The drama was far from over when the final buzzer rang in Knoxville. Mark Pope’s Kentucky Wildcats had just pulled off an amazing comeback, coming back from a 17-point deficit in the first half to win 80-78 over Tennessee. But the real fireworks started when the game clock hit zero. What should have been a happy moment quickly turned into a situation that needed the Kentucky head coach to step in right away.

After the exciting win, things got out of hand between the two teams as players pushed and shoved each other after the game. Pope had just led one of the best comebacks of the season, so he had to act quickly to keep his players away from the fight that was getting worse. CBS Sports’ Instagram post said, “Some postgame pushing and shoving after Kentucky’s comeback win” showed how intense the moment was as Pope ran onto the court to pull his players away from the fight and restore order.

Given the situation, the heated argument wasn’t totally unexpected. Kentucky had come back from what looked like an impossible deficit, and Tennessee didn’t score a single field goal in the last 5:38 of the game. The Volunteers were clearly frustrated. They had been in charge of most of the game, building leads of 17 points in the first half and keeping control for most of the game. The dramatic collapse, in which a commanding lead slipped away possession by possession, made for the perfect storm for postgame emotions to run high.

The comeback itself was nothing short of a miracle. Denzel Aberdeen led the way with 22 points, and Otega Oweh sealed the deal with a and-one finish in the last minute. At halftime, Kentucky was down by 11 points, and they only led for 34 seconds total, all at the end. The Wildcats’ play in the second half, when they made 5 of 7 three-pointers early on, slowly took away Tennessee’s confidence and momentum.

Things got so bad that there was no normal handshake line. Pope and Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes agreed to send their teams straight to the locker rooms, which is something that doesn’t happen very often. This showed how serious the situation was and put player safety ahead of postgame niceties.

Mark Pope must fix Kentