LIVE BLOG: Kentucky vs. Missouri, SEC Tournament 2nd Round
Kentucky took care of business in the first round of the SEC Tournament. Will the Cats make it two in a row and get a little revenge in the process? KSR’s LIVE BLOG will bring you all the sights and sounds from Bridgestone as No. 9 seed Kentucky plays No. 8 seed Missouri in the second round of the SEC Tournament.
Missouri won the first meeting 73-68 in Rupp Arena, despite Kentucky leading by eight with under five minutes to play. The Tigers are 8-8 since that game in early January. They’ve lost back-to-back games to Oklahoma and Arkansas. They are projected to be a No. 11 seed in Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology, one of the last four byes. A win over Kentucky could help push them off the bubble.
The Cats also could use a win. Who needs it more? Refresh the feed below for updates from Bridgestone Arena and KSR’s takes on the game. You can also join the conversation on the KSBoard Game Thread.
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FINAL: Kentucky 78, Missouri 72
04/01/2026 12:16:15 PMBREATHE, BBN. Kentucky held off Mark Mitchell, I mean, Missouri, to advance to play Florida in the SEC Tournament Quarterfinals. We’ll see what happens with that, but for now, that was just a massive, massive win.
DENZEL ABERDEEN!!!!!!
03/12/2026 01:47:27 PMWE’RE CAPPING UP, FOLKS. KENTUCKY FORCED A TURNOVER BY MARK MITCHELL AND THEN DENZEL ABERDEEN HIT AN INSANE SHOT AS THE SHOT CLOCK BUZZER WAS EXPIRING TO PUT KENTUCKY UP FIVE.
AND THEN THERE WAS A FIGHT, SHAWN PHILLIPS JR. SHOVING BRANDON GARRISON IN THE KENTUCKY HUDDLE. BOTH PICKED UP TECHNICALS.
22.5 2H: KENTUCKY 75, MISSOURI 70
OTEGA OWEH DOING OTEGA OWEH THINGS
03/12/2026 01:43:41 PMIt’s Otega Oweh time. Kentucky leads by three thanks to its star, who just did what he does best: drive to the basket and score.
1:06 2H: Kentucky 73, Missouri 70
2:06 2H: Kentucky 71, Missouri
03/12/2026 01:42:26 PMGulp. Mitchell scored again to put Missouri up by one. Thankfully, Denzel Aberdeen hit a pair of free throws after a foul on Anthony Robinson. Cats by one with two minutes to go…do you still believe in the Rule of 71?
2:51 2H: Kentucky 69, Missouri 68
03/12/2026 01:36:52 PMIt’s now a one-point game. Mark Mitchell is a big reason why. He’s up to 30 points, his most recent bucket answering Otega Oweh’s driving layup, which took Kentucky’s lead back to three after back-to-back threes by Trent Pierce and…you guessed it, Mark Mitchell.
Mitchell is absolutely dominating the Cats right now. Find an answer for him or all of the very nervous fans in the building are heading home.
BIG SHOT COLLIN CHANDLER!
03/12/2026 01:30:58 PMYou can feel the anxiety in Bridgestone Arena right now. A 16-point lead was down to three and Kentucky hadn’t scored a field goal in what felt like a year. That’s Captain Clutch’s music. Collin Chandler just hit a huge three to push Kentucky’s lead to six with 6:55 to go.
Also helping matters was officials missing a goaltending call on Brandon Garrison. We’ll take it.
6:55 2H: Kentucky 63, Missouri 57
Kentucky’s lead is down to 3…
03/12/2026 01:24:11 PMRemember when Kentucky had a 16-point lead? Me too. That was fun. That’s now down to three. Missouri has slowly chipped away from the free-throw line. Kentucky hasn’t hit a field goal in almost four minutes.
8:36 2H: Kentucky 60, Missouri 57
Flagrant 1 foul on Phillips Jr.
03/12/2026 01:17:52 PMOfficials called a foul on Malachi Moreno, but after looking at the tape, they also called a foul on Missouri’s Shawn Phillips Jr. for hitting Mo Dioubate in the head under the basket. On this play at least, hitting someone in the head is a flagrant. Just one example of how inconsistent the officiating has been today.
10:28 2H: Kentucky 59, Missouri 53
11:25 2H: Kentucky 58, Missouri 49
03/12/2026 01:09:37 PMA three-pointer by Otega Oweh pushed Kentucky’s lead back to double digits, but a banked-in three by Mark Mitchell took it back to nine. That’s where it remains after a jumper by Mo Dioubate and a second-chance layup by Shawn Phillips Jr. Phillips will head to the line after this timeout after a foul on Dioubate.
Missouri is outrebounding Kentucky 24-20, 7-2 this half…
Missouri is back within single digits…
03/12/2026 01:05:22 PMKentucky got the lead to 16 with 14:33 to go. Just like that, a 7-0 Missouri run has the Tigers within nine with 12:57 remaining. A layup by T.O. Barrett prompted Mark Pope to call a timeout.
12:47 2H: Kentucky 53, Missouri 44
Back to a 10-point game
03/12/2026 12:55:46 PMMark Mitchell is keeping this a game, scoring back-to-back buckets to pull Missouri within ten. Collin Chander and Kam Williams both had open looks from the three-point line, which could have blown the game wide open, but both missed. Hang in there, Cats…
15:26 2H: Kentucky 47, Missouri 37
Great start to the second half!
