< Previous10 n @KentuckyMBBOfficial Grocer of UK Athletics IN EVERY AISLE LOW PRICES Scan to learn more.WEEKNIGHTS 7:30 p.m. SATURDAY 9:00 a.m. 12 n @KentuckyMBBNorth Carolina at a Glance Kentucky welcomes North Carolina to Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center on Tuesday for the ACC/SEC Challenge. • Kentucky is 1-1 in the challenge, hav- ing beaten Miami at home in 2023, while falling to Clemson on the road a season ago • North Carolina owns the edge in the series all-time with a 25-18 overall mark. Kentucky has won the last two in the series • This marks the first non neutral-site meeting between the two teams since No. 1 Kentucky outlasted No. 21 North Carolina by an 84-70 score on Dec. 13, 2014 • Malik Monk owns the scoring record in the series, scoring 47 points in a Kentucky win on Dec. 17, 2016 in Las Vegas • The highest scoring game in the series was a 121-110 win by the Tar Heels on Dec. 27, 1989 • Caleb Wilson leads North Carolina with 19.9 points and 9.9 rebounds per game. The Tar Heels enter the matchup with a 6-1 overall record • North Carolina opened the season with six straight victories, including an 87- 74 win at home over Kansas • The teams have a mutual opponent in Michigan State, with North Carolina falling by 74-58 score Last Time Out The Wildcats defeated Tennessee Tech 104-54 on Wednesday. • The 50-point margin of victory is largest for UK under head coach Mark Pope. Ken- tucky has four wins this season with at least 40-point margins, the quickest into a season in UK history (seven games) with four such games. • This was Kentucky’s seventh 100-point game under Pope, all victories • With Tech scoring 54 points, UK is now 17-0 under Pope when holding the opponent under 70. • It was just the third time since 2004-05 that Kentucky shot at least 66 percent on 2-point field goals, 50 percent on 3-pointers and 84 percent at the free throw line. Also achieved the feat on Feb. 24, 2024 vs. Ala- bama and Jan. 15, 2022 vs. Tennessee • Kentucky made 15 triples on the night. UK is 19-4 under Pope when making double digits from distance and 3-1 this season. • This is just the third time since 2004- 05 that UK had at least eight players make a 3-pointer in a game, also Nov. 22, 2024 vs. Jackson State and Dec. 31, 2024 vs. Brown. • The 15 3-pointers made and the 50 percent mark are season highs in both categories. • The 27 assists tied the season high. • Trent Noah (career high), Otega Oweh (season high) and Denzel Aberdeen all tallied 16 points to lead the scoring for the Cats. • Walker Horn and Zach Tow scored the first points of their careers. Notable Achievements Thus Far Kentucky is off to a 5-2 start to the season and have achieved a few notable achievements: • The 50-point margin of victory over Tennessee Tech is largest for UK under head coach Mark Pope. Kentucky has four wins this season with at least 40-point mar- gins, the quickest into a season in UK his- tory (seven games) with four such games. • Kentucky did not allow a member of Loyola (Md.) to score more than seven points in the win over the Greyhounds. It was the first time a UK defense prevented a scorer of more than seven points since Nov. 23, 2014 vs. Montana State • UK has had three games already with nine players scoring at least six points. That only happened three other times between 2004-05 and 2024-25 • Kentucky limited each of its first two opponents of the season to 59 points or fewer for the first time since 2014-15 • The Cats have at least one win by 48 or more points in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2011-12 and 2012-13 • Kentucky limited Nicholls to just 15 points in the opening half, it was the lowest points yielded in the first half in Rupp Arena by the Cats since EKU scored 14 on Dec. 7, 2014 From Press Row 14 n @KentuckyMBB KENTUCKY BASKETBALLWe’re your Shield. We’re your Shelter. ShelterInsurance.com • 1-800-SHELTER ANDERSON, IN Jordan Harper BARDSTOWN Tyler Bruington BEAVER DAM Robbie Parham BOWLING GREEN William Porter BUTLER Jason Laytart CAMPBELLSVILLE Taylor Burress COVINGTON Shawn Moore CRESTWOOD Jamie Norsworthy CYNTHIANA, KY Lee Adkins DANVILLE Troy Wheeler ELIZABETHTOWN Thomas Hill EMINENCE Fred Downey FLORENCE Rocky Bryan FRANKLIN Lauren Roberts FRANKFORT BJ Hurst Audrey Marshall GEORGETOWN Steve Black Stephanie Mills HARRODSBURG Jamie Dunn HENDERSON Jules Harrison HODGENVILLE Teddy Sandford HOPKINSVILLE