Beginning a new era, No. 12 Kentucky men’s basketball Head Coach Mark Pope got his first taste of the border state rivalry with Rick Barnes’ No. 8 Volunteers.
In a game that featured two top-15 teams fresh off devastating inter-league losses desperate for a vindicating win, the Wildcats went without a field goal for five and a half minutes to close regulation.
During that five-minute stint, Tennessee shot 1-12 from three to top off a horrendous shooting night as the Vols shot 35% from the field.
The Wildcats didn’t blow out their rival despite shooting 50% as a squad; rather, they scraped away with a gritty five-point victory in the thick of an intense game filled with bad blood.