Star Kentucky guard ruled out for primetime matchup with No. 8 Tennessee
Fresh off the loss to No. 1 Auburn on Saturday, the No. 8 Tennessee basketball team is ready to get back on the hardwood and get back on the right track. That’s bad news for No. 14 Kentucky, as Mark Pope and his players are getting ready to face a motivated team.
In some other bad news for Pope, he’s going to have to take on the Vols in Knoxville without one of his best players. For a little while now, standout guard Lamont Butler has been a bit banged up, but he’s been fighting through the pain
Unfortunately for Butler, though, a shoulder injury has caused too much pain and he has officially been ruled out for Tuesday night’s contest on the road. This is going to leave a big hole for the Wildcats on both ends of the floor.
Lamont Butler is out for the Tennessee game
— Matt Jones (@KySportsRadio) January 28, 2025
Standout Kentucky guard Lamont Butler has been ruled out against Tennessee
Thus far this season, Butler has been one of the top players in the SEC, averaging 13.2 points and 4.9 assists per game. He has been a main reason why the Wildcats have had some early success in 2024-25, but not having him in action is going to be a blow for Pope.
This is not something for Tennessee to worry about, though, as Rick Barnes won’t lose focus of how dangerous the Wildcats can be on the hardwood. At the same time, the hope is the Vols can get into an offensive rhythm and light up the scoreboard the same way they have in previous games at home.
The Vols are a perfect 11-0 playing in Knoxville, which has been great to see. Tennessee opened as an 8.5-point favorite and the line has since jumped to double digits following the Butler injury update. Will UT be able to take care of business in primetime against UK? We’ll find out soon enough, but fans are feeling quite confident leading up to tip-off.
