Le Journal

Good morning, BBN! After one of the crazier weeks I can remember watching Kentucky Basketball, the vibes are back with BBN. Two straight comebacks from the Cats, paired with a hard-fought, heated win against their rivals in Tennessee, it looks like this team has found its heart. Just take a second and imagine how you’d feel if the Cats were sitting at 10-8 instead of 12-6… it changes the entire trajectory of the season. With three straight SEC wins, UK looks to continue that momentum into tonight against a gritty Texas team. You can watch the game on the SEC Network at 7:00 PM ET. The game will be played at Rupp Arena. Will their hot streak continue? Tweet of the Day: 🎥 The Journey: Another comeback win in Knoxville. pic.twitter.com/yf1p2DUYw5— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) January 21, 2026 Oh yeah… the vibes are BACK. Headlines: Big Blue Preview: Kentucky vs. Texas – UK Athletics Full breakdown. Giese & Tuufui Pick Up SEC Weekly Honors – UK Athletics Let’s go! Stephen Curry’s championship window with the Warriors has probably closed, one way or another – CBS Sports Sadly, I believe so. Carlos Beltran, Andruw Jones elected to Baseball Hall of Fame – ESPN Awesome to see! Report: Titans, Robert Saleh are finalizing a deal – NBC Sports Very excited for Saleh to get another opportunity. Former Alabama center Charles Bediako sues NCAA in effort to return to college basketball – CBS Sports Things are getting past just out of hand… It’s total chaos. National champion Hoosiers get heroes’ welcome in return to Bloomington – ESPN Well-deserved. Greatest story in sports ever. John Harbaugh: You build your team around your quarterback, I like how Jaxson Dart plays – NBC Sports I am also very excited for Harbaugh in New York. Mike McDaniel withdraws his name from Browns’ coaching search, per report – CBS Sports Could he join Saleh in Tennessee? Bucs QB Mayfield takes swipe at Falcons coach Stefanski in post – ESPN Personally love to see this.

We have talked about the biggest issue facing Kentucky Basketball right now: the slow starts. It happens nearly every game. The Wildcats find themselves down 10 points or more way too often. In the last two games alone, they fell behind by 18 to LSU and 17 to Tennessee. While they were able to pull themselves out of the hole on the road both times, you can’t depend on a miracle comeback every single time you take the floor. And yet they find themselves in that position far too often. Sooner or later, you have to go out and play 40 minutes of good basketball. They have yet to do that this year. There have been flashes or spurts. But against a Power 5 team, there is not a full 40 minutes where you can go, “That’s it, that is what we need more of.” When asked about why it is happening, newly inserted starter Andrija Jelavic didn’t really have an answer. He said, “I don’t really have an answer to that, I’m not going to lie… I don’t really have an answer to that.” But Mark Pope isn’t just sitting around watching it happen over and over; he is trying new things to wake this group up during the first half. “We’ve actually talked to the team about changing the way we do our 40 minutes before tip,” Pope told reporters this week. The head coach didn’t reveal exactly what that entails, whether it is a change in the warm-up drills, the locker room speech, or the timeline of their arrival, but it is a clear acknowledgment that the current setup isn’t working. A lot of fans point back to Auburn last year to notice the difference in the warm-up speeches from Bruce Pearl and Mark Pope. You can see the difference for yourself: I keep going back to that Auburn vs. Kentucky game last year, where Mark Pope brought almost no energy, the players were just sitting there barely clapping, meanwhile Bruce Pearl had Auburn fired up, players yelling, chanting, and huddling up as a team.I just want to see Pope… pic.twitter.com/ezZtLBN9Q2— Chris Beasmore (@CBeasmoreSports) December 6, 2025 Mark Pope is a more cerebral guy; he is not going to do a lot of yelling and jumping. He has told BBN that burning white hot is only good at times. But maybe this team needs some more of that. Whatever it is, we will see if we notice any change in the energy level tonight as the Cats take on Texas. Kentucky can not keep digging themselves 20 point holes in mid-January, and beyond, that’s for sure. ___________________________________________________________ Drew Holbrook has been covering the Cats for over 10 years. In his free time, he enjoys downtime with his family and Premier League soccer. You can find him on X here. Micah 7:7. #UptheAlbion

The Kentucky Wildcats have won three straight games in SEC play and are now 3-2 in league play. Last week, they earned hard-fought road wins at LSU and Tennessee. Kentucky is now 29th in the AP Poll, having received the fourth-most votes of teams just outside the Top 25. Unfortunately, the Wildcats will have to continue winning without big man Jayden Quaintance. Head coach Mark Pope announced on Tuesday that Quaintance will miss Wednesday’s matchup with the Texas Longhorns. “He will not play tomorrow night, but he’s making progress,” Pope said at his Tuesday press conference. “We’re super optimistic (about Quaintance playing again this season), and he’s kind of going through the process, and hopefully he’ll be back soon. I know that’s not very descriptive, but I’m trying to be protective of him also.” It’s great that there is optimism that Quaintance can return this season. He does add something to this team, and that can matter in February and March. Quaintance is a really good rebounder and shot blocker. His presence makes Kentucky’s defense better. However, he’s not much of an offensive threat just yet. He can become one, and his defensive prowess is really intriguing. Kentucky put up a valiant effort against Tennessee on the board Saturday with Quaintance out. That shows this team can win even as Quaintance deals with swelling in his knee, which has kept him out since the Missouri game. The Wildcats host Texas on Wednesday, a team that averages over 86 points per game. Kentucky weathered the storm without Quaintance on Saturday against a big Tennessee team. They’ll have to do so again on Wednesday against the Longhorns, and likely Saturday as well when they host Ole Miss.

Kentucky Basketball guard Otega Oweh didn’t have the prettiest day statistically in Knoxville, but he delivered when it mattered most. Oweh finished with 12 points on 3/11 shooting and 1-for-5 from three, adding two rebounds, two steals, one block, and one assist. The numbers weren’t flashy, but his impact was undeniable in the final minute. With 34.3 seconds left, Collin Chandler came up with a massive steal, dished it ahead to Oweh, and Oweh calmly laid it in to give Kentucky its first lead of the game, 78-77. The Wildcats never trailed again, escaping with an 80-78 road win. Oweh continues to be clutch, fearless, and willing to attack when Kentucky needed a bucket most. However, the free-throw line continues to be a concern. Oweh went 5/9 at the stripe against Tennessee. With 50.3 seconds left, he had a chance to tie the game but missed the first free throw, making only the second to pull Kentucky within one at 77-76. He also missed a free throw on his and-1 score to put the Cats up in the final minute, but that miss was thankfully rebounded by Mo Dioubate. That ultimately led to Denzel Aberdeen hitting a tough floater to put Kentucky up 80-77 when they otherwise could have just led 78-77 following Oweh’s miss. It wasn’t the first time this season that late free throws have added drama. Against LSU, Oweh made the first of two to potentially complete an 18-point comeback, but missed the second. Kentucky was saved when LSU missed both of its free throws, setting up the famous Collin Chandler-to-Malachi Moreno game-winner. Oweh also missed a free throw in the final minutes vs. North Carolina that would have tied the game at 61-all, and the Cats would eventually lose 67-64. For the season, Oweh is still solid at the line, shooting 71/96 (74%). Before Tennessee, he was at 75.9%. Those numbers are respectable, but in tight games, every miss is magnified. Oweh proved in Knoxville that he’s not afraid of the moment. Now, the next step is making sure those moments at the free-throw line are just as automatic as his game-winning layups.