It has not been a great start to March for the Kentucky Wildcats.

Following an 18-point loss at home to Auburn, Mark Pope announced the loss of Jaxson Robinson for the season as he gets set to undergo wrist surgery.

That said, Selection Sunday is less than two weeks away. With just two regular-season games remaining, Kentucky’s focus turns toward the LSU Tigers on Tuesday and potentially locking up a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Tuesday’s game will also be Senior Night, where the Wildcats will have seven players honored: Ansley Almonor, Koby Brea, Lamont Butler, Andrew Carr, Kerr Kriisa, Jaxson Robinson, and Amari Williams.

The Tigers are led by former Murray State coach Matt McMahon, they are just .500 on the season with a 3-12 record in the SEC. However, they have been playing better of late. In their last three games, they led a top-five Florida team at halftime and took Tennessee and Mississippi State to the wire.

After looking uncompetitive against the No. 1 team in the nation and losing a key starter, how will the Wildcats respond?

Let’s take a look at the matchup.

More 3-Point Attempts

In terms of 3-point shooting, LSU and Kentucky are complete opposites. The Wildcats shoot the second-best percentage from deep in the SEC at 37.3%, while LSU shoots the second-worst percentage from deep in the SEC at 31.1%.

While shooting such a high percentage, the Wildcats have struggled with 3-point attempts as opponents consistently prioritize running them off the 3-point line. In the month of February alone, the Wildcats are averaging just over 23.1 attempts per game, a far cry from the thirty-plus attempts that Pope hopes for.

Defensively, LSU guards the 3-point shot well, forcing opponents to shoot under 30% in SEC play. This will be an opportunity for the staff to generate and scheme looks from deep without Robinson and take what works into the postseason.

Crash the Offensive Glass

LSU’s biggest flaw is their defensive rebounding as they allow opponents to rebound nearly a third of their misses and average over 10 offensive rebounds per game.

Losing the rebound battle in three of the last four games, Kentucky needs to step it up in that area. Rebounding is all about fight, and they should send four guys to crash the boards for those extra opportunities.

After losing the way they did to Auburn, and in what will be many of the Wildcats’ last game in Rupp Arena, I expect them to play inspired and motivated.

Win the Turnover Battle

Coming off a game with a season-high in turnovers (18), many of them unforced, taking care of the ball will certainly be a priority. However, it has been an issue for weeks as the Wildcats have turned the ball over 12 or more times in five straight contests.

Lamont Butler continues to get healthier with each day, so that should help as he runs things, but he did have five turnovers. Amari Williams, who has been the second most prominent ball-handler, had 6 turnovers of his own.

In a game that Kentucky needs, they cannot afford to give up possessions and beat themselves.

Opposing Players to Watch

G Cam Carter 6-3, 190 lbs

• 16.9 PPG (7th in SEC)
• 4.0 RPG
• 2.6 APG

G Jordan Sears 5-11, 185 lbs

• 11.7 PPG
• 2.8 RPG
• 2.6 APG

G Daimion Collins 6-9, 200 lbs

• 8.6 PPG
• 4.4 RPG
• 1.6 BPG (6th in SEC)

Kentucky Basketball vs. LSU Tigers

Time: 7 PM ET on March 4th
Location: Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center in Lexington, Kentucky
TV Channel: ESPN2
Online Stream: ESPN+ and the ESPN app.
Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens will have the call on the UK Sports Radio Network.
Replay: WatchESPN and SEC Network (check local listings).
Rosters: UK | LSU
Stats to Know: UK | LSU
KenPom: UK | LSU
Team Sheet: UK | LSU

Odds: FanDuel Sportsbook has Kentucky favored by 12.5 points with an over/under of 157.5. EvanMiya gives the Cats an 89.1% chance to win, followed by KenPom at 89%. BartTorvik is at 87%, and ESPN is at 85.8%.

Predictions: KenPom projects the biggest margin of victory 86-72. EvanMiya and BartTorvik are close behind with 85-72 and 86-73 victories respectively. Haslametrics has it at 83-72 for the Cats. With so many seniors playing in Rupp Arena for the final time, and what this season has meant to them, I expect Kentucky to win. That said, they are going to have to experiment with some things with Robinson out, keeping it closer than it should. I’m going with an 83-76 victory, Kentucky!

Send us your Kentucky vs. LSU score predictions in the comments section!

Go CATS!

Jaxson Robinson’s college story came to an end in the worst possible way this past week, as Mark Pope confirmed he will need season-ending surgery to repair a wrist injury that he originally suffered in practice before the South Carolina game last month.

Robinson, who will end the year with an impressive line of averages at 13 points, four boards and two assists per game, attempted to return from his ailment on the road against Oklahoma last Wednesday. Despite the team winning, Robinson went down once more, and according to Pope, he knew “in his heart of hearts” that he was done.

After sticking it out and keeping spirits high on the sideline for the sake of his teammates, Robinson broke into “inconsolable tears” in the locker room following the game at the aforementioned realization that his playing time at Kentucky had likely come to an end.

“It’s one of the worst parts of basketball,” Pope said in a press conference today. “(Jaxson) was just having an unbelievable run.”

That he was. Whether it be his 27-point performance on the road against Mississippi State or one of the many three-point barrages that helped propel the ‘Cats to countless victories, Robinson had become a beloved, invaluable member of the team up to this point.

Though the road without him will certainly be difficult, perhaps Robinson’s absence will give the Wildcats yet another thing to play for as March Madness draws near. Either way, one thing is for certain: the Big Blue Nation will miss Jaxson Robinson dearly. His contributions in Pope’s first season are not and will never be taken lightly.

Get well soon, #2. Thank you for everything.

Following a 94-78 loss to the Auburn Tigers, where Kentucky was never really that competitive, there was a double dose of bad news.

Mark Pope announced that Jaxson Robinson will miss the remainder of the season.

Robinson who injured his wrist in practice earlier this month, returned to action on Wednesday against Oklahoma, but fell and reinjured the wrist after only 12 minutes of action. That fall was ultimately what ended his season.

“We came to the final conclusion last night that he’s going to get surgery,” Pope started. “He is going Wednesday, to the world specialist, to have surgery on his wrist.”

“He’s got a torn sub-sheath to his ECU tendon. What’s happening is that it is slipping out and when went down we kinda knew he was going to need surgery, but he just wanted so badly to play. He rehabbed it and had an injection to try and make it functional. He was doing okay, then he went down in the first half at Oklahoma.”

“There is no way that he going to be able to play.”