SEC college basketball final: Kentucky 111, Arkansas 102
John Calipari calls this a “trap game.” After all, the Kentucky basketball team is fresh off that last-second win at Mississippi State. And Arkansas is struggling. That’s the backdrop for Saturday’s 1:30 p.m. tipoff at Rupp Arena.
Ben Roberts, Cameron Drummond, Mark Story, Silas Walker and yours truly will be courtside to bring you updates. You can follow us on X/Twitter at @BenRobertsHL, @cdrummond97, @markcstory, @sigh_las and @johnclayiv.
You can follow a dedicated Twitter/X Kentucky basketball list by clicking here.
Final: Kentucky 111, Arkansas 102
Down by as many as nine points in the second half, UK rallies to improve to 11-5 in the SEC. Rob Dillingham was the difference down the stretch. He scored eight points and made multiple assists late in the game.
Antonio Reeves led Kentucky with 22 points.
Arkansas’ Kahlif Battle led all scorers with 34 points.
Halftime: Kentucky 53, Arkansas 48
Arkansas shot 57.6% in the first half but trails Kentucky 53-48 at the break. Antonio Reeves scored 14 points and Aaron Bradshaw added 12 for the Cats, who short 51.6% the first half. UK was 7-for-14 from 3-point range.
By my numbers, Kentucky averaged 1.338 points per possession the first half. Arkansas averaged 1.221.
Arkansas did score 24 points in the paint the first half.
Tre Mitchell back for Kentucky
Cameron Drummond has the details as UK forward Tre Mitchell is expected to play against Arkansas. “On UK’s pregame radio show, head coach John Calipari said Mitchell will be available to play against Arkansas. Calipari said Mitchell won’t start, but he will play at some point in Saturday’s game.”
Mitchell has missed Kentucky’s last four games with a shoulder injury.
Officials for Kentucky-Arkansas
Officials for Kentucky-Arkansas are Doug Shows, Vladimir Voyard-Tadal and Jeb Hartness.
This is third Kentucky game Shows has worked this season. He worked UK’s win over Mississippi State at Rupp on Jan. 17 and the Wildcats’ loss to Tennessee on Feb. 3. Voyard-Tadal worked Kentucky’s win over Marshall on Nov. 24, the Cats’ win at Florida on Jan. 6, the Tennessee loss and the Feb. 17 win at Auburn. Hartness worked UK’s win over Missouri on Jan. 9.
Three things to watch when Kentucky basketball plays Arkansas at Rupp Arena
Where to watch, how to follow No. 16 Kentucky’s men’s basketball game vs. Arkansas
Zvonimir Ivisic wasn’t flashy in Kentucky’s last game. But he might’ve won over his coach.
Kentucky basketball’s Reed Sheppard can’t really be for real? Can he?
D.J. Wagner’s wise decision in Starkville is a good sign for Kentucky’s prospects in March
Three takeaways from Kentucky basketball’s thrilling win at Mississippi State
First Scouting Report: UK will seek to derail the ‘Muss Bus’ for a third straight time
