A thrilling comeback made for a thrilling game, but Kentucky used a pair of offensive rebounds to turn a 62-61 Tennessee lead with five minutes to play into an advantage they would never relinquish. Jordan Bone’s corner pocket three cut the lead back to one with 1:26 to go, but the story of the day was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and he buried a step-back jumper in reponse. SGA had 29 points on 10-of-16 shooting, and the Vols had no answer for the game’s best player. He kept the Cats in front at the end, and Kentucky wins the SEC Tournament 77-72.
The Vols were dead and buried before Admiral Schofield knocked down three threes late in the first half, trimming a 17-point Kentucky lead to five at the break. Schofield, who left the game for a few minutes in the second half after a loose ball scramble knocked him to the floor, had 22 points and 10 rebounds.
But it wasn’t enough to overcome SGA and 7-of-16 from the arc from the Wildcats, who go to 23-3 when shooting better than 29% from three. This game had the feeling of a second weekend tournament affair, and both teams should feel confident about their ability to get there.
We’ll find out the path at 6:00 PM ET; Tennessee’s should still go through Nashville.
Still proud of this team and all of their accomplishments. Seeing Schofield and Williams go down today just make me relieved they’re okay. Maybe a loss isn’t the worse thing for the team. The pressure is off on from the winning streak and they can start a new one in the NCAA tourney. Another six game winning streak would be enough this time.