Live Updates: No. 24 Alabama Basketball at Kentucky

The 4-0 Crimson Tide travel to take on the 3-0 Wildcats in a battle for first place in the SEC

Live Updates:

Second Half

• Final score: Alabama 85, Kentucky 65.

• Barnes heads to the line. The Louisville native hits his first, but misses his second.

• Dunk good by Primo.

• Boston fouls Shackelford, sending him to the line. Shackelford makes both. Alabama 82, Kentucky 65 with under a minute left to go in the game.

• Rojas fouls Jackson. Jackson hits both.

• Jumper good by Primo, Crimson Tide up 80-63.

• Gary fouls Jackson to send him to the line. Jackson hits both. 78-63 Alabama.

• Rojas hits a three. 78-61 Alabama with 2:39 left in the contest.

• Reese fouls out of the game, ending Jackson to the line for the Wildcats. Jackson hits both to cut the Crimson Tide lead to 14. 75-61 Alabama with 3:23 to go.

• Primo hits the and-one. He is now three-for-three from the charity stripe.

• Layup good by Primo, chance for the and-one. Media timeout with 3:47 to go. 74-59 Crimson Tide.

• Toppin is fouled on the way up, but makes the basket. However, he misses the and-one. 72-59 Crimson Tide with 3:51 to go.

• Petty hits the and-one, bringing his points total on the night to 23.

• Layup good by Petty. 71-57 Crimson Tide. Petty is fouled on the way up and heads to the line.

• Primo is fouled and heads to the line. Primo hits both. 69-57 Alabama with 4:44 to go.

• Layup good by Jackson.

• Askew nails a three and is fouled by Rojas. Askew goes to the line for the and-one and makes it. 67-53 Alabama.

• 3-pointer good by Reese, followed by a dunk by Jackson. 67-49 Alabama with 6:15 to go.

• Kentucky jumper good by Boston.

• Petty scores his fourth three of the night, giving Alabama a 19-point lead.

• Bruner is questionable to return with an injury to his right knee.

• Media timeout. With 7:59 to play, the Crimson Tide leads the Wildcats 61-45.

• Alabama scores its first two points in over two minutes with a layup by Gary. Layup good by Jackson. 61-45 Alabama with 8:37 to go.

• Layup good by Gary off of goaltending.

• Bruner heads to the locker room, putting no weight on his right leg.

• Bruner appears to be in pain and is unable to put much weight on his right ankle. Media timeout. 57-43 Crimson Tide with 11:33 to go.

• Layup good by Shackelford, fouled by Toppin on the way up. Shackelford hits the and-one.

• Layup by Toppin, foul called on Petty. Toppin goes to the line for the and-one. Makes it. Alabama leads 54-43 with 12:29 to go.

• Foul on Rojas. Jackson heads to the line for the Wildcats. He makes both, cutting the Crimson Tide lead to 14.

• Shackelford is fouled, misses his first free throw but makes his second.

• Layup good by Sarr. Alabama leads 53-38 lead with 13:33 to go.

• Three-pointer good by Primo, assist by Shackelford.

• Dunk good by Petty. Alabama leads 50-36 with 15:30 to go in the game. Media timeout.

• Jumper good by Brooks.

• Layup good by Brooks. 48-34 Alabama with 16:21 left in the game.

• Layup good by Petty for his 14th and 15th points of the game.

• Foul on Petty, two free throws awarded to Brooks, who hits both. 46-32 Alabama.

• Layup good by Shackelford after a steal by Ellis. Back-to-back layups by the Crimson Tide to start the second half.

• Layup good by Bruner to start the second half. Alabama now has a 14-point lead.

Halftime Notes

• At the half, Petty leads the Crimson Tide in points with 13. Petty is currently five-for-eight from the floor and is three-for-five from beyond the arc. He also leads Alabama rebounds with four so far through 20 minutes of play.

• Shackelford is the only other Crimson Tide player scoring in double digits so far with 10 points at the break.

• For the Wildcats, Askew and Allen are tied with the most points with eight apiece. Allen leads Kentucky with five rebounds at the half.

