Pope Update

Down in Knoxville, the Cats promptly fell behind early, and trailed by 17 points (24-41) late in the first half.  Once again, however, they came storming back, this time behind 22 points from Denzel Aberdeen -- not to mention four huge three-pointers from Collin Chandler.  Still, UK trailed 77-76 with only about 50 seconds left -- but a steal by Chandler set up a fast break to put the Cats into the lead, and they hung on for an enormous 80-78 win.  Not surprisingly, the game ended with a brawl -- but that's par for the course when UK wins in Knoxville.  Amazingly, however, the win means that the Cats have won six of their last seven meetings with UT in Knoxville, including two wins in a row for Mark Pope:

01/17/26:  Tennessee 78 - 80 Kentucky

01/28/25:  Tennessee 73 - 78 Kentucky

03/09/24:  Tennessee 81 - 85 Kentucky (Cal's final win as UK coach)

01/14/23:  Tennessee 56 - 63 Kentucky

02/14/22:  Tennessee 76 - 63 Kentucky

02/20/21:  Tennessee 55 - 70 Kentucky

02/08/20:  Tennessee 64 - 77 Kentucky

UK's four-game winning streak in Knoxville is the Cats' longest since UK won four straight games in Knoxville between 2002 and 2005 (thank you Chuck Hayes).

The Cats are now 3-2 in the SEC, 12-6 overall, and Number 27 on Ken Pom.  The Cats' second consecutive nail-biting win moves them up to Number 243 in luck.  Pomeroy now projects the Cats to finish 10-8 in the SEC and 19-12 overall.  That record would probably get them in the NCAA Tournament.  Next week the Cats host Texas and Ole Miss.

Meanwhile, in Nashville, Vandy hosted Florida in a battle for first place.  The Commodores have been very good in close games, and Florida has been poor.  Ken Pomeroy calls this difference "luck," and says that it should even out over time.  Vandy and Florida made Pomeroy look good today.  They had Doug Shows as one of the officials, and the Commodores and the Gators played a Doug Shows special, with the teams combining for 52 free throws.  But Duke Miles, Vandy's best player, fouled out late, and the Gators pulled out a 98-94 victory.  Florida moves to 4-1 in the SEC, 13-5 overall, and 9 on Ken Pom.  They also moved up to 343 in luck.  Meanwhile, Vandy fell to 3-2 in the SEC, 16-2 overall, and 11 on Ken Pom.  They fell to 126 in luck.

In Athens, Georgia pasted Arkansas 90-76.  So the Razorbacks are now 3-2 in the SEC, 13-5 overall, and 26 on Ken Pom.

One final game of note.  In Murray, Kentucky, the Murray State Racers beat Indiana State 85-81 for their 12th win in a row -- the sixth longest active streak in the country.  The Racers are 8-0 in the Valley, 16-3 overall, and 88 on Ken Pom.

Here are the Classic SEC standings:

9.  Florida:  13-5

12.  Vanderbilt:  16-2

17.  Alabama:  13-5

22.  Tennessee:  12-6

24.  Kentucky:  12-6

28.  Georgia:  15-3

35.  Auburn:  11-7

44.  Louisiana St:  13-5

59.  Mississippi:  11-7

83.  Mississippi St:  10-8

Pope Update

Wild night in the SEC last night.  The Cats were down 40-22 in Baton Rouge early in the second half, and then roared back to win 75-74 on a buzzer beater by Malachi Moreno.  The Cats are now 2-2 in the SEC, 11-6 overall, and 27 on Ken Pom.  They finally got some luck, so they're up to 295 in that category.  Meanwhile, LSU falls to 0-4 in the SEC, which means that coach Matt McMahon, who took Murray State to the NCAA Tournament in 2018, 2019, and 2022, is at risk of missing the NCAA's in all four of his seasons at LSU.

Meanwhile, Vandy got crushed down at Texas, 80 to 64.  The previously undefeated Commodores were overwhelmed by the more physical Longhorns.  Vandy's record falls to 3-1 in the SEC, 16-1 overall, and 11 on Ken Pom.  They are 68 in luck.