03/12/2026 12:48:50 PMThe Bridgestone Arena rims have not been kind to Kentucky this year, but Collin Chandler finally got a three-pointer to fall, just the Cats’ third of the day. Layups by Denzel Aberdeen and Otega Oweh have Kentucky’s lead up to 14, a heck of a start to the second half by the Cats. Missouri just has one basket so far.
17:40 2H: Kentucky 45, Missouri 31
HALFTIME: Kentucky 38, Missouri 29
03/12/2026 12:27:08 PMWe’re not gonna complain about any leads, but this one could have been a 15-point-plus advantage with a real opportunity to run the Tigers out of the gym in the second half. The Cats are playing well, shooting 48.4 percent from the field with just four turnovers while forcing seven on the other end and winning the battle in the paint (26-14) and off the bench (10-5) with 10 assists on 15 made field goals compared to two on 10 for Mizzou.
They just couldn’t take advantage in the final minute with the lead at 12 and two shots to extend the lead, only to give up a three on the other end and miss one more before the break.
Otega Oweh, Denzel Aberdeen, Andrija Jelavic, Malachi Moreno and Mo Dioubate all have six each, followed by Collin Chandler with four and Kam Williams with three.
On the other end, Mark Mitchell has nine, followed by T.O. Barrett with seven and Jayden Stone with five.
Friendly roll, Kam Williams!
03/12/2026 12:14:11 PMShooter’s touch for Kam Williams! Just like yesterday, the sophomore wing knocked down his first look from three — this one touching every part of the rim before falling through the net. Elsewhere, Andrija Jelavic has earned his third bucket of the day to push Kentucky ahead by 11 for the largest lead of the day.
Seven different Wildcats have scored for the Cats, led by Denzel Aberdeen, Malachi Moreno, Mo Dioubate and Jelavic with six apiece.
6:01 1H: Kentucky 26, Missouri 20
03/12/2026 12:06:00 PMA nice little 6-0 run for Kentucky puts the good guys ahead by two possessions, thanks to buckets from Andrija Jelavic, Malachi Moreno and Denzel Aberdeen.
The Cats are shooting 52.6 percent from the field and 83.3 percent at the line, but just 14.3 percent from three — despite taking on one of the worst 3-point defenses in the country. Gotta start getting shots to fall from the perimeter, but things are looking good elsewhere.
And now Jasper Johnson picks up his second…
03/12/2026 12:03:13 PMKentucky already has Denzel Aberdeen and Collin Chandler dealing with foul trouble, and now, Jasper Johnson has joined them — all three with two apiece.
That pushed Johnson back to the bench and forced Aberdeen and Chandler onto the floor again. Playing with fire as we inch closer to halftime.
Two fouls apiece for Aberdeen and Chandler
03/12/2026 11:56:47 AMBrutal sequence for the Cats, as Collin Chandler picked up his second foul at the 12:44 mark, followed by Denzel Aberdeen doing the same at 11:55.
That’s going to force Jasper Johnson out there for extended run — and also leave Otega Oweh on the floor the rest of the first half, most likely.
The good news? Shawn Phillips Jr., Missouri’s starting center, has three fouls in the first 10 minutes of the game.
It’s a whistle-fest here in Nashville, folks.
Dunks on dunks on dunks
03/12/2026 11:49:09 AMKentucky got the crowd on its feet with a trio of dunks in the first six minutes, two from Collin Chandler and one from Mo Dioubate.
The Cats are playing well, all things considered, shooting 6-8 from the field and 1-2 from three. Dioubate in particular has been terrific, scoring two buckets at the rim and matching the physicality with Mark Mitchell — who is a machine, as we all know.
Malachi Moreno and Chandler have been solid, too, though the latter just picked up his second foul.
15:32 1H: Kentucky 9, Missouri 7
03/12/2026 11:39:59 AMBoth teams are playing well early as Kentucky is shooting 60 percent from the field (3-5), 50 percent from three (1-2) and 100 percent at the line (2-2) compared to 100/100/0 for Missouri with three makes — including one from deep — and no misses.
Malachi Moreno has four quick ones for the Cats, followed by Denzel Aberdeen with three and Collin Chandler with two.
For the Tigers, Jayden Stone has three, followed by Mark Mitchell and T.O. Barrett with two each.
Pregame Walk & Talk
03/12/2026 10:45:54 AMThe KSR crew is previewing the Cats vs. the Tigers ahead of round two at the SEC Tournament. Come join us!!
A look at Kam Williams in warmups
03/12/2026 10:41:02 AMFor what it’s worth, Kam Williams looks good in warmups.
Kam Williams is a game-time decision
03/12/2026 09:33:09 AMKam Williams returned to action yesterday vs. LSU, his first game since undergoing foot surgery in late January. Williams was productive, scoring three points, grabbing two rebounds, and tallying an assist and a steal in 17 minutes. Today, he is a game-time decision as his foot recovers from his first game back. We’ll have eyes on him during warm-ups.
How to Watch, Listen
03/11/2026 08:33:06 PMAfter an afternoon with Roy Philpott and Jon Crispin, we’re back with the familiar SEC Network crew of Karl Ravech, Jimmy Dykes, and Alyssa Lang today.
- Tipoff: 12:30 p.m. ET
- TV: SEC Network (Karl Ravech, Jimmy Dykes, Alyssa Lang)
- Local Radio: UK Sports Network (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
- AM: 840 WHAS, 630 WLAP
- FM: 98.1 WBUL
- Online: iHeart Radio
- Sirius XM: 106 or 190
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