Kentucky was desperate for a W. That desperation did not manifest in execution. Instead, errors added up until the Wildcats walked off the floor with a 75-74 loss to Auburn.
Unlike many of the nine previous losses, the Cats did not start slow. In fact, they showed quite a bit of resolve to take a 4-point halftime lead. It was the second half that stunk like a big wet fart.
The Cats had the Tigers on the ropes with a 9-point advantage. They were in control and Auburn was teetering. Instead of landing the kill shot, Kentucky got passive. Possessions were spent passing outside of the three-point line until late in the shot clock, when a bad three was chucked toward the rim. Denzel Aberdeen sank one of those desperation threes. It was one of just two made field goals over 12 minutes.
Despite that disastrous stretch, Auburn left the door open for Kentucky time and time again, only for the Wildcats to make one absurd mistake after another.
One Kentucky Mistake After Another
Otega Oweh got into his zone, scoring two of his career-high 29 points to tie the game with two minutes to go. How did the Cats respond defensively? They went into a zone, but didn’t guard KeyShawn Murphy at the top of the key. “You’re going to give me this?” is probably what he thought to himself as he drained the easy three.
Fortunately, the officials had a gift waiting for Kentucky on the other end. Auburn was whistled for fouling Oweh on a three, and there wasn’t much there. Of course, he didn’t make all three to tie the game. That would be costly.
Kentucky’s defense had more late-game magic, creating a run-out for what should have been an easy go-ahead layup. Oweh missed it, then Brandon Garrison missed another point-blank attempt. At least the Cats had one more in them, forcing another turnover on the ensuing possession to get the run-out layup that actually fell through the net.
The Cats scored 11 of the last 14 points and led by three points with 18 seconds on the clock. Tahaad Pettiford hit a pair of free throws to make it a one-point game. All Kentucky had to do was run a press-break, get the ball in bounds, and hit some free throws. None of those things happened. Instead, this did:
It was a terrible call, but Kentucky still had a chance to win the game. Instead, Auburn got not one, not two, but three attempts at the rim. The third time was a charm, giving the Wildcats 10+ losses for the fourth-straight season.
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Mark Pope was NOT Happy with the Officials
As Jack and Zack detailed in the Rapid Reaction, Mark Pope wasted no time getting to the podium to speak to the media about the loss. He was fired up. Rather than directly calling the officials hot dog water, he shared many passive-aggressive remarks that were clearly directed toward the stripes, describing them as: “super personal, horrid, distressing, disgraceful, embarrassing, awful, and unacceptable.”
As soon as Pope stepped away, he made a passionate plea to Mitch Barnhart in the hallway. He made sure everyone could hear it.
Mark Pope as he left the postgame podium:
“Mitch, if those MFers try to fine me, screw ’em. I did not say a WORD about how they cheated us”
(
: @mikegittens) pic.twitter.com/pMKHpo39DO
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) February 22, 2026
The odd part of it all? When he spoke with Tom Leach a few minutes later, all of that fire was gone. “We don’t talk about officiating,” Pope said. “We have to find a way to win games.”
More from the Kentucky Loss to Auburn
The Push-Off Hurt, but Kentucky Mistakes Hurt More
Takeaways from a 3rd-Straight Loss
Steven Pearl on the Collin Chandler Offensive Foul
Denzel Aberdeen Played Through Sickness
Mark Pope’s Brief Postgame Press Conference
Double-Digit Loss Seasons Stack Up
Oweh Says Kentucky got a Bad Whistle, but Still Could Have Won
Recapping a Weird Loss at Auburn
Listen to Matt Jones on the KSR Postgame Show
Kentucky Baseball Wins Two at Evansville
Two years ago, the Purple Aces were an NCAA Tournament Cinderella story, reaching the Super Regional round. They still had a little bit of that magic with their backs against the wall on Saturday.
Kentucky outscored Evansville 14-5 over the first two games of the series. In the final game, the Bat Cats lost their bats. Kentucky mustered only four hits in nine innings. They had runners on base in the eighth and ninth, but couldn’t get one home, falling 1-0 to finish the second week of the season 2-2 against lower-level foes. The Cats return to Kentucky Proud Park on Tuesday for a 4 PM ET first pitch against WKU.
Kentucky WBB on the Road
The last time the Wildcats took on the Commodores, Vanderbilt escaped Historic Memorial Coliseum with a one-point win. Kentucky will try to avenge that loss this afternoon at 4 PM ET in Nashville. The broadcast got bumped up to ESPN2 for the Top 20 matchup. Hopefully, the Wildcats got one more win over a Top-5 team up their sleeves.
Last Day of the Winter Olympics
The final period of the Gold Medal Game between Team USA and Canada is about to begin. The Americans scored on their first shot of the night, but our northern neighbors have felt in control for most of the morning. It’s going to be a sweat to see who leaves the rink with Gold. Closing ceremonies are at 2:30 PM ET before NBC delivers one final night of primetime coverage from Italy.