The Sweet 16 weekend has arrived, featuring a highly anticipated showdown between two conference rivals—the No. 2 seed Tennessee Volunteers and the No. 3 seed Kentucky Wildcats. Notably, this is the only matchup in this year’s tournament between a No. 2 and No. 3 seed. Both teams enter the game in strong form, having delivered impressive performances in the earlier rounds.
Tennessee advanced by defeating No. 15 seed Wofford 77-62 in the first round, followed by a 67-58 victory over No. 7 seed UCLA. Meanwhile, Kentucky secured a dominant 76-57 win over No. 14 seed Troy before taking down No. 6 seed Illinois 84-75. The Wildcats have been competing without their second-leading scorer, Jaxson Robinson, who was ruled out for the season in February.
During an appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show, SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum weighed in on the matchup. While he acknowledged that both teams are playing at a high level, he pointed to one key factor.
“The idea of Tennessee losing three straight to Kentucky this year is just hard for me to imagine,” Finebaum said. “But Kentucky is playing at an elite level right now. They’re healthier than they’ve been, but that’s my perspective.”
Kentucky claimed victory in both regular-season meetings against Tennessee. The first game, held at Food City Center in Knoxville, ended in a 78-73 win for the Wildcats. Kobe Brea led the way with 18 points, making all five of his field goal attempts and going 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. Robinson also contributed 17 points in that matchup. The second meeting took place at Rupp Arena in Lexington, where Kentucky won 75-64 with a balanced offensive effort—four players scored at least 11 points, including Otega Oweh and Ansley Almonor, who each had 13. Robinson did not play in that game.
A crucial factor in both games was Kentucky’s defensive success against Tennessee’s three-point shooting. The Volunteers struggled from deep, making just 14-of-63 attempts (22.2%), well below their season average of 34.5%. Additionally, Tennessee’s leading scorer, Chaz Lanier, has had difficulty against the Wildcats. While he averages 18.1 points per game on 43.8% shooting from the field and 41% from three, he has managed only 12.5 points per game against Kentucky while shooting 29.6% overall and just 17.7% from beyond the arc.
For Tennessee to turn the tide in this third meeting, Lanier will likely need a standout performance when the teams clash again on Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium. Tipoff is set for 7:39 p.m. ET, with the game airing on TBS and truTV.
