Kentucky vs Tennessee score today: UK basketball game updates, highlights from SEC contest

Posted by author January 28, 2025 Basketball

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — In Kentucky basketball‘s three losses in SEC play — Georgia, Alabama and Vanderbilt — it trailed at halftime.

The Bulldogs led 47-34. The Crimson Tide had a two-point (47-45) advantage. And the Commodores were up 41-27 at intermission.

Simply being on the wrong side of the scoreboard after the opening 20 minutes is too surface level for UK coach Mark Pope. Instead, as he has noted on multiple occasions, the beginning of games hasn’t been the issue. It’s the second 10 minutes of the first half.

The breakdown from those three losses:

Kentucky led Georgia, 18-15, at the 10-minute mark; UGA outscored UK by 13 points (32-19) the rest of the half.
UK and Alabama were knotted at 28 midway through the first half; the Crimson Tide narrowly outscored the Wildcats, 19-17, before halftime.
Kentucky led Vandy by one point, 19-18, with 10 minutes to play in the half; the Commodores dominated the remainder of the half, outpacing the Wildcats by 14 points (23-9).

Entering tonight’s matchup at Tennessee, UK will try to avoid ceding too much ground in the latter portion of the opening half.

“We just gotta stay focused,” UK forward Ansley Almonor said. “That’s just us. It’s something we’ve gotta figure out ourselves. … It’s just a mental thing. We’ve got to be able to stay focused all 40 (minutes of the game).

“You can’t have lapses.”

Follow along below with live updates from Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville:

The contest between the Wildcats and Volunteers will air on ESPN. Karl Ravech (play-by-play), Jimmy Dykes (analyst) and Molly McGrath (sideline) will have the call.

Authenticated subscribers can access ESPN via TV-connected devices or by going to WatchESPN.com, the WatchESPN app or ESPN+.

You also can stream ESPN on Fubo, which offers a free trial.

Tom Leach (play-by-play) and Jack Givens (analyst) will have the UK radio network call on 840 AM in Louisville and both 630 AM and 98.1 FM in Lexington.

You can also listen online via UKAthletics.com.

Betting odds: Kentucky is an 11-point road underdog (-112) on DraftKings, which set the over/under at 146 points (-110). The money line odds are Kentucky +425, Tennessee -575.

Oct. 23: exhibition vs. Kentucky Wesleyan ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 123, Kentucky Wesleyan 52
Oct. 29: exhibition vs. Minnesota State Mankato ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 98, Minnesota State Mankato 67
Nov. 4: vs. Wright State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 103, Wright State 62
Nov. 9: vs. Bucknell (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 100, Bucknell 72
Nov. 12: vs. Duke (Champions Classic; State Farm Arena, Atlanta) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 77, Duke 72
Nov. 19: vs. Lipscomb, (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 97, Lipscomb 68
Nov. 22: vs. Jackson State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 108, Jackson State 59
Nov. 26: vs. Western Kentucky (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 87, Western Kentucky 68
Nov. 29: vs. Georgia State (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 105, Georgia State 76
Dec. 3: at Clemson (ACC/SEC Challenge) ∣ SCORE: Clemson 70, Kentucky 66
Dec. 7: vs. Gonzaga (Climate Pledge Arena; Seattle) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 90, Gonzaga 89 (OT)
Dec. 11: vs. Colgate (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 78, Colgate 67
Dec. 14: vs. Louisville (Rupp Arena) ∣ SCORE: Kentucky 93, Louisville 85
Dec. 21: vs. Ohio State (CBS Sports Classic; Madison Square Garden, New York) | SCORE: Ohio State 85, Kentucky 65
Dec. 31: vs. Brown (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Kentucky 88, Brown 54
Jan. 4: vs. Florida (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Kentucky 106, Florida 100
Jan. 7: at Georgia | SCORE: Georgia 82, Kentucky 69
Jan. 11: at Mississippi State | SCORE: Kentucky 95, Mississippi State 90
Jan. 14: vs. Texas A&M (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Kentucky 81, Texas A&M 69
Jan. 18: vs. Alabama (Rupp Arena) | SCORE: Alabama 102, Kentucky 97
Jan. 25: at Vanderbilt | SCORE: Vanderbilt 74, Kentucky 69
Jan. 28: at Tennessee, 7 p.m., ESPN
Feb. 1: vs. Arkansas (Rupp Arena), 9 p.m., ESPN
Feb. 4: at Ole Miss, 7 p.m., ESPN
Feb. 8: vs. South Carolina (Rupp Arena), noon, ESPN/ESPN2
Feb. 11: vs. Tennessee (Rupp Arena), 7 p.m., ESPN
Feb. 15: at Texas, 8 p.m., ESPN
Feb. 19: vs. Vanderbilt (Rupp Arena), 7 p.m., SEC Network
Feb. 22: at Alabama, 6 p.m., ESPN
Feb. 26: at Oklahoma, 9 p.m., SEC Network
March 1: vs. Auburn (Rupp Arena), 1/4 p.m., ABC/ESPN
March 4: vs. LSU (Rupp Arena), 7/9 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU
March 8: at Missouri, noon, ESPN/SEC Network

Record: 14-5 (3-3 SEC)

Ansley Almonor (forward, senior)
Koby Brea (guard, graduate)
Lamont Butler (guard, graduate)
Andrew Carr (forward, graduate)
Collin Chandler (guard, freshman)
Grant Darbyshire (guard, junior)
Brandon Garrison (forward, sophomore)
Walker Horn (guard, junior)
Kerr Kriisa (guard, senior)
Trent Noah (forward, freshman)
Otega Oweh (guard, junior)
Travis Perry (guard, freshman)
Jaxson Robinson (guard, graduate)
Amari Williams (center, graduate)

The Volunteers are 17-3 this season, with a 5-3 mark in SEC play.

Though UK is 161-78 all time versus Tennessee, the programs have split the last 10 meetings, with each team notching five victories. Rick Barnes is 11-10 against Kentucky since he became Tennessee’s coach ahead of the 2015-16 season.

Click here to see the Volunteers’ full 2024-25 schedule.

Want to learn the Volunteers’ roster?

Click here for player bios and more.

We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.

Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.