Kentucky played pretty bad for stretches against Tennessee. Let’s just be honest. You don't get down 14 points if you aren't playing poorly. But once again, the thing that you just can't measure showed up when it mattered most: Heart.
You can't quantify it. You won't find it on the stat sheet. But the box score doesn't tell the whole story.
This Kentucky team isn't defined by statistics, but by a refusal to quit.
Kentucky's comeback gene is a blessing and a curse
The Cats found themselves in an all-too-familiar position: down 14 to a hot-shooting team. The Vols nailed 8 threes in the first half, Nate Ament was having his way, and they were rolling. The second half started, and it looked just like it did in Knoxville. Kentucky kept slowly chipping away. They slowly put the game pressure on Tennessee, and you could feel the Vols getting tighter and tighter.
Eventually, Kentucky wore them down. The heart of a lion kept this team in a game they probably shouldn't have been in. They roared as Rupp urged them to make a run, and when Collin Chandler hit the go-ahead three, the passion was on full display.
The fight that was questioned early in the season? It was there tonight. There was energy, pressure, and Kentucky never wavered. They stayed in touch and finally found their moment.
It is a blessing to be able to come back from 14 down, but a curse in that they have to get down to really start playing.
Mo Dioubate is the definition of this mentality. After a Chandler miss from the free-throw line, it was Dioubate who flew in and grabbed the rebound when it mattered most. Yes, Kentucky got outrebounded by 15. That’s ugly. But they got the one that mattered.
This team is full of that. They may get out-hustled for a stretch, out-shot, or out-rebounded, but they have a knack for doing it when it matters most. If they can ever get to a point where they do it for all 40 minutes, this team could be special.
Now they head to Gainesville with a chance to get into first place in the SEC. Didn't see that coming when the Cats started 0-2 in SEC play with a blowout to Alabama and a home loss to Missouri.
If there's one thing this team has shown, it's this: don't count them out. Ever.