Finally back at full roster strength, Kentucky took its shot at one of the nation's hottest teams on Saturday in Arkansas.
A healthy Sahvir Wheeler and TyTy Washington helped the Wildcats dig out of another double-digit hole in the first half, but No. 6 Kentucky came up just short in a 75-73 loss at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville.
In a game that featured a UK season-high 17 lead changes, the Razorbacks grabbed the last one on a Jaylin Williams post bucket with 1:22 remaining. The Arkansas big man scored 10 straight points down the stretch to help his team win for the 13th time in the last 14 games.
Arkansas (23-6, 12-4 SEC) got 30 points and eight assists from JD Notae and 16 points and 12 rebounds from Williams. Stanley Umude added 13 for the Hogs.
"(Arkansas) is a good team," UK head coach John Calipari said. "They went through Notae, and he was pretty good"
Kentucky (23-6, 12-4 SEC) got another magnificent performance from junior big man Oscar Tshiebwe, who scored 30 points and grabbed a game-high 18 rebounds for his 23rd double-double of the season.
The Cats' backcourt struggled, however, despite the return of Wheeler and Washington for the first time in three games. Wheeler scored 14 points and Washington chipped in with 10, but Kellen Grady and Davion Mintz, who average 21.4 points per game, combined for only three points on a 1-for-5 shooting day.
Both teams shot fairly well from the field (Arkansas 48%, Kentucky 45%) but the Razorbacks converted 12 turnovers by the Wildcats into 20 points to help offset a 39-32 rebounding deficit.
"The way we started the game, the unaggressiveness, it puts a sad look on your face," Calipari said. "... And we had some guys -- they're not robots, they're not machines -- who did not play well. They didn't. And if it's a couple of guys, that hurts us."
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In this "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK loss...
KEY MOMENT:
With the game tied at 63 and just under five minutes remaining in the game, Arkansas took advantage of the attention that JD Notae was drawing from the UK defense and isolated its big man, Jaylin Williams, for 10 straight points with the game hanging in the balance. Kentucky had two costly turnovers during that stretch and did not make another bucket until TyTy Washington's last-second 3-pointer after the outcome had been decided.
GAME BALL:
JD Notae, Arkansas -- The Razorbacks' star played to his advanced billing, especially early in the game. He scored 18 of his 30 points before halftime on an assortment of 3-pointers, pull-up jumpers, and drives to the basket for dunks. He also dished out eight assists in a dominant all-around performance.
BY THE NUMBERS:
0 - Three-pointers made by Kentucky in the first half for the second straight game.
1st - UK player -- Oscar Tshiebwe -- to record at least 30 points and 18 rebounds in an SEC road game since Dan Issel at Ole Miss on February 7th, 1970 (53 points, 19 rebounds)
4th - Straight games that UK has trailed by double digits in the first half.
23rd - Double-double for UK's Oscar Tshiebwe and his 11th straight, the first Wildcat to do that since Dan Issel had 12 consecutive double-doubles in the 1969-70 season.
33-13 - Kentucky's lead in the all-time series against Arkansas, but the Razorbacks have won the last two. The Cats are now 9-8 in Fayetteville.
QUOTABLE:
"We didn't play our best and had our chances to win. That's a good sign." -- UK head coach John Calipari
UP NEXT:
Kentucky returns to action on Tuesday at Rupp Arena for "Senior Day" against Ole Miss. The Rebels (13-16, 4-12 SEC) are coming off a 76-66 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday in Oxford. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.
