Missouri used a late surge to upset Kentucky 73-68 tonight in Lexington.
Tonight marks Missouri’s first-ever win in Rupp Arena. The Tigers are 12-3 overall and 2-0 in the SEC.
On the other side, Kentucky drops to 9-6 and 0-2 in league play.
Check out postgame notes from the game:
KENTUCKY MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES
RUPP ARENA AT CENTRAL BANK CENTER | LEXINGTON, KY
JANUARY 7, 2026
ATTENDANCE: 19,085
Final Score: (RV) Missouri 73, (RV) Kentucky 68
Team Records and Series Notes
– Kentucky is 9-6 overall, 0-2 in the Southeastern Conference.
– Missouri is 12-3 overall, 2-0 in the SEC.
– Kentucky leads the series, 16-4.
– UK leads 9-1 in games played in Lexington.
– Next for Kentucky: on Saturday, the Wildcats play host to Mississippi State at 8:30 p.m. The game will be televised on the SEC Network.
Team Notes
– Kentucky won rebounding 31-29. UK is 8-2 this season when outrebounding the opponent.
– Kentucky won fast breaks points, 24-7. UK has won fast break points in every game this season.
Player Notes
– Otega Oweh led the Wildcats with 20 points and five rebounds, also tied for the team high in assists with four.
It is his fourth 20-point game of the season, all coming in the last six games.
He has hit the 20 mark in both SEC games.
He has scored in double figures in all 15 games this season. He has a total streak of 18 games dating back to last season.
He tied his season high with four steals, his 10th straight game with at least one theft; nine of those 10 games feature at least two steals.
– Jaland Lowe and Malachi Moreno followed Oweh with nine points each.
– Kam Williams played a season-high 28 minutes and had eight points.
He has made a 3-pointer in five straight games.
In the First Half
– Kentucky started the combination of Jaland Lowe, Denzel Aberdeen, Otega Oweh, Mo Dioubate and Jayden Quaintance for the first time.
– UK’s first substitution was Malachi Moreno at 16:09.
– Missouri took the lead at 11-10 and led or tied the remainder of the half.
– Oweh swished a shot from the opposite foul line to pull Kentucky within 34-33 at halftime. After the game, the shot was measured at 69 feet, the longest shot in Kentucky history.
– Oweh led UK in the opening stanza with 13 points.
– UK is now 2-6 this season when trailing or tied at halftime.
In the Second Half
– Kentucky opened with the starters.
– Kentucky scored the first six points of the half to retake the lead at 38-33.
– Including the final five points of the first half, it was an 11-0 UK run.
– After Missouri counterpunched with a 9-2 spurt to retake the lead at 42-41, UK replied with 3-pointers from Lowe and Williams to reclaim the lead.
– Missouri’s 7-0 run gave the Tigers the lead at 51-49.
– Kentucky came right back with a six-point burst, taking a 55-51 lead.
– Kentucky eventually built its largest lead, 66-58, with 4:34 remaining but Missouri closed the game on a 15-2 run.
