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Men's Basketball

Otega Oweh’s Career-High Performance Spoiled, Auburn Defeats Kentucky

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5 months ago

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Isaiah Pinto | KY Insider

On Saturday, Feb. 21, Kentucky (17-10, 8-6 SEC) lost a much needed game against Auburn (15-12, 6-8 SEC) in enemy territory, losing by a score of 75-74 inside of Neville Arena.

Coming into this matchup, the Wildcats, from the words of star guard Collin Chandler were “desperate” for a win during an important stretch of the season, having lost back-to-back games to No. 14 Florida and Georgia.

Shockingly, even more desperate, Steven Pearl’s Tigers had lost five straight games, looking for a miracle to turn things around in front of worrisome fans.

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Malachi Moreno would get the Wildcats started early with the first bucket of the game, but would go down with an apparent ankle injury, giving the Big Blue Nation a scare. Thankfully, Moreno would jog off on his own accord and quickly would check back in for Mark Pope.

Throughout the course of the first few minutes, both teams would trade shots, featuring five ties and six lead changes by the halfway point of the first half.

Auburn would jump out to a small lead after Kentucky’s early foul trouble. Brandon Garrison tallied three fouls in the first half, holding the main chunk of the Wildcats’ 10 first-half fouls.

Despite the errors, Otega Oweh would begin to bully his way into the paint, getting physical buckets with ease at the rack. The superstar guard finished the half with 12 points.

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At halftime, Kentucky would lead by four after a 7-0 run in the final minutes.

Out of the break, Kentucky would go on a 7-2 run, causing Pearl to call a timeout and talk to his guys, now nearly trailing by double digits.

Just when fans thought the matchup would get out of hand, Auburn would go on a 10-2 run over four minutes and some change, bringing the deficit back down to one. Oweh, up to 16 points and seven rebounds, would jog over to Pope and call a timeout with a 50-47 lead.

Denzel Aberdeen would splash a huge three, putting him up to 10 points on the night, but the Tigers would proceed to go on a 6-0 run, tying the game 53-53 and causing chaos in the jungle.

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Smartly and intentionally, Pope called another timeout, looking to find an answer in the final eight minutes of the game.

Oweh would pick up his fourth foul on a questionable call, and without him on the court, Auburn would extend its run and go up 57-53. The game would slowly turn into a back and forth battle, with both teams calling back to the first stretch of the game.

At the 4:08 mark, with Moreno on the bench, Keyshawn Hall would drive in easily on Garrison, securing the and-one for the Tigers. Moments later, Aberdeen would drain yet another clutch three, putting the Wildcats back within three points.

Hall would visit the line again, knocking in two more freebies for the Tigers. With more fight than luck, and continuing his monster night, Oweh would hit a corner three and swoop in for another layup, tying the game at 68 a piece.

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Marking a career-high, KeShawn Murphy would answer with a three, putting the Wildcats down three with 1:44 on the clock.

Crucially, Oweh would attempt a deep jumper, but was fouled before it clanked off of the front of the rim. He would make two out of three, putting the game back within one.

Garrison would fail to put back the Oweh layup on the next possession, but would make up for it with a steal, throwing it up to double-zero for a career-high marking dunk.

After a defensive stop, Aberdeen would then sink two clutch free throws. Within seconds, he would foul Tahaad Pettiford, giving Auburn two free throws to bring the game within one once again.

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Chandler would be called for a push off on the inbound, leading to an eventual walk-off two by Elyjah Freeman, marking the Wildcats’ third straight conference loss and spoiling Oweh’s 29-point career-high performance.

Up next, Kentucky will face South Carolina (12-15, 3-11 SEC) on Tuesday, Feb. 24 inside of Colonial Life Arena. That game will tip off at 7:00 p.m. ET and will air live on the SEC Network.

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Men's Basketball

College Basketball Rankings: Where Kentucky Stands in Updated “way-too-early” Polls

Published

2 weeks ago

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July 3, 2026

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Where Kentucky basketball stands in ESPN and CBS Sports updated way-too-early rankings after more coaching changes, player additions, and injuries.
UK Athletics

Last offseason, Kentucky was considered a top-10 team and a true title contender, but ended the season as one of the most disappointing teams in the country, winning just one game in the NCAA Tournament.

This offseason, Kentucky is barely cracking the top 15 in most preseason rankings and will look to climb the rankings throughout the season rather than fall.

Still 120+ days out from the start of the regular season, ESPN and CBS Sports have updated their “way-too-early” rankings following Dusty May’s jump from Michigan to the NBA, more player additions for teams, and some early-season-ending injuries.

