Kentucky vs. Texas Canceled Because of Wildcats' COVID-19 Issues

Saturday's scheduled men's college basketball game between Kentucky and Texas has been canceled because of COVID-19 issues.

The University of Kentucky announced that its program is on a 48-hour pause because of positive tests, contact tracing and quarantining:

Since Kentucky vs. Texas was a nonconference game set to be played in the midst of the conference schedule, it will not be made up this season.

Kentucky entered the 2020-21 season as the No. 10 team in the nation, but the Wildcats have struggled since the start, as they were upset by Richmond in their second game of the season.

Coach John Calipari's team has now lost four of its past five games, and it owns a 5-10 record on the season. With a winning percentage of .333, the Wildcats are on pace for their worst season since 1926-27 when they went 3-13.

The Wildcats reached the NCAA tournament in six straight seasons from 2013-14 through 2018-19 and would have made it last year as well with a 25-6 record if not for the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the cancellation of the tourney.

Calipari is famous for his ability to reload with top-flight freshmen year after year, but the chemistry simply hasn't been there in 2020-21.

Meanwhile, the Longhorns are off to one of their best starts in years and are the No. 5-ranked team in the nation with an 11-3 record.

Texas has won seven of its past eight games and owns victories over ranked teams such as Kansas and West Virginia.

Shaka Smart's squad missed the tournament in 2018-19 and likely would have missed it last season as well with a 19-12 record, but based on how well the Longhorns are playing currently, they could enter the 2020-21 NCAA tourney as one of the top teams to beat.

With Kentucky vs. Texas no longer on tap, the Wildcats will prepare for their next game against No. 12 Missouri on Tuesday, while the Longhorns will get ready to host undefeated No. 2 Baylor on Tuesday.