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Men's Basketball

Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt: TV/Streaming Info, Preview, and Betting Odds/Predictions

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Kentucky Wildcats forward Trent Noah (9) reacts after making a three point basket
Jordan Prather-Imagn

Following a disappointing loss on the road to Texas, the Kentucky Wildcats return to Rupp Arena for a rematch against the Vanderbilt Commodores.

Looking to avenge a loss to Vanderbilt in Nashville, the Wildcats need to win this one or they are in danger of falling out of the top 10 in the SEC standings. That could mean a Wednesday game in the SEC Tournament.

Vanderbilt is currently projected in the NCAA Tournament field, but as a 10 or 11 seed, they are certainly no lock. A road win over Kentucky would certainly boost their resume and give them more confidence.

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That said, neither team has been playing great of late. Battling injuries, Kentucky has lost five of their last eight, sitting at .500 in SEC play. On the other side, Vanderbilt has lost four of their last five games, including a thirty-point loss to Oklahoma.

Kentucky tends to play some of their best basketball at home, while Vanderbilt is just 1-5 on the road in the SEC but nearly took down Tennessee this past Saturday.

Let’s take a look at what to watch for in this matchup.

Turnover Bug

The biggest story of the first matchup was Kentucky’s lack of ball security, turning the ball over 17 times, still a season-high. Which was a big reason why the Commodores had twelve more possessions.

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While Vanderbilt is one of the best teams in the country at generating turnovers, many of Kentucky’s were unforced. That included two at the end of the game where errant passes were forced and Kentucky gave away any shot they had to win.

This time Kentucky will likely be without Lamont Butler and Jaxson Robinson and will have to rely on a point-guard-by-committee approach: Travis Perry, Koby Brea, Otega Oweh, and Amari Williams. Each of have shown the ability to

A -12 possession margin isn’t going to win many games. Take care of the ball.

Late-Game Execution

While Kentucky has certainly had games where they executed to near perfection at the end (i.e. Duke, Gonzaga), there have certainly been some late-game execution issues recently, including at Vanderbilt, Alabama, and at Texas on Saturday.

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Again, Kentucky will likely not have a true point guard, but they still have the talent to win this game. That said, they have to execute for 40 minutes, not 36 as they did against Texas. There are no excuses for not blocking out on a free throw, or inbounding a ball directly to a defender.

3-Point Attempts

Before the season started, Mark Pope and multiple staff members talked about the goal of averaging 30+ three-point attempts per game. Now 25 games into the season, Kentucky has only done so in four games and just once in SEC play.

If there is a team that you want to shoot a lot of threes against, it is Vanderbilt who allows their opponents to shoot better than 37% from deep, one of the worst marks in the country. In SEC play, that number is even worse at 41%.

Kentucky only had 23 attempts from deep in the first game. That number needs to be higher in this rematch.

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Opposing Players to Watch

G Jason Edwards

  • 17.6 PPG (4th in SEC)
  • 38.5% 3P (9th in SEC)
  • 5.4 3PA

F Devin McGlockton

  • 10.8 PPG
  • 7.8 RPG (6th in SEC)
  • 60.2% FG

G AJ Hoggard

  • 10.5 PPG
  • 4.6 APG (5th in SEC)
  • 37.1% FG

Kentucky Basketball vs. Vanderbilt Commodores

Time: 7 PM ET on February 19th
Location: Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center in Lexington, Kentucky
TV Channel: SEC Network
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 | VANDY
Stats to Know: UK | VANDY
KenPom: UK | VANDY
Team Sheet: UK | VANDY

Odds: FanDuel Sportsbook has Kentucky -5.5 with an over/under of 161.5. ESPN is the most confident in the Cats, giving them an 81.7% at victory. EvanMiya is the least confident, taking into account injuries, giving Kentucky a 69% chance at victory. KenPom (79%) and BartTorvik (76%) lie in between.

Predictions: BartTorvik (91-82) and KenPom (89-80) each have Kentucky winning nine points. Haslametrics (86-79) and EvanMiya (85-79) have the Cats by slightly lesser margins, seven and six points respectively. I’m going with an 83-77 victory, Kentucky!

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

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Go CATS!

Men's Basketball

Former Wildcats Headline Thunder-Pacers NBA Finals Matchup

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Cason Wallace and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Kevin Jairaj | IMAGN

The NBA Finals tip off with familiar faces on both sides in the first-ever series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers.

For the first time since 2012, when the Thunder were led by Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City is in the NBA Finals. The franchise has the opportunity to earn its first title in Oklahoma City since the team’s rebrand and relocation in 2008.

As for the Pacers, it’s the franchise’s first NBA Finals appearance since 2000. Indiana is seeking its first championship in team history. 

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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Oklahoma City’s superstar and crowning 2024-25 league MVP has continued his season-long dominance into the postseason. Averaging 31.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

Gilgeous-Alexander impressed as the Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 4-1, as he led all but one game of the series in scoring. 

After an underwhelming performance in Game 3, Gilgeous-Alexander responded with a near triple-double performance, posting 40 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. Oklahoma City defeated the Timberwolves narrowly, 128-126.

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The Thunder blew out Minnesota in Games 4 and 5 thanks to back-to-back massive performances by Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 34 and 40 points, respectively. Clinching his first bid to the NBA Finals. 

At midcourt after their Game 5 victory, OKC hoisted the Western Conference Trophy in front of their home crowd. Gilgeous-Alexander walked off with the Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson Trophy for his Western Conference Finals heroics.

Cason Wallace

Second-year pro Wallace is the Thunder’s ultimate plug-and-play contributor. Although Wallace isn’t a stat-stuffing machine like Gilgeous-Alexander, his defensive prowess stands out.

