Jan. 20, 2026, 8:22 p.m. ET
Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats may have stumbled a bit at the start of their conference play, but it looks like Kentucky has found its rhythm and is currently the top three-point shooting team in the SEC. The big question now is whether they can maintain this level of performance week after week as they dive deeper into conference action. On Wednesday, they’ll be back at Rupp Arena to take on the Texas Longhorns.
Heading into this matchup, the Wildcats are favored by – 6.5 points against Texas per BetMGM, with a total set at 155.5. The analytics seem to favor Mark Pope and his team’s recent surge in SEC play; KenPom predicts a Kentucky victory of 82-76, while Bart Torvik forecasts an 81-77 win for the Cats at home.
The history between these two teams is limited, with only three previous meetings on the court. In their last encounter, Kentucky fell short in Austin, losing 82-78. However, they have previously won against Texas in both the SEC-Big 12 Challenge in 2014 and during a matchup in Maui back in 1993.
The Wildcats aim to carry their momentum from recent games into this contest as they seek their fourth consecutive SEC win following an impressive road upset against Tennessee, finishing 80-78. Meanwhile, Sean Miller is navigating his first season with Texas and has faced some challenges early on in SEC play with two losses. Nevertheless, the Longhorns are eager to regain their winning form; they’ve recently secured victories over Vanderbilt at home and pulled off an upset against Alabama on the road. However, they did suffer a setback against Texas A&M last week.
Both teams are looking to find their stride as they continue through SEC play. ESPN’s BPI gives Kentucky a solid chance of winning against Texas with a probability of 76.3%.
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Fans can catch all the action on the SEC Network with Matt Schumacker and Richard Hendrix calling the game. Tip-off is set for 7 PM ET from Rupp Arena in Lexington.