LEXINGTON — Maybe there’s some magic in Kentucky basketball‘s denim jerseys. The 1995-96 UK team, the first one to wear the pattern, never lost in the look.
And after once again taking a double-digit deficit into halftime, this season’s Wildcats — sporting denim jerseys for the first time — dug deep yet again to engineer another memorable comeback Saturday night— and ensure the program remained unbeaten in the jerseys.
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For the second time in less than a month, Tennessee was on the wrong end of the rally, as Kentucky earned a 74-71 win at Rupp Arena.
Kentucky’s center Malachi Moreno (24) scores against Tennessee’s forward J.P. Estrella (13) at Rupp Arena Saturday night. Feb. 7, 2026
The Wildcats (17-7, 8-3 SEC) trailed by 14 points, 47-33, at intermission.
But the hosts outscored Tennessee (16-7, 6-4) by 17 points (41-24) in the final 20 minutes, giving UK coach Mark Pope‘s group its eighth win in the last nine games. It also gave Kentucky a sweep of the home-and-home series against UT for the second time in as many years of the Pope era.
The players who so often have been the chief catalysts in these come-from-behind triumphs took the lead.
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Senior guard Otega Oweh scored nine of his team-high 21 points after halftime.
Fellow guard Collin Chandler, defined by his clutch play all season, provided the biggest shot of all: the go-ahead 3 with 33 seconds to go that put UK on top 71-69.
This story will be updated.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on X at @RyanABlack.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky basketball beats Tennessee, caps SEC rivalry sweep with rally
