Kentucky vs. Tennessee: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2015 Regular Season

Kentucky took one step closer to an undefeated season with a 66-48 road win over Tennessee on Tuesday night.

Although the Volunteers fought hard with some great shooting in the first half, they were stymied in the second and made only 25 percent of field-goal attempts after the break. That poor shooting helped the Wildcats overcome 19 allowed offensive rebounds and a 5-of-22 mark from three-point range.

ESPN's Jay Bilas discussed the great defensive effort from Kentucky after the game:

Meanwhile, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv noted the Wildcats' 26-0 start to the season is now a program record:

Kentucky guard Devin Booker led the way with 18 points and seven rebounds in the win, causing this reaction from Doug Gottlieb of CBS Sports:

The freshman did only shoot 5-of-16 from the floor, but that doesn't matter as much in the win. Fellow freshman Tyler Ulis also had a strong effort with eight points and six assists, while Andrew Harrison scored 14.

Kevin Punter had a team-high 14 for Tennessee, although the Vols were seemingly doomed by a 2-of-17 effort from three-point range in the loss. Leading scorer Josh Richardson was held to just 10 points, as the home team struggled to do anything offensively down the stretch. 

Tennessee coach Donnie Tyndall knew exactly what he was up against in this one. He rained down praise on Kentucky throughout the week, according to Wes Rucker of 247Sports:

"

Obviously the best team in America. It’s arguably the best team to ever be assembled. …

I think on their team they don't have a guy that is a superstar, but if that particular guy was on a bunch of other teams in our league, then he would be a superstar. …Those guys bought in, they have great players and they probably have nine, maybe 10 guys that will have a legitimate shot at playing in the NBA.

"

Despite Kentucky's impressive reputation, Tennessee had no interest in simply rolling over against the conference rival. The Volunteers kept it close throughout the first half and often flirted with the lead.

The Vols' zone defense gave Kentucky problems, while poor rebounding remained an issue, as noted by Kyle Tucker of The Courier-Journal:

Some hot shooting by Booker kept the Wildcats in front, but the score remained close at halftime, thanks to some excellent offense by the home team, per ESPN Stats & Info:

The 35-31 Kentucky lead at the half didn't seem too great as the Volunteers stayed close at the start of the second period, as noted by Kentucky Basketball's tweet:

Despite the impressive effort from Tennessee to limit Kentucky's bigs, the Wildcats did not relinquish their lead and slowly began to pull away late. ESPN Stats & Info summed up the contest with this tweet:

Late in the game, Kentucky extended its lead to double digits, which effectively finished off the contest, as highlighted by sportswriter Jerry Tipton:

The Wildcats showed that even when they don't play well, they still have enough talent to win with relative ease. They continued to push the action while playing great defense to secure an 18-point victory on the road to move to 26-0 on the season.

Kentucky's quest for a perfect season continues Saturday with a home game against Auburn. Although it certainly seems as though we are running out of teams that could potentially pull off an upset, the Wildcats can't overlook any opponent and must have the same focus every time out.

Tennessee will try to end its current slide of six losses in eight games, but it won't be easy with a road matchup against Ole Miss. At this point, an NCAA tournament bid is not impossible, but the Volunteers will have to start winning games in a hurry.

If they don't, the squad will have to start preparing for at best an NIT bid.

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