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Kentucky vs. Mississippi State, Round 2: TV/Streaming Info, Keys to the Game, and Predictions

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After a dominant win over Alabama, the Kentucky Wildcats will take on Mississippi State on the road.
© Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

What a win on Saturday for the Kentucky Wildcats, who put up one of the best offensive performances in college basketball this season on Saturday in a 117-95 win over Alabama. Now they will go back on the road to take on a Mississippi State team in a quad-one opportunity.

With Kentucky coming out on top in the first matchup, back in January, Mississippi State will look to even the season series and defend their home court on Tuesday. The Bulldogs are playing some of their best basketball of the season, riding a five-game winning streak, including a twenty-point road victory over LSU, whom Kentucky just lost to.

Let’s look at the matchup.

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Interior Defense

Tolu Smith is arguably the best big man in the SEC. In the first matchup between these two teams, he certainly made his presence felt despite the loss, scoring a season-high 26 points on better than 70 percent shooting.

This time around will be a good test to see how an improved Kentucky defense handles a physical interior player. While improving and reportedly back at practice, Tre Mitchell is unlikely to play on Tuesday, so it will be up to the seven-footers.

Ugonna Onyenso is Kentucky’s most physical big, but Zvonimir Ivisic who just scored a season-high 18 points, gives Kentucky a higher offensive ceiling.

Rebounding Battle

Similar to the stereotypical SEC team, Mississippi State is a physical team that does well on the boards, ranking toward the top of the country in total rebounds, offensive rebounds, and rebound margin. In the first matchup, Kentucky outrebounded the Bulldogs 30-29, that effort will need to be there again Tuesday.

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Josh Hubbard

Mississippi State’s equivalent to Rob Dillingham is Josh Hubbard. The sub-six-foot electric guard is a similar microwave-type player who just won his fifth SEC Freshman of the Week honor this season after scoring 32 points against LSU.

Scoring just three points on 1-11 shooting against Kentucky back in January, Hubbard is motivated to have a better performance. The priority in defending Hubbard is chasing him off the three-point line or pushing him back as more than 64 percent of his shots have been taken from deep. Similar to what Kentucky did to Alabama, make him finish at the rim.

Opposing Players to Watch

F Tolu Smith 6-11, 245 lbs

  • 16.8 PPG (9th in SEC)
  • 8.1 RPG (3rd in SEC)
  • 59.7% FG (1st in SEC)

G Josh Hubbard 5-10, 185 lbs

  • 15.3 PPG (10th in SEC)
  • 76 3PM (1st in SEC)
  • 7.9 3PA per game

G Dashawn Davis 6-1, 190 lbs

  • 6.2 PPG
  • 3.0 APG (17th in SEC)

Kentucky Basketball vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs

  • Time: 7 PM ET on February 27th
  • TV Channel: ESPN
  • Announcers: To be announced.
  • Location: Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi.
  • Online Stream: WatchESPN and ESPN app
  • Radio: Tom Leach and Jack Givens have the UK radio call on the UK Sports Radio Network.
  • Replay: WatchESPN and the SEC Network (check local listings).
  • Rosters: UK | MISS ST
  • Stats to Know: UK | MISS ST
  • KenPom: UK | MISS ST
  • Team Sheets: UK | MISS ST
  • Odds: The odds for the game have yet to be released, but check out SportsBetExpert for your picks. Despite a convincing win over Alabama, the projections are not in Kentucky’s favor. ESPN’s matchup predictor gives the Cats just a 40.9% chance at victory, with Bart Torvik right in line at 41%. EvanMiya and KenPom give Kentucky a slightly higher chance at the win, at 46% and 45% respectively.
  • Predictions: The projections have the game coming down to the wire. Bart Torvik and KenPom have Mississippi State winning by two points, 80-78 and 79-77. Haslametrics and EvanMiya have the Cats winning by just one point, 77-76.

Also published on A Sea of Blue.

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Men's Basketball

Milan Momcilovic and Malachi Moreno Earn Conference Preseason Honors

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Photo via Chet White | UK Athletics

On Monday, Oct. 12, Kentucky’s Milan Momcilovic and Malachi Moreno both earned All-SEC preseason honors, with the Iowa State transfer selected to the Preseason All-SEC Second Team and the returning sophomore selected to the Preseason All-SEC Third Team.

Momcilovic is entering his senior season with the Wildcats, looking to follow up his junior campaign after reigning as the undisputed best shooter in college basketball. He averaged 16.9 points per game last year, with his shooting splits reading 50.6/48.7/87.8.

Leading the Cyclones to a No. 2 seed and being selected to All-Big 12 Second Team, it’s safe to say that this isn’t the first time that Momcilovic has been left off of the top list, making the Kentucky superstar hungry to prove the haters wrong on a much larger stage.

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Moreno is returning for his sophomore season after earning All-SEC Freshman Team honors last year, looking to show the Big Blue Nation everything he learned throughout the draft process and that he has changed this summer.

