Oklahoma might be looking for revenge against Kentucky in tonight’s SEC Tournament, but Wildcat guard Lamont Butler will have some payback on his mind, as well.
The last time these two teams met 15 days ago, Otega Oweh scored 18 straight for Kentucky to close out the contest, including the game-winning layup, which he followed with the game-sealing block on the other end seconds later. He finished with 28 points as UK snuck out of Norman with an 83-82 victory.
For Butler, that was his first time back on the floor after sitting out the previous three contests due to a shoulder injury. He looked a bit rusty in his return too, fouling out after just 20 minutes of action while turning the ball over three times. But the fifth-year point guard still finished with seven points, six assists, and four rebounds. He was a team-high +10 in his limited action.
Kentucky is going to need a similar number from him in the rematch, hopefully with more minutes under his belt. His task of slowing down Oklahoma star freshman Jermiah Fears, who dropped 29 points Wednesday night against Georgia, will be critical if the ‘Cats want to pull out a win. Fears dropped 18 points (on 18 shots, I should add) in the first game with Butler guarding him when possible.
This type of game is exactly why head coach Mark Pope wasted no time making Butler a priority transfer in the offseason. While at San Diego State, Butler played in nine NCAA Tournament games across his four seasons. And of course, he hit the game-winning shot to beat Florida Atlantic in the 2023 Final Four.
The shimmer of playing on a massive stage in the SEC Tournament against a future lottery pick freshman isn’t going to bother him. In an article released Thursday morning, The Athletic’s CJ Moore did an excellent job explaining why past success in March is a primary reason Pope recruited Butler to Lexington. I would encourage everyone to go give it a read, but I’ll at least share my favorite paragraph.
“Pope and his staff laid out how they saw Butler fitting in their system and as a leader,” Moore wrote. “They valued his defense, but they thought they could get even more offensive production out of him with their pace and style of play. Butler initially told Pope he had about 10 minutes to talk before he needed to start working out; an hour and a half later, the coaches stepped out so Butler could talk to his parents. He’d made up his mind.”
These next however many games for Kentucky are exactly why Pope needed Butler wearing the blue and white for his final college season; a proven-winner with clutch genes who excels on both ends of the floor. The first order of business is making life hell for Fears in Nashville. Tipoff against Oklahoma in Bridgestone Arena is set for approximately 9:30 p.m. EST.
[The Athletic: How Lamont Butler, Kentucky’s X-factor, honed the defense and drive of a March hero]
