With only 1:17 left on the clock, Kentucky would be put in a near identical situation to the one it was in only four days prior – down by two and looking for a miracle. 

The miracle was granted, and with 34.3 seconds left in the game, Oweh would score to give the Cats their first lead of the game, and after securing a rebound, Aberdeen would add a layup of his own, giving the Cats an 80-77 lead with only 13 seconds left. 

Tennessee would attempt a buzzer-beater to tie it, but would fall short, giving the Cats its third straight conference win. 

Kentucky men’s basketball (12-6, 3-2 SEC)  took down Tennessee (12-6, 2-3 SEC) 80-78 with yet another second-half comeback for its second-ranked win of the year.

After dropping its first two conference games of the year, the Cats entered their matchup against the Vols on a two-game win streak, most recently picking up a buzzer-beater victory over LSU. 

The Cats opened up against the Vols on a strong offensive foot, with Andrija Jelavic, Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno giving UK eight points through the first four minutes.

However, Tennessee would open up the game shooting just as successfully, giving it an early lead with three scores from beyond the arc in just five minutes.

Turnovers were an early struggle for the Cats, giving up three in the first six minutes, all of which resulted in scores for the Vols, allowing them to take a double-digit lead by the 14-minute mark. 

Kentucky fought back, finding success from the three for what felt like the first time all season, led by Johnson, who put up two, and both Collin Chandler and Jelavic with one apiece. The Cats would work their way back from a 12-point deficit, down only 22-16 heading into a timeout. 

Through the first few conference games this year, Kentucky exposed its persistent problem with slow starts. Against LSU on Tuesday, the Cats put up just 6 points in the first 10 minutes, shooting 10% from the field and a flat 0% from the three-point line.

Against the Vols, Kentucky put up 18 points while shooting 54% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, a small scoring drought for the Cats allowed the Vols to take another double-digit point lead. 

Even with the drought, the offense wasn’t the reason for Kentucky’s struggles; the turnover margin was. Through the first 13 minutes, the Cats gave up seven total turnovers.

The Vols would find 10 points off those transitional problems, and it became a momentum killer for the Cats in the first half. 

The Vols took their largest lead of the game with six and a half minutes to go, pushing the point deficit to 16, fueled by a 7-0 scoring run.

Kentucky’s defense was holding steady; however, its field goal drought worsened, and the Cats would go over seven minutes without a score. 

The Cats’ offense would get back on track in the final three minutes with two scores from Johnson and a deep three from Chandler to enter a 7-0 run of their own, and forced the Vols to go without a field goal in the final three and a half minutes.

The two led scoring in the first half, with Johnson picking up 12 points while shooting 83% percent form the field and 63% from the three, and Chandler totaling six points. 

As the buzzer sounded, the Vols would take a 42-31 lead heading into the half. However, the Cats would fight back to that 11-point deficit after being down by as many as 17 points in the first 20 minutes.

Denzel Aberdeen led Kentucky’s offense coming out of the half, scoring seven points in the first few minutes to cut the Vols’ lead. 

It would be a Kam Williams layup at the 16:17 mark that would bring the point deficit down to six heading into a timeout, while Tennessee entered a two-minute scoring drought. 

The teams exchanged baskets over the next couple of minutes, and the Cats found themselves within four with 11:26 remaining in the game. 

Kentucky’s second-half comeback streak continued once again, and without a Tennessee field goal in over five minutes, Kentucky was set to pick up its first ranked win since December.

Kentucky will return to action next Tuesday, Jan. 21, when it hosts the Texas Longhorns (11-6, 2-2 SEC). Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. EST and will air live on SEC Network.