Any win over a top-5 opponent is impressive in college basketball, but No. 15 Kentucky’s 75-64 win over No. 5 Tennessee in Lexington on Tuesday night was a particularly difficult challenge for head coach Mark Pope’s Wildcats. Kentucky pulled off the upset while missing nearly a full backcourt rotation due to injury.
Pope has not had veteran guard Kerr Kriisa since December 7 when he suffered a foot injury in a win over Gonzaga, but on Tuesday night his team was without guard Jaxson Robinson for the first time this year and also lost starting point guard Lamont Butler when he reinjured his shoulder in the second half after missing the past three games.
In their absence, center Amari Williams has taken on an increased playmaking load, even recording a triple-double in last week’s loss to Ole Miss, but against the Volunteers, two Kentucky natives stepped up to save the day. Freshmen Travis Perry and Trent Noah combined for 19 points in 31 minutes off the bench with Perry knocking down two of his three three-point attempts and Noah going 3-4 from beyond the arc.
That freshmen duo will need to stay hot as the Wildcats head down the stretch in SEC play with matchups against No. 2 Alabama and No. 1 Auburn looming as the calendar eventually turns from February to March because the first-year Kentucky head coach didn’t sound too optimistic about his veteran backcourt returning to the floor any time soon.
In his postgame media availability, Pope shared his concern about his team’s availability going forward.
Lamont Butler Injury Update:
“I’m hopeful that he can get back healthy as soon as possible. We’ll see,” Pope said of Butler’s shoulder injury, after calling his one-armed performance on Tuesday night “incredible” and “brave.”
The San Diego State transfer is in his final year of eligibility, adding to Pope’s urgency to get him healthy. “We don’t have that much time left and he’s been so incredible, such a winner, such a leader. I just want him so badly to be able to play.”
Jaxson Robinson Injury Update:
The news on Robinson, who injured his wrist in practice leading up to Kentucky’s 80-57 win over South Carolina on Saturday, might be even worse. Robinson played against the Gamecocks, but sat out for the first time on Tuesday.
““I’m not sure we’re going to get him back anytime soon,” Pope told reporters postgame. “But I’m hoping, I’m praying, that we get him back sooner.”
Averaging 13.3 points a game, Robinson is the team’s second-leading scorer behind Oklahoma transfer Otega Oweh. Robinson is a key offensive creator, one of the few players in Pope’s motion offensive system capable of reliably beating his defender off the dribble.
Even with him, the Wildcats should be able to through their next two matchups, on the road at Texas and at home against Vanderbilt, unscathed, but his absence would be difficult to overcome against high-powered offensive teams like Alabama and Auburn.
“I do trust that we’ll find a way to get those guys healthy as soon as possible,” Pope said.
Despite the troubling injury situation, Pope has faith that Robinson and Butler will get back healthy at some point this season.