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In five games, the Kentucky product averaged 25.8 minutes per game off the bench. Wallace was often assigned to guard Wolves superstar Anthony Edwards. 

The 6-foot-4 guard averaged five points, 3.6 assists, 2.4 rebounds, and nearly a block and steal per game. 

Known for his hustle, Wallace excels at imposing himself on defense despite commonly matching up with larger opponents. His ability to disrupt the Timberwolves’ offense created offensive opportunities, which coincided with his pass-first mentality on offense.

Wallace could be found stealing from 7-foot-1 Frenchman Rudy Gobert in the post and nailing 3-pointers on the other end.

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In Game 5, Wallace scored only five points but had two rebounds, three assists and two blocks. Helping OKC seal a commanding 124-94 victory to punch their ticket to the NBA Finals.

Isaiah Jackson

The tallest former Wildcat out of the bunch, Jackson stands at 6-foot-9 as a physical off-the-bench presence for Indiana.

Unfortunately, the big man won’t be available to play in the NBA Finals. In the fifth game of the season, Jackson suffered a season-ending Achilles tear on Nov. 1 in a matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans. 

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This season Jackson made six appearances for the Pacers, including a start against the Boston Celtics early in the season. Posting seven points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game.

Despite the injury, the four-year Pacer would still receive a ring if Indiana wins for his short-lived contribution this season.

Game 1 of the NBA Finals tips-off on Thursday, June 5, at 8:30 p.m. ET.

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Men's Basketball

The 2025-26 Cats Consensus: It’s Time for Banner Number Nine

Every new and returning Wildcat shares the same dream: bringing a championship trophy to Lexington once more.

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Mark Pope in a crowd of fans at Big Blue Madness
Tyler Ruth | UK Athletics

“We are here to win banners.”

While just about everything Mark Pope said at his introductory press conference went viral in one way or another, that aforementioned declaration stood out amongst his crowd of quotes like no other to a fanbase more than a decade removed from a national championship.

To the big blue nation, Coach Pope’s words last spring were a much needed battle cry. Now, as he’s set to enter his second year at the helm, Pope has made sure the team he assembled for the 2025-26 season shares the same hunger.

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It begins on a basic level, with players across the board throwing the number “9” around on social media in posts, replies, and commitments. Much like the Kentucky faithful, the newest roster to roll through Lexington isn’t afraid to make reference to the top task at hand.

For (likely) starting point guard Jaland Lowe, it’s an opportunity he “can’t miss.” “See y’all soon #BBN,” he said in a post on X, announcing his return to the collegiate level. Lowe chose a junior season at Kentucky over a chance to be chosen in the NBA Draft. Otega Oweh, the now-projected SEC player of the year, would follow suit shortly thereafter.

The Ultimate Goal

Andrija Jelavic, a primary member of the incoming unit, as well as the team’s lone international player, dubbed the title chase as “the ultimate goal” in his interview with KY Insider. “We all [the team] agree that the ultimate goal is the same and that is to bring a championship to Kentucky, to the state and the fans,” he said.

To Jelavic, it goes further than hunger. It’s a responsibility.

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And that responsibility is what sets Kentucky apart from other programs. As awkward as the conversation around John Calipari can get, when push comes to shove, much of the dissatisfaction growing within the fanbase as his tenure came to a close was rooted in the coach’s apparent disinterest in winning another championship.

Year after year went by; top-ranked roster after top ranked roster. After a while, it seemed that Kentucky was more often mentioned in the first round of the NBA Draft than it was in the NCAA Tournament. The problem persisted, the tension festered and, ultimately, the two sides split… and it all goes back to that elusive ninth title.

Name on the Front of the Jersey

Mark Pope has said before that he wants to bring in guys who are playing for the name on the front of their jersey. It just so happens that there are enough of those like-minded athletes across the nation to build one of the consensus best teams in college basketball, all of whom are in full pursuit of a new blue banner in the rafters of Rupp.

With a mindset like that shared across the board and talent like the 2025-26 team has at hand, it’s only a matter of time before that dream becomes a reality once more. For the first time in more than a decade, the entire Big Blue Nation is on the same page – and that includes the guys who can actually make it happen.

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Men's Basketball

Koby Brea Talks With Andrija Jelavic About His Legendary Chapter Awaiting At Kentucky

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ABA League (Left) | Imagn (Right)


Andrija Jelavic, in a recent Q&A with Kentucky Insider, revealed that he exchanged messages with former Wildcat Koby Brea, who will be handing down his No. 4 jersey to Jelavic.

The big man was asked if he had spoken with any former Wildcats after comparing his play style to Karl-Anthony Towns, and what he knew about Kentucky growing up.

“I exchanged some messages with Koby Brea because I’m gonna be wearing his number four,” Jelavic said. “About Kentucky, I always knew that they are the biggest franchise in college basketball history, and just everything about them is legendary.”

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Jelavic added on what exactly Brea said in those messages.

“He just told me to go be great and that he can’t wait to see me play,” Jelavic said. “Also, that he likes my number decision.”

Alone, the fact that Brea reached out speaks volume to the culture that is established at Kentucky. The lethal sharpshooter from Mark Pope’s first team at Kentucky played only one season in the blue and white, yet, seems interested in the future of the program despite chasing his own big league dreams.

To end our exclusive interview, Jelavic talked about the goals he has now as a Wildcat and how he wants to be a legendary piece to this year’s roster.

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“Definitely to bring many wins and hopefully a championship to Kentucky, Jelavic said. “To be a player that Kentucky will always remember.”

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