First Half

• Halftime: Alabama 42, Kentucky 30.

• Sarr goes to the line for two free throws, makes two. Alabama leads 42-30.

• Primo hits a three. 42-28 Alabama in the final seconds of the first half.

• Traveling violation on Allen. Alabama basketball.

• Brooks tips one in for two. Alabama lead cut to 11.

• Petty responds with three of his own. 39-26 Crimson Tide.

• Allen hits one from beyond the arc. Alabama 36, Kentucky 26 with under three minutes to go.

• Shackelford hits a three. Alabama now leads by 13.

• Jones has been confirmed to have a left hand injury and is questionable to return. Most likely no fracture, which is great news for Crimson Tide fans.

• Media timeout. Kentucky has had no field goals in the last 4:08 — 0-for-9.

• Boston hits two free throws. Alabama possession, and the Crimson Tide leads 33-24 with 4:08 to go in the first half.

• Three-pointer good by Petty, assist by Reese. The Crimson Tide leads 33-22 at the 4:33 mark. Alabama is now on a 10-0 run.

• Layup good by Reese, Alabama now leads 30-22. Timeout Kentucky.

• Reese nails a three-pointer, increases the Alabama lead to 22.

• Jumper good by Petty. He now has seven points on the night.

• Allen responds to Petty's three with one of his own. 23-22 Alabama at the under-8 media timeout.

• Layup good by Allen for two. Petty responds with a three-pointer. Alabama leads 23-19 at the 9:11 mark.

• Shackelford hits a three-pointer to help the Crimson Tide regain the lead.

• Jumper good by Askew. Game is now tied at 17.

• Jones is down on the court and is holding his left wrist. Injury timeout.

• Three-pointer good by Mintz. 17-15 Alabama at the 10:51 mark.

• Dunk good by Jones coming out of the break.

• Under-12 media timeout. Alabama leads 15-12 and is in possession of the basketball. A strong start by the Crimson Tide defense is keeping it out front, but the team is being out-rebounded 9-3.

• Sarr is fouled by Ellis and is sent to the line. Sarr proceeds to hit both free throws. 15-12 Alabama at the 12:27 mark.

• Jones hits a three-pointer, increasing the Crimson Tide's lead to five.

• Jumper good by Brooks, Alabama leads 12-10.

• Timeout Kentucky. 14:59 remaining in the first half.

• Jumper up and good by Mintz.

• Layup good by Shackelford, and the Crimson Tide's lead is back up to six.

• Jumper good by Askew. 10-6 Alabama with 15:54 left to go in the first half.

• Layup good by Shackelford.

• Askew hits both free throws after being fouled by Shackelford on the way up to the net.

• Three-pointer by Jones is good, Alabama now leads 8-2.

• Askew hits a jumper for two, the first points of the game for the Wildcats.

• Dunk good by Petty, two more points for the Crimson Tide.

• Bruner hits a three for the first points of the game.

• Alabama wins the jumpball, and we are underway.

Pregame

• First reported by Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News, Alabama guard Jahvon Quinerly will not be participating in tonight's game. This marks the third-consecutive game that Quinerly will not be present due to an unknown medical condition.

• Alabama basketball is primed and ready to go:

• Alabama starting five:

• Kentucky starting five: Devin Askew, guard; Brandon Boston Jr., guard; Davion Mintz, guard; Keion Brooks Jr, forward; Olivier Sarr, forward.

• Earlier in the day on Tuesday, Kentucky revealed that walk-on player Ben Jordan had passed away. To honor Jordan and his family, the Wildcats will be scaling back its coverage of tonight's game on social media:

Preview:

Yes, there is another big game this week. It may not be for a national championship, but Alabama at Kentucky will arguably feature the two most successful programs in Southeastern Conference history.

Although it's not very often that the Wildcats are looking up at the Crimson Tide in overall wins, they are 1-2 in the league standings as neither has lost a conference game this season.

Alabama defeated Ole Miss (82-64), at then-No. 7 Tennessee 71-63, Florida (86-71) and at Auburn (94-90).

Kentucky had its SEC opener against South Carolina postponed due to coronavirus issues, and won at Mississippi State (78-73), Vanderbilt (77-74), and at Florida (76-58)

Although the Wildcats are 4-6 overall, ignore their record. It's another loaded Kentucky team with a talented roster of players who are beginning how to play well together.

Alabama at Kentucky:

When: 8 p.m. CT, Tuesday

TV: ESPN (Play-By-Play: Karl Ravech, Analyst: Dick Vitale)

Radio: Crimson Tide Radio Network or Live Audio (Play-By-Play: Chris Stewart, Analyst: Bryan Passink, Sideline: Roger Hoover Sirius/XM Channel: NA/380

Online: ESPN+

Last time out, Alabama: Guard Joshua Primo scored 22 points while forward Jordan Bruner added 20 to lead Alabama to a rare 94-90 victory at Auburn. The game featured 16 lead changes and nine ties. Primo (4-of-8) and Bruner (3-of-6) combined to shoot 50 percent (7-of-14) shots from three-point range while the rest of the team combined to go 3-of-18. Guard/Forward Herbert Jones had a career-high 19 points to go along with eight rebounds and five of Alabama’s 15 steals. Guards Jaden Shackelford (11) and John Petty Jr. (10) also reached double figures. With the win, Alabama (9-3, 4-0 SEC) captured its first victory in Auburn Arena since 2015 (lost five straight coming in) and became the third team in the SEC and 34th team NCAA history to capture 1,700 wins in program history.

Last time out, Kentucky: Coming off a leg injury that had had sidelined him for three months, Keion Brooks Jr. led a 76-58 win at Florida in his season debut. Brooks scored 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting, grabbed six rebounds and dished out a game-high four assists in 25 efficient minutes. Kentucky enjoyed three second-half runs of 10-0 or more while posting its biggest in Gainesville since 1998.U K shot 55.6% and dished out a season-high-tying 18 assists.

Scouting Alabama: The Crimson Tide is riding a five-game winning streak, including four consecutive SEC wins. Four players are averaging 12.0 or more points per game. Guard Jaden Shackelford leads the way at 13.1 points per game while Jahvon Quinerly, who has missed the last two games with a medical condition, is second (13.0). Guard John Petty Jr. is at 12.9 with forward Herbert Jones with 12.4. Jones, considered one of the top defensive players in the entire nation, leads the team in rebounding (6.5), three-point field goal percentage (.500, 8-of-16), charges taken (four), deflections (42), and even floor dives (10). The trio of Petty (22-of-66), Shackelford (24-of-69) and Quinerly (11-of-34) have combined to hit 57 of the Tide’s 113 three-pointers (50.4 percent) and have 169 of the team’s 351 (48.1 percent) total attempts from beyond the arc. Combined, the trio is shooting 33.7 percent (57-of-169) from deep.

Scouting Kentucky: Kentucky’s lineup features five players who average in double figures this season. Brandon Boston Jr. leads UK with 12.8 points and 1.5 steals per game. Olivier Sarr contributes 11.2 points and 5.6 rebounds, while Terrence Clarke (10.7) and Davion Mintz (10.3) also add to the offensive attack. Meanwhile, Isaiah Jackson averages 5.7 points and leads the team with 7.2 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game.

Series: This will be the 152nd meeting in series history. Kentucky owns a 114-38 edge in the all-time series. The Crimson Tide is 10-58 all-time against the Wildcats in Lexington and 6-26 mark in Rupp Arena. Alabama has lost nine straight games when playing Kentucky in Lexington, and last won in Rupp Arena on Jan. 14, 2006 (68-64).

Last meeting: Immanuel Quickley scored the final five points and finished with 19 as No. 14 Kentucky won at home, 76-67, for its 1,000th Southeastern Conference victory on Jan. 11, 2020. Ashton Hagans had a key three-pointer down the stretch and had 15 points. Although the Wildcats led by 15 early in the second half, the Crimson Tide was able to close within 63-60 with just over five minutes remaining. Kentucky shot just 32 percent in the second half. Herb Jones had 18 points and John Petty Jr. 16 for the Crimson Tide.