This time, Kentucky didn't wait for the four-minute mark to engage its ritualized second-half meltdown.

Leading No. 11 Tennessee by 10 with just under 12 minutes remaining Saturday at Rupp Arena, the Wildcats gave up a 26-6 run and watched as the Volunteers rolled to an 82-71 victory.

Tennessee freshman Keon Johnson and Jaden Springer combined for 50 points. Johnson scored a career-high 27 points, and Springer followed with 23 as the five-star guards dominated their more highly recruited counterparts at UK.

The Wildcats' BJ Boston scored only six points on 2-for-11 shooting, and Terrence Clarke missed his 10th straight game with an ankle injury.

"Those two bullied us, too," UK coach John Calipari said. "They were the best two guards on the court, whether they're freshmen, seniors, sophomores, whatever. They were the best two. They were the best two because they were physical and they bullied us. It wasn't like they were jacking 3s and going nuts. They just went to wherever they wanted to on the court and either went into your body and shot or just jumped over you and shot."

The Vols (13-4, 6-4 SEC) were coming off a loss to Ole Miss on Tuesday night in which the entire roster scored 50 points. In addition to Johnson and Springer's big performances, they also got 10 points and 10 rebounds from Josiah-Jordan James.

Kentucky (5-12, 4-6 SEC) is now saddled with the worst record in program history after 17 games.

"I don't know what to tell you at this point," Calipari said. "We're playing good enough to win, then we hit a stretch where we can't hit a basket."

The Cats wasted a career effort from sophomore forward Keion Brooks Jr., who scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for his first collegiate double-double.

Brooks, however, was held scoreless for the final 7:49 as UK managed only 13 points from the time it held a 10-point lead.

"They started to really load up to me," Brooks said. "They really wouldn't let me catch the ball in the post, and if I did catch it, they brought help-side (defense)."

With Brooks being doubled, Kentucky had no perimeter help to pick up the slack. Guards Davion Mintz, Dontaie Allen, and Boston combined to go 4-for-25 from the field and 1-for-11 from the arc.

Kentucky also committed 11 of its 13 turnovers after the break. After going 13-of-15 at the free-throw line in the first half, the Cats were just 4-for-4 in the second half.

"We're just not executing," Brooks said when asked if the second-half collapses have led to trepidation in those moments. "It's not because we're nervous or anything. When stuff starts to hit the fan, we don't know how to snap back and be OK... I don't think anyone's scared or pissing down their leg or anything. We're just not disciplined enough to close the game out."

It marked the second straight year that the Vols have rallied from behind to beat UK at Rupp Arena. Last year, the Cats led by 11 at the half before losing 81-73 after UT mounted a 29-9 second-half run.

Tennessee coach Rick Barnes recorded his third win at Rupp Arena, joining former LSU coach Dale Brown (4) and former Florida coach Billy Donovan (4) as the only opponents to win more than three at the home of the Cats.

Meanwhile, Calipari dropped under the .500 mark (22-23) against ranked opponents since the start of the 2015-16 season.

*****

RAPID RECAP:

Kentucky matched its biggest lead of the game when BJ Boston threw down a one-handed dunk at the 12-minute mark to make it 58-48 and force UT coach Rick Barnes to call a timeout. The Vols came out of the timeout with a new focus, reeling off a 12-0 run to grab the lead. Kentucky was shell-shocked and never recovered. Seemingly in the blink of an eye, Tennessee held a 10-point advantage. The Vols' Keon Johnson had 14 of his points in the final 11:51, a stretch which saw UT outscore UK 34-13.

GAME BALL:

Keon Johnson, Tennessee -- The five-star freshman looked like the kind of impact newcomer John Calipari usually has on his Kentucky roster. Johnson was ranked No. 18 in the freshman class while the Cats' BJ Boston was ranked No. 5. On this night, he outscored his more highly touted rival 27-6.

KEY STAT:

Kentucky made only four buckets over the final 12 minutes of play. Two of them came in the final two minutes, nearly uncontested, after Tennessee had already sealed the victory.

QUOTABLE:

"We've lost so much, how much can we keep on learning from doing all this losing? We have the same conversations over and over again. We still end up not winning games like we should. There is some type of value in it moving forward, to have that experience to not want to feel this way again... but, for the most part, losing sucks." -- Kentucky forward Keion Brooks Jr.

NEXT UP:

Kentucky returns to action Tuesday at Rupp Arena against Arkansas. Tipoff for the Cats and Razorbacks (14-5, 6-4 SEC) is set for 7 ET on ESPN2.