Tennessee Vols make Kentucky basketball history in the worst kind of way in collapse at Rupp Arena
Tennessee was on the wrong side of an all-time mark for Kentucky on Saturday night.
Tennessee and Kentucky have been playing basketball for a long time. Going back to 1910, to be exact. And over that time, a lot of bad has happened to the Volunteers in the rivalry, especially on the road.
The Vols have been on the wrong end of lopsided losses, like the 101-40 shellacking in Lexington on March 12, 1993. They’ve seen bitter disappointments as favorites, like when the Wildcats ruined the first checkerboard game at Thompson-Boling Arena on March 1, 2006.
And speaking of an 80-78 score in Knoxville, well, you all know the story of the game there this year. No sense in going back down that 17-point lead rabbit hole.
But Rick Barnes’ Volunteers found a new way to delivery misery to the fan base on Saturday night at Rupp Arena, and it came in historic fashion.
Tennessee was on the losing end of the biggest halftime comeback win in the history of Kentucky basketball at Rupp Arena
The Vols turned a 47-33 halftime lead into a 74-71 loss. According to Kentucky Sports Radio’s Matt Jones, it was the biggest halftime comeback win for Kentucky in their history of playing at Rupp Arena.
The Wildcats have been playing at Rupp Arena since November 1976. They’ve played, according to the school’s website, over 600 games there going back to 1976, with a winning percentage of close to 90%. That’s a lot of games and a lot of wins.
But none came in more dramatic fashion out of the halftime locker room than on Saturday against Tennessee.
Vol fans have plenty of targets to point fingers at. Tennessee’s big men were 6/21 shooting the ball, which is clearly not good enough. They lost too many one-on-one battles in the paint on the defensive end, with Kentucky winning the points in the paint battle 44-24. The Vols missed eight free throws (17-25).
And even Rick Barnes’ late game decisions were not above reproach, with him taking the blame for not having DeWayne Brown II — who had 12 rebounds — in the game in the final seconds when Kentucky secured a game-clinching rebound on a missed free throw.
All in all, it’s a game that Tennessee’s players, coaches, and fans would like to forget quickly. Unfortunately, it’s now etched into Rupp Arena history.
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