. A win would mean a date with the winner of Missouri/Florida in the SEC Semifinals.

A loss would mean the next match is madness.

Kentucky’s lack of recent success in the SEC Tournament is well-known by the Big Blue Nation, advancing just once in the last four SEC Tournaments.

With Mark Pope’s injection of energy into the fanbase and a team that has outperformed expectations, fans are making the journey to Nashville once again with the hope of reclaiming the Tournament the Wildcats have won 31 times, 23 more than the next closest (Alabama, 8). Pope and the Cats want to deliver.

“There is nothing in the world that my guys would like more than to gift BBN an incredible week here,” Pope said to the media in a Nashville hotel lobby on Wednesday. That (SEC Tournament) means a lot to us. We’re really devoted to doing everything we can humanly possible as a team to make that happen.”

What’s it going to take for Kentucky to have a successful week? Pope says that the team needs to get “lost” in each possession.

“Our goal is to come here and win,” Pope started. “The way that we’re going to win is, we’re going to come here and think about this possession. We’re going to be lost with our whole heart in this possession. When the next possession comes, we’re going to be lost in that possession.”

“If we are going to give ourselves the best chance to be successful, it doesn’t guarantee anything, but the best chance for us to be successful; our whole heart, mind and soul are going to be lost in the possession that we are in right now. If we can do that consistently, we’re going to be successful.”

The Wildcats tip-off their first game of the postseason on Wednesday night against the Oklahoma Sooners at approximately 9:30 EST on the SEC Network.

Also posted on A Sea of Blue.

83-82. The final score as Kentucky traveled on the road to Norman, Oklahoma, in late February; getting the win over the Oklahoma Sooners in what will forever be known as the Otega Oweh game, who scored 21 of the Wildcats’ 23 points, including the game winner.

As you can expect in a closely contested conference matchup, some words were exchanged between teams during and after the game, leaving some bad blood. With Oklahoma taking care of Georgia in the opening round of the SEC Tournament, a rematch is set for Wednesday night in Nashville.

An opportunity the Sooners hoped they would have.

“It was very competitive throughout the whole game,” star Sooners guard Jeremiah Fears said of the first game against Kentucky. “They (Kentucky) did a great job of playing together. We did a great job of playing together. Unfortunately, they just came out on top and made more winning plays down the stretch.”

That said, Fears’ teammates weren’t as filtered about their chance at a ‘get back’ against the Cats.

“We feel like we should’ve won down there in crunch time,” Oklahoma wing Glenn Taylor Jr. said. “Our backs are against the wall, and we know we have to get them. We’re going on a revenge tour. We feel like we have to go get Kentucky tomorrow. We’re ready.”

“We’re more than hungry,” Sooners guard Kobe Elvis said. “We let one go. I don’t even have the words to describe what we’re feeling. We’re definitely going to be coming ready.”

Then there is Jalon Moore, who was involved in a postgame exchange with Brandon Garrison.

“It’s just competitive, a competitive edge for all players. We all wanted to win, so those emotions came out,” Moore said. “When it comes to the ball being tipped, we’re going to lock in, and we’ll get the dub.”

Moore highlights that this Oklahoma team is different than the one that lost to Kentucky just two weeks ago.

“We’re a different team now than when we played them. So, being able to close out the game tomorrow and get a dub, that’s going to be fun. It’s going to be a fun and physical game.”

The Wildcats and Sooners are set to tip off at 9:30 EST on the SEC Network.