Alexander Capps LANCASTER Cindy Lanham LAWRENCEBURG Ashley Bailey LAWRENCEBURG, IN Heather Fentress LEITCHFIELD Donna Vanmeter LEXINGTON Tony Arnold Craig Curtis Josh Miniard Willie Morrison Linda Nance Paul Young LIBERTY Kevin Atwood LIVERMORE Katie Gunterman LONDON Derek Marlow LOUISVILLE Corinne Ramsier Larissa Spears William West MADISONVILLE Brandi Hughes MAYFIELD Steve Jones MOREHEAD Caleb Staggs MOUNT STERLING Elizabeth Shelley MURRAY Doug Henry NICHOLASVILLE Marc Miller Russ Owens OWENSBORO Logan Barrow Natasha Conkright PADUCAH Toby Boone PRINCETON Mike Gilkey RICHMOND, IN Ashley Kovaleski Evan Worrell SHELBYVILLE Scott Martin SLAUGHTERS Sam Westfall SOMERSET Jason Weatherford SPRINGFIELD Sue Blair STANFORD Sean Slusher UNION Joey Bailey VERSAILLES Debbie Hinely WINCHESTER Kay Brandenburg Olin Woolum Visit ShelterInsurance.com/WorldsBest for more information. Ranked on the list for three years in a row! FORBES WORLD’S BEST INSURANCE COMPANIES2025-26 SEC Standings and Statistics (Through Nov. 29 games) TeamSECOverallHomeRoad Missouri0-08-07-01-0 Vanderbilt0-08-04-01-0 LSU0-07-05-00-0 Georgia0-07-16-00-0 Tennessee0-07-15-00-0 Auburn0-06-24-00-0 Texas0-06-24-01-0 Texas A&M0-06-25-10-1 Alabama0-05-21-11-0 Arkansas0-05-25-00-1 Florida0-05-23-00-0 Kentucky0-05-25-00-1 Ole Miss0-05-25-00-0 Oklahoma0-05-24-00-1 South Carolina0-05-25-00-0 Mississippi State0-03-43-10-0 Scoring Player-Team.............................................................PPG 1. Hubbard, Josh - MS ................................................23.29 2. Hall, Keyshawn - AU................................................20.86 3. Philon, Labaron - UA...............................................20.57 4. Pack, Nijel - OK ......................................................19.29 5. Miles, Duke - VU .....................................................18.75 Rebounding Player-Team............................................................RPG 1. Chinyelu, Rueben - UF ............................................10.86 2. Hall, Keyshawn - AU .................................................9.00 3. Condon, Alex - UF ................................................... 8.83 4. Sutton, Marquel - LS................................................ 8.43 5. Davis, Tae - OK .........................................................8.00 Assists Player-Team............................................................APG 1. Thomas Jr., Dedan - LS..............................................7.00 2. Philon, Labaron - UA .................................................5.71 3. Collins, Frankie - VU .................................................5.50 4. Gillespie, Ja'Kobi - UT................................................5.25 5. Miles, Duke - VU .......................................................4.75 Steals Player-Team.............................................................SPG 1. Collins, Frankie - VU .................................................3.17 2. Miles, Duke - VU.......................................................2.50 Wilkinson, Jeremiah - UG..........................................2.50 4. Tanner, Tyler - VU ......................................................2.38 5. Cain, Blue - UG.........................................................2.13 Robinson II, Anthony - MO.........................................2.13 Blocks Player-Team............................................................BPG 1. Abson, Justin - UG ....................................................2.38 Cyril, Somto - UG .....................................................2.38 3. Scott, James - UM ....................................................1.86 Sherrell, Aiden - UA ..................................................1.86 5. Okpara, Felix - UT .....................................................1.75 2025-26 Associated Press Rankings As of December 1, 2025 (Week 5) TeamRecord Points 1Purdue (40)7-01494 2Arizona (6)7-01442 3Michigan (15)7-01417 4Duke8-01355 5UConn6-11244 6Louisville7-01177 7Michigan State7-01095 8Houston7-11070 9BYU6-11037 10Iowa State7-0975 11Gonzaga7-1934 12Alabama5-2869 13Tennessee7-1771 14Illinois6-2657 15Florida5-2568 16North Carolina6-1519 17Vanderbilt8-0475 18Kentucky5-2451 19Texas Tech6-2387 20Auburn6-2376 21Kansas6-2340 22Indiana7-0313 23St. John's4-3200 24Southern Cal7-0145 25Arkansas5-2127 Around the CountryAround the SEC 18 n @KentuckyMBB KENTUCKY BASKETBALLNext >