The cream of the SEC appears to be Florida, who have won three games in a row by impressive margins:  92-77 at home against Georgia, 91-67 at home against Tennessee, and 96-79 at Oklahoma.  The Gators are now 3-1 in the SEC, 12-5 overall, and 10 on Ken Pom.  Each of their five losses is by six points are less, which is why they rank 357 in luck.  Interestingly, Florida will be coming to Vandy on Saturday, so that should be fun.

Here are the classic SEC standings:

10.  Florida:  12-5

11.  Vanderbilt:  16-1

16.  Alabama:  12-5

19.  Tennessee:  12-5

27.  Kentucky:  11-6

32.  Georgia:  14-3

34.  Auburn:  10-7

45.  Louisiana St:  12-5

59.  Mississippi:  10-7

78.  Mississippi St:  10-7

Pope Update

Kentucky immediately fell behind Mississippi State by 18-6 on Saturday night in Rupp Arena, and the boos were raining down.  By that point, Jaland Lowe had left with an injury to join Jayden Quaintance on the bench.  But the remaining UK players rallied, and the Cats pounded Mississippi State 92 to 68 to run their record to 1-2 in the SEC, and 10-6 overall.  The Cats currently sit at Number 26 on Ken Pom, who has them going 7-8 the rest of the way.  That would be a final record of 8-10 in the SEC and 17-14 overall, and I'm pretty sure they would miss the NCAA's.

Here's the current rankings of the Classic SEC:

5.  Vanderbilt:  16-0

12.  Florida:  11-5

14.  Alabama:  11-5

19.  Tennessee:  11-5

26.  Kentucky:  10-6

28.  Georgia:  14-2

31.  Auburn:  10-6

40.  Louisiana St:  12-4

68.  Mississippi:  9-7

72.  Mississippi St:  10-6

Classic OVC Men's Basketball Standings

Ranked according to Ken Pomeroy:

86.  Murray St:  13-3

123.  Middle Tenn. St:  9-5

150.  W. Kentucky:  9-5

199.  Austin Peay:  8-5

273.  E. Kentucky:  4-11

304.  Morehead St:  7-8

308.  Tennessee Tech:  6-9

Steelers-Ravens

Once again, my computer stopped taking comments.  Here's what happened:

With 55 seconds left, Aaron Rodgers threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to put the Steelers back into the lead.  But they missed the extra point, so they only led 26-24.

The Ravens ran the kickoff back to their own 47, so they were almost immediately in field goal position.

On 2d and 2 from the Pittsburgh 47, the Ravens were penalized five yards for an illegal formation.  39 seconds left.

On 2d and 7 from the 50, no one was open and Jackson threw the ball out of bounds.  31 seconds left.

On 3d and 7 from the 50, Jackson was chased down in the backfield.  Anyone else would have been sacked, but he managed to throw the ball away.  21 seconds left.

On 4th and 7 from the 50, the Ravens called their first timeout.

On 4th and 7 from the 50, Jackson hit Isaiah Likely for a first down at the Pittsburgh 24.  Just a great throw and catch.  Ravens call their second timeout with 14 seconds left.

On 1st and 10 from the Pittsburgh 24, the Ravens ran the ball into the line for a two-yard loss.  Ravens call their third timeout with 2 seconds left.

On 2d and 12 from the Pittsburgh 26, the Ravens tried a 43 yard field goal.  Tyler Loop kicked the field goal -- AND IT DRIFTED OFF TO THE RIGHT!  NO GOOD!  THE STEELERS WIN 26 TO 24 AND TAKE THE AFC NORTH.

Unbelievable.  How can you not be romantic about football?

Final standings for the AFC North:

Pittsburgh:  10-7

Baltimore:  8-9

Cincinnati:  6-11

Cleveland:  5-12

Seeds for the AFC playoffs:

1.  Denver (14-3)

2.  New England (14-3)

3.  Jacksonville (13-4)

4.  Pittsburgh (10-7)

5.  Houston (12-5)

6.  Buffalo (12-5)

7.  San Diego (11-6)