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The rankings remain fairly static, however, with the Wildcats holding steady in ESPN’s rankings while moving ahead of St. John’s in CBS Sports’ rankings following Donnie Freeman’s Achilles injury.

ESPN

17. Kentucky Wildcats

Previous ranking: 17 (no change)

Impact newcomer: Milan Momcilovic

Momcilovic was the best transfer in the portal, after a season in which he established himself as the best shooter in college basketball. The 6-8 forward withdrew from the NBA draft on the night of the deadline, committing to coach Mark Pope’s team a few days later after also being pursued by Louisville and Arizona. He’s immediately an All-America contender and the most dangerous player on the Wildcats’ roster, after averaging 16.9 points and shooting 48.7% from 3 last season.

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Projected starting lineup

Zoom Diallo (15.7 PPG at Washington)
Alex Wilkins (17.8 PPG at Furman)
Milan Momcilovic (16.9 PPG at Iowa State)
Ousmane N’Diaye (9.8 PPG for Cremona in Serie A)
Malachi Moreno (7.8 PPG)

CBS Sports

16. Kentucky Wildcats

Previous ranking: 17 (⬆️1)

This ranking is based on the Wildcats returning one of the top six scorers — specifically Malachi Moreno — from a team that finished 22-14 and advanced to the second round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament. That core will be joined by a recruiting class highlighted by Iowa State transfer Milan Momcilovic, Washington transfers Zoom Diallo and Franck Kepnang, Washington State transfer Jerone Morton, James Madison transfer Justin McBride, Providence transfer Alex Wilkins, four-star prospect Mason Williams and international prospect Ousmane N’Diaye.

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Men's Basketball

Mark Pope Discusses Final Assistant Coach Position, “I’m not in desperate need of adding more pieces”

Published

2 weeks ago

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July 3, 2026

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Mark Pope isn't rushing to fill Kentucky's final assistant coach opening, saying pending NCAA rules on international players could shift his plans.
UK Athletics

Kentucky basketball has operated this offseason without a full staff. Assistant coaches Alvin Brooks III and Jason Hart left the program back in March, and Mark Pope has only filled one of the two spots since, hiring former NBA All-Star Mo Williams from Jackson State.

Despite that, Kentucky managed to bring in the 3rd ranked transfer class in the country, highlighted by Milan Momcilovic, and have secured a commitment from 2027 five-star Ryan Hampton.

“I like my organization a lot right now. I think this group is functioning at a high level,” Pope said about his staff in an interview with BBN Tonight. “I like the way our staff feels. I like the way we feel in the staff meeting every day. I like the way we’re executing on the road. I like the way we feel on the court right now.”

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With an assistant coach position sitting vacant, Pope is satisfied with how his staff is performing and says there is no urgency in filling the role. Instead, he’s waiting to see how NCAA guidelines and rules unfold in the coming weeks.

“I’m not in desperate need of adding more pieces, although I’m open to the idea,” he said.

“There are going to be a whole host of legal cases from our league testing the CSC and the NCAA on their current guidelines and rules on international players. And depending on what the outcome of those are, it could very much shift the direction we go with hiring.”

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Men's Basketball

Mark Pope Says Kentucky’s Final Roster Spot Is About Fit, “There’s got to be a very uniquely positioned piece”

Published

2 weeks ago

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July 3, 2026

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Mark Pope opens up on Kentucky Basketball's final roster spot, emphasizing fit over hype as the Nikola Kusturica recruitment nears a decision.
UK Athletics

Kentucky basketball is wrapping up its third week of practice in an eight-week summer training block. While the players are getting acclimated to Mark Pope’s system and to each other, there is still one roster spot to be filled.

“I am enjoying coaching these guys, but we’re also still really active in recruiting,” Pope said in an interview with BBN Tonight.

One name that Wildcat fans have been keeping a close eye on in recent weeks is Nikola Kusturica, a 17-year-old prospect from Serbia, who is currently playing for FC Barcelona and is a projected lottery pick in the 2028 NBA Draft. His recruitment is down to Kentucky and UCLA, with the latter having the momentum and a decision expected soon.

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Whoever the final roster piece will be, Pope emphasizes that they must fit with the other 14 players on the roster.

“Where we are with our roster, there’s got to be a very uniquely positioned piece that fits,” he said.

“There are several different archetypes of piece that would fit this roster really well, but there’s also a lot of guys who are popping up as available or have been available for a little while who don’t turn out to be the fit that’s going to work for this team.”

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