The Kentucky native was thrown into the fire, earning 30 unexpected starts for the Wildcats. He developed as the season went on, ending the 2025-26 campaign averaging 7.8 points per game and 6.3 rebounds per game.

With both Momcilovic and Moreno as staple players on this year’s roster, the SEC has slated Mark Pope’s team to finish seventh in the conference this season, finishing behind Florida, Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama and Vanderbilt.

The full lists of the All-SEC Teams can be found below:

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First Team

  • Rueben Chinyelu (Florida)
  • Juke Harris (Tennessee)
  • Thomas Haugh (Florida)
  • Josh Hubbard (Mississippi State)
  • Tyler Tanner (Vanderbilt)

Second Team

  • Amari Allen (Alabama)
  • Alex Condon (Florida)
  • Milan Momcilovic (Kentucky)
  • Jordan Smith Jr. (Arkansas)
  • Matas Vokietaitis (Texas)

Third Team

  • PJ Haggerty (Texas A&M)
  • Malachi Moreno (Kentucky)
  • Tahaad Pettiford (Auburn)
  • David Punch (Texas)
  • Billy Richmond III (Arkansas)

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Men's Basketball

Otega Oweh Shows Flashes in First NBA Preseason Appearances

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Photo via Getty Images

Former Kentucky standout Otega Oweh took another step in his basketball career on Tuesday night, making his NBA preseason debut with the Oklahoma City Thunder and taking on the New Orleans Pelicans.

Oweh came off of the bench and played 28 minutes, finishing with six points, six rebounds, two steals, one block and an assist. The former Wildcat struggled offensively, shooting only 3-of-9 from the field and missing all four of his free throw attempts.

Despite the shooting struggles, Oweh showed flashes of his defensive ability and physicality that made him a fan favorite during his two seasons in Lexington.

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The Pelicans escaped with a 116-110 win, leaving the Thunder with a 0-1 record. The next night wouldn’t draw a different result, with Oweh’s team losing by two and only playing the beloved superstar a total of 16 minutes.

Due to foul trouble, this would be the only minutes he would receive, ending the game with two points on three shots.

Oweh was selected with the 41st overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft by the Thunder after averaging 18.6 points per game during his senior season at Kentucky, joining former Wildcats Cason Wallace and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

Although his preseason debut wasn’t the offensive performance he might have hoped for, Oweh will have more than enough opportunities to prove himself as he looks to earn a role in a professional rotation.

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Men's Basketball

Kentucky Competes at Annual Pro Day Inside of Rupp Arena

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Photo via Marissa Gilchrist | UK Athletics

Kentucky held its annual Pro Day on Tuesday, Oct. 6, where NBA scouts were able to watch the team go through individual drills and a live game-like scrimmage. There are plenty of takeaways that stood out during the two hour practice. Let’s dive into it:

1.) Franck Kepnang Shows Off in the Paint

The first thing that stood out was transfer big man Franck Kepnang, with the seven-foot big from Washington dominating in the paint. Starting with the individual drills, he showed his size and ability to get downhill off of a pick-and-roll.

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The bigs went through a finishing through contact drill, and the new Wildcat seemed unfazed by the pads being pounded against him. With Moreno and Kepnang running the paint together, it will make it very difficult for opposing teams to stop both of them.

2.) Ousmane N’Diaye Has High-Scoring Performance

Overseas big Ousmane N’Diaye was another standout in front of the NBA scouts. In the first six-minute “quarter”, N’Diaye led all scorers with eight points.

He showed off his ability to score at all three levels, hitting multiple threes and also demonstrating his ability to score in the paint. N’Diaye wasn’t playing the five spot, which really allowed his team to stretch the floor and help with spacing.

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With Moreno, Kepnang, N’Diaye and Reece Potter all standing at seven-feet tall, Mark Pope has the opportunity to run a four-big lineup all while each player hones a different skillset. Having this much size will pay dividends come time for conference play.

3. The Forwards Do a Little Bit of Everything

A few other players who performed well were Milan Momcilovic and Braydon Hawthorne. Momcilovic played very unselfish during the inter-squad scrimmage, looking to first get his teammates involved and not forcing his game whatsoever.

He did hit a nice step-back 3-pointer at the buzzer in the second “quarter”, highlighting his 10-point performance. Hawthorne had some great looks from beyond the arc and did a phenomenal job getting his teammates open, driving and distributing the rock.

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He finished with six points and one assist.

Overall, the whole team appeared molded together and played as a unit rather than just isolation ball, which is a great sign in early October. There is no shortage of individual talent on this roster, and that was evident on Tuesday, with leaders and experience at every position.

The wait is almost over BBN. Kentucky will take the court in its first exhibition game on Friday, Oct. 16, when Little Rock comes into town. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET and will air live on SEC Network+.

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