Koby Brea led Kentucky with 18 points in the win over Tennessee.
The Wildcats, without their second-leading scorer Lamont Butler, pick up a huge conference road win over No. 8 Tennessee, 78-73.
Kentucky was powered by elite three-point shooting, going 12-24 from long-range in the win. Tennessee put up an absurd 45 three-pointers in the loss, connecting on just 11. Star guards for the Vols, Chaz Lanier and Zakai Zeigler, combined for 4-21 from downtown.
Kentucky held the lead almost the entire first half, before an 11-0 run in the closing minutes of the first put Tennessee up 33-30 at the break. However, the Wildcats quickly regained the lead to open the second half, and did not surrender it the remainder of the game. In total, Kentucky led for 35:20 compared to Tennessee’s 1:22 in front.
It didn’t come without scares though, as Kentucky went cold down the stretch, keeping the Vols around. With 30 seconds to play, Chaz Lanier drilled a three, cutting the Wildcat’s lead to just one point, 74-73. But Kentucky knocked down its free throws in crunch time, and Tennessee was unable to connect from three on its next possession.
The Wildcats were led offensively by Koby Brea, who dropped 18, including 13 in the second half. Tennessee forward Igor Miličić paced the game in scoring, tallying 19 on 60% shooting.
Kentucky (15-5, 4-3 SEC) snaps a two-game skid in a big way, climbing back above .500 in conference play. Tennessee (17-4, 4-4 SEC) has now dropped two straight games, and they will stay in Knoxville to take on No. 5 Florida on Saturday.
