LEXINGTON, Ky. – Trailing No. 15/18 Kentucky by nine in the final minute of the first half and by seven with under 14 minutes to play, the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team roared back to take a three-point lead, but could not hold on down the stretch in a 75-64 setback.

Senior guard Zakai Zeigler, who entered the top 25 on the school’s all-time scoring list and the top six on the SEC’s career assists leaderboard, had game highs in points (17) and assists (six) for No. 5/4 Tennessee (20-5, 7-5 SEC) at Rupp Arena.

Kentucky (17-7, 6-5 SEC) scored on its first three possessions to take a 6-0 lead after just 112 seconds. However, the Volunteers allowed just two points over the next 5:44, a span during which they took a 9-8 lead with 12:49 on the timer.

The Wildcats quickly answered with back-to-back 3-pointers to go in front by five, 14-9, just 90 ticks later. Tennessee, amidst a 7-of-8 stretch from the floor after a 2-of-12 start, leveled the score at 21 with 5:39 to play in the stanza.

Kentucky soon thereafter went on a 9-1 run, with three consecutive makes from deep, over 1:52 to take a then-game-best nine-point lead, 33-24, with 1:59 left before the break. The Volunteers scored the last two points of the half to make it 33-26 through 20 minutes. Their 8-of-9 free-throw clip helped counteract a 0-of-5 ledger from 3-point range compared to the Wildcats’ 7-of-14 count.

Tennessee sliced the margin to four, 35-31, just 86 seconds into the second half. It then did so again, 45-41, with 14:59 to go, but home team continued its 3-point barrage and just 26 seconds later and went back up by seven, stretching its long-range mark to 10-of-18.

The Volunteers held Kentucky without a point for 3:28 and during that period cut the deficit to three, 50-47, with 12:45 to play. They then got within two, 54-52, with 9:14 to go on the third made 3-pointer—on as many attempts—of the half by senior forward Igor Miličić Jr.

Just 40 seconds later, Tennessee tied the score at 54 on a pair of fee throws by sophomore forward Cade Phillips. Senior guard Jordan Gainey put the visitors ahead, 56-55, with 7:30 remaining and Zeigler made it 58-55 just 58 ticks later, as Kentucky went 3:34 without a field goal.

The Wildcats then sandwiched an old-fashioned three-point play and a 3-pointer around another Zeigler layup, regaining an advantage, 61-60, with 4:21 on the clock they would not relinquish. Kentucky extended the run to 15-4 in 4:40 and made five consecutive field goals, as it built a 70-62 edge with 1:20 to go. The surge included two 3-pointers by graduate guard Koby Brea, after his team missed its prior four from deep.

Kentucky’s final margin of 11 points, buoyed by a game-ending 20-6 run over the last six minutes, was its largest lead of the evening.

Zeigler’s game-leading point total came on a 7-of-11 clip from the field and included 11 second-half points on 5-of-7 shooting. Miličić scored 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including a 3-of-4 figure from long range, and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. The Rovinj, Croatia, native had 13 points after the break on a 5-of-6 field-goal ledger. Fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier added 10 points and six rebounds, one shy of his season best, in the defeat.

Four Wildcats tallied between 11 and 13 points in a balanced scoring attack. Senior forward Ansley Almonor had 13, shooting 4-of-5 from the field and 3-of-3 at the line, as did junior guard Otega Oweh. Brea and freshman guard Trent Noah had 11 apiece for Kentucky, with the former 3-of-6 on 3-pointers and the former 3-of-4 from the floor.

The Volunteers, who had a commanding 15-3 cushion in second-chance points, finished 3-of-18 (16.7 percent) from 3-point range, with Miličić posting all three makes. Kentucky, meanwhile, shot 12-of-24 (50.0 percent) against the Volunteers for the second time in 15 days.

Tennessee now returns to Knoxville, Tenn., for its lone home outing in a five-game, 23-day span, as it will host Vanderbilt in a Saturday matinee at Food City Center, live on SEC Network at 1 p.m.

To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.

TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS POSTGAME NOTES
• Tuesday marked the fourth straight AP top-25 showdown—both teams were in the top 15 for all four—between Tennessee and Kentucky.
• Tennessee fell to 11-12 versus Kentucky under head coach Rick Barnes, still good for five more wins than any other school in that time period (2015-25), as Auburn and Kansas each have six.
• Barnes has led the Volunteers to a 10-8 mark against AP top-25 Kentucky teams in his tenure, still good for four more victories than any other program during that time, as Kansas has five such wins.
• Tuesday’s setback snapped a four-game winning streak for the Volunteers away from home—two were on the road, two were at neutral sites—versus AP top-15 Kentucky teams, a ledger that went from March 16, 2019, to Feb. 3, 2024.
• Under Barnes, Tennessee is now 7-5 in AP top-25 matchups against Kentucky, including 4-4 with both in the top 15.
• Tennessee now owns a 4-4 record at Rupp Arena over the last eight years (2017-2025), including a 3-3 mark in the past six, after it was 2-36 over the prior 38 seasons (1979-2017).
• In the Barnes era, Tennessee is now 6-7 away from home versus Kentucky, including 4-6 in true road games.
• Barnes, who has two more wins over the Wildcats than any other active head coach (10 by Bruce Pearl), fell to 12-14 against Kentucky in his head coaching career, still tied with Kevin Stallings for the seventh-most wins all-time by any coach.
• Tuesday marked the sixth consecutive series meetings—two apiece over the last three years—with Tennessee ranked above Kentucky.
• Over the past eight seasons (2017-25), all under Barnes, Tennessee is now 27-9 (.750) in the second leg of regular season home-and-home series.
• Tuesday marked the sixth time in the last seven games the Volunteers have faced an AP top-15 foe, posting a 3-3 record in that time.
• The Volunteers fell to 34-26 (.567) in AP top-25 matchups in Barnes’ tenure, including 6-4 (.600) in 2024-25.
• The above overall mark includes a 22-13 (.629) record since Feb. 26, 2022, and a 13-6 (.684) tally since Dec. 9, 2023.
• Tennessee’s record in AP top-15 showdowns dropped to 17-13 (.567) in Barnes’ 10 seasons at the helm.
• The Volunteers are now 40-41 (.494) versus AP top-25 foes under Barnes, including 24-14 (.632) since Jan. 22, 2022.
• Tennessee fell to 26-26 (.500) against AP top-15 opponents in the Barnes era, including 19-9 (.679) since Dec. 22, 2021.
• The Wildcats shot 7-of-13 from 3-point range through the first 18:01 of action, while Tennessee did not make a shot from deep until its first possession of the second half.
• The Volunteers connected on eight of their first nine second-half field goals, while the Wildcats hit seven of their first eight at the other end.
• Tennessee has conceded 35 or fewer first-half points in 23 of its 25 contests thus far, including 29 or fewer on 14 occasions and 22 or fewer seven times.
• Zeigler’s six assists upped his career total to 651, moving him past LSU’s Kenny Higgs (645 1974-78) and Kentucky’s Dirk Minniefield (646 from 1979-83) for sixth place in SEC history.
• Zeigler also pushed his 2024-25 assist total to 179, eclipsing Bill Hann (173 in 1968-69) for sole possession of seventh place on Tennessee’s single-season leaderboard.
• The 17 points by Zeigler pushed his career total to 1,365, tying him with Jordan Bowden (2016-20) for the No. 25 spot on the program’s all-time scoring list.
• Zeigler’s seven made field goals matched the season high he recorded Nov. 9, 2024, at Louisville and Nov. 17, 2024, versus Austin Peay.
• Miličić has pulled down at least nine rebounds in 13 of his 24 appearances at Tennessee, including thrice in the past four outings.
• Lanier has now scored in double figures in 23 of his 25 contests as a Volunteer, including in 20 of the past 21 games.
• Junior forward Felix Okpara, who scored eight points, posted a perfect 4-of-4 free-throw clip, tying a career best in makes and doing so without a miss for the first time.