How No. 15 Kentucky and No. 4 Tennessee match up — with a game prediction

How the No. 15 Kentucky Wildcats (22-8, 12-5 SEC) and the No. 4 Tennessee Volunteers (24-6, 14-3 SEC) match up at each position for Saturday’s men’s SEC basketball game at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center — with a game prediction:

Small forward

▪ Kentucky’s Justin Edwards (8.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 49.2% FGs) is on a late-season ascent. The 6-foot-8, 203-pound freshman has scored in double figures in three of UK’s prior four games, including a 28-point outburst in the Wildcats’ 117-95 strafing of Alabama on Feb. 24. Over Kentucky’s past nine games, Edwards is averaging 11.1 ppg. A Philadelphia product, Edwards had seven points and four rebounds in UK’s 103-92 loss to Tennessee at Rupp Arena on Feb. 3.

▪ Tennessee super-senior Dalton Knecht (20.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.8 apg) is the likely SEC Player of the Year and a legitimate candidate for national player of the year honors. A transfer from Northern Colorado, the 6-6, 213-pound Knecht has scored 20 points or more in 12 of UT’s 17 SEC games. He had 26 points Wednesday night in Tennessee’s 66-59 win at No. 17 South Carolina, a victory that clinched the SEC regular season title for the Volunteers. Knecht had a relatively quiet 16 points on 5-of-14 shooting, 1-of-5 treys, in UT’s earlier victory over UK in Lexington.

Advantage: Tennessee.

Power forward

▪ Kentucky’s Adou Thiero (7.8 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.2 apg, 50.8% FGs) has scored in double figures in four of UK’s past eight games. Over those eight contests, Thiero is averaging 9.4 points and 4.9 rebounds. A 6-8, 222-pound sophomore from Leetsdale, Pennsylvania, Thiero had six points and six boards in 20 minutes in UK’s 93-77 win over visiting Vanderbilt on Wednesday night. Thiero had nine points, six rebounds and three assists vs. UT in this season’s first meeting.

▪ Tennessee super-senior Josiah-Jordan James (8.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.9 apg, 40.5% FGs) came to Lexington last month in an offensive funk. Before facing UK, the 6-7, 220-pound product of Charleston, South Carolina, had failed to score in double figures in eight straight games and gone 12-of-45 on field-goal attempts. Against UK’s often-porous perimeter defense, James exploded, scoring 26 points on 9-of-18 shooting, 4-of-9 treys. Since his Rupp Arena outburst, James has mostly reverted to form, making only 22 of 51 field-goal tries since.

Advantage: Even.

Center

▪ Kentucky sophomore Ugonna Onyenso (3.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.6 blocks, 55.4% FGs) blocked 10 shots against Mississippi at Rupp Arena on Feb. 13. Over the six games since, however, the 7-foot, 247-pound product of Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria, has blocked a combined total of seven shots. In UK’s loss to UT last month, Onyenso had two points, six rebounds and four blocks.

▪ Tennessee junior Jonas Aidoo (12.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.8 blocks, 54% FGs) is on a late-season surge. The 6-11, 240-pound junior from Durham, North Carolina, is averaging 14.9 points, 8.7 rebounds and shooting 60.5% (46-of-76) over UT’s prior seven games. Aidoo had 11 points, 11 boards and three blocked shots in UT’s win over UK at Rupp Arena.

Advantage: Tennessee.

Shooting guard

▪ Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves (20 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.7 apg, 50.7% FGs) is having a stellar super-senior season. The 6-6, 195-pound Chicago product has scored at least 20 points in six straight games and in 12 of UK’s 17 SEC contests. Kentucky’s “road warrior,” Reeves has averaged 22.4 ppg in UK’s nine true away games to date. In the first meeting with Tennessee, Reeves had 21 points, but made only 1 of 5 3-point tries.

▪ Tennessee super-senior Santiago Vescovi (7 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 2.5 apg, 39.3% FGs) is in an offensive slump. The 6-3, 196-pound product of Montevideo, Uruguay, has failed to score in double figures in five straight games and is shooting a combined 6-of-19 in that stretch. Vescovi did shoot well vs. Kentucky at Rupp Arena, making 3 of 4 treys and scoring 11 points vs. the Wildcats.

Advantage: Kentucky.

Point guard

▪ After struggling following his return from an ankle injury, Kentucky’s D.J. Wagner (10.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 3.4 apg) has found his jumper in the past three games. Over those three contests, the 6-4, 192-pound freshman has made 9 of 14 3-point shots and is averaging 13.3 ppg. An injured Wagner did not play in the first UK-UT game.

▪ Tennessee’s Zakai Zeigler (11.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 5.9 apg, 40.4% FGs) torched UK at Rupp Arena. The 5-9, 171-pound junior from Long Island, New York, went for 26 points and doled out 13 assists vs. the Wildcats. Zeigler hit 8 of 11 shots, 3 of 6 treys and 7 of 10 foul shots in Tennessee’s 103-92 win over Kentucky. The performance was a big deviation from Zeigler’s first five career games vs. UK, in which he had made only 12 of 39 field-goal tries and 5 of 19 3-point attempts against the Cats.

Advantage: Tennessee.

Bench

▪ Kentucky freshman guard Rob Dillingham (15.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 3.8 apg, 48.5% FGs ) lit up Tennessee at Rupp, dropping a career-high 35 points on the Volunteers on 14-of-20 shooting, 6-of-8 treys. The 6-2, 176-pound product of Hickory, North Carolina, had 23 points in the win over Vandy on Wednesday and has scored in double figures in six of UK’s last seven games. ... Reed Sheppard (12.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 4.5 apg, 2.6 steals) tied his career high with 11 assists in the victory over Vanderbilt. In the first game with Tennessee, the 6-3, 187-pound freshman from London started in place of an injured D.J. Wagner and had 16 points, five rebounds, six assists and two blocks. ... A 7-2, 234-pound freshman, Zvonimir Ivisic (6.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 54.2% FGs) has averaged 9.5 points and 5.3 rebounds over UK’s past four games. ... A 7-1, 226-pound frosh, Aaron Bradshaw (5.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 57.8% FGs) had two points and six boards vs. UT in the first meeting.

▪ Tennessee’s Jordan Gainey (7.3 ppg, 35% FGs) had five points, three rebounds and two assists vs. Kentucky at Rupp Arena. The 6-3, 186-pound junior, a transfer from South Carolina Upstate, has struggled with his shot this season. He is only 6-of-25 on field-goal attempts over UT’s prior six games. ... Junior guard Jahmai Mashack (4.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.3 apg) was one of the heroes of UT’s 81-74 win at then-No. 14 Alabama on March 2. The junior guard had eight points, six rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block in 27 minutes in Tuscaloosa. ... A 6-8, 250-pound sophomore, Tobe Awaka (5.3 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 61.1% FGs), had four points and six rebounds vs. UK in the first game.

Advantage: Kentucky.

Intangibles and history

▪ Kentucky leads the all-time series with Tennessee 160-78.

▪ As UK head man, John Calipari is 18-13 vs. the Volunteers.

▪ Tennessee coach Rick Barnes is 11-9 vs. Kentucky as UT head man and 12-11 overall.

▪ UT is 14-1 in home games and 6-3 versus opponents ranked in the AP Top 25. Kentucky is 6-3 in true road games and 4-2 vs. foes ranked in the AP Top 25.

▪ Since the start of the 2020-21 season, UK is 10-19 against ranked foes — but four of those 10 wins over Top 25 opponents have come versus Tennessee.

Advantage: Even.

Prediction

Kentucky 99, Tennessee 95.

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