Nashville, Tenn.

Kentucky point guard Lamont Butler left the Wildcats’ first game of the SEC Tournament on Thursday night midway through the first half after reinjuring his left shoulder.

A UK spokesperson told the Herald-Leader at halftime that Butler was questionable to return to the game against the Oklahoma Sooners. He had X-ray imaging performed on his left shoulder after exiting the court area. The team confirmed midway through the second half that Butler would not return to the game Thursday night.

The Wildcats led 40-38 at halftime.

Butler appeared to reinjure his left shoulder on a drive to the basket with about 9:45 remaining in the first half. He checked out of the game with 9:35 left in the period and did not come back in for the rest of the half.

After heading to the bench, Butler, who has been wearing a bulky brace on his left shoulder, had a long conversation with UK senior athletic trainer Brandon Wells, and the fifth-year point guard remained in the locker room to start the second half.

Freshman guard Collin Chandler started the second half in place of Butler, who did return to the court area with 13:11 left to watch the rest of the game from the UK bench.

Butler originally injured his left shoulder in the Wildcats’ victory against Texas A&M on Jan. 14. He played with the injury for two games, then missed four consecutive games before returning to the court in a win over South Carolina on Feb. 8.

Three days later, Butler reinjured the shoulder in a collision with Tennessee’s Chaz Lanier, and that caused him to miss two additional games. The SEC Tournament opener against Oklahoma was Butler’s fifth consecutive game since returning from the second injury.

Kentucky guard Lamont Butler (1) drives as Oklahoma forward Jalon Moore (14) defends during Thursday night’s game at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Ryan C. Hermens [email protected]

This story was originally published March 14, 2025 at 12:07 AM.