In what could go down as an SEC-defining Saturday, No. 15 Kentucky and Tennessee will meet head-to-head in Knoxville, Tennessee, as the Wildcats look to win their fifth conference game in their last six tries. But a house of horrors for Kentucky is Thompson-Boling Arena, if there ever was one.
The Wildcats have lost four-straight on Tennessee's turf dating back to 2016 -- Rick Barnes' first year running the Vols. He has a 5-3 head-to-head record against Calipari during that span, with a 71-52 beatdown serving as the last sample between the two grizzled veteran coaches. Kentucky's last win in the series came last February in Lexington: an 86-69 affair that fell in favor of the 'Cats.
"Anytime I've been in that building, it's packed and it's like a game and it's a significant game," said Calipari on Friday of Thompson-Boling Arena. "This one will be. They're a physical team. They play well. They're well-coached. They run their stuff. Defensively, they'll grind you. They'll press you. Rick Barnes does a little bit of everything. It'll be a hard challenge for us."
Coming off a 31-win season a year ago, Barnes and his Vols have stumbled to 13-9 in a rebuilding year. And at home, they're 2-2 in league play and 8-4 on the year overall. Nonetheless, Kentucky always draws a big crowd and Saturday should be no different as UK looks to establish itself atop the SEC standings -- and Tennessee looks to spoil that quest.
"I don't think there's a better place to play basketball than Thompson-Boling Arena. Our fans are just terrific," said Barnes on Thursday. "John [Calipari] has done a really good job with his team defensively. They're as good a defensive team as he's had in a long time. They're a typical Kentucky team where they start playing their best basketball this time of year, and that's what's happening with this team right now."
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Kentucky: Look at this Kentucky team and you see three guards -- Ashton Hagans, Tyrese Maxey and Immanuel Quickley -- who are all capable of taking over on any given night. But as this season has progressed, it's been junior big man Nick Richards who has quietly emerged for Cal's Cats, leading the team in points, rebounds, blocked shots and field goal percentage. He's coming off a monstrous 27 point, 11 rebound outing in a win over Mississippi State. And how's this for a stat: Kentucky is undefeated this season when he scores 10 or more points, and just 1-4 in games in which he scores fewer than 10 points. He figures to be a focal point of Kentucky's game plan as it looks to end its skid in Knoxville.
Tennessee: The status of all-important freshman guard Josiah-Jordan James, who is injured with a hip/groin, looms large in this one. He's missed Tennessee's last two games and did not practice on Thursday. If UT has to go without him, senior guard Jordan Bowden and freshman Santiago Vescovi will need to shoulder the scoring load. Down low, Yves Pons and John Fulkerson will play a critical role trying to contain the aforementioned Richards. Pons and Fulkerson scored 39 points and combined for 19 rebounds in a similar matchup against Kansas big man Udoka Azubuike last month, but Azubuike still managed 18 points, 11 boards and four blocks. Containing Richards and squeezing out enough guard production to keep pace with the three-headed trio of Hagans, Maxey and Quickley will be keys for Tennessee to pull this one off.
Game prediction, pick
Latest odds via SportsLine: Kentucky -2.5
Tennessee has lost three of its last four games, and meanwhile, Kentucky's won five of its last six. The momentum-meter is already trending UK's direction. Add that with the fact that the Wildcats are playing good basketball and getting quality production from their guards, Ashton Hagans, Immanuel Quickley and Tyrese Maxey, and I've got no choice but to take Big Blue as a road dog here. Winning guard play and a Nick Richards bounceback should do the trick. This season they're 4-1-0 against the spread as the away team. Pick: Kentucky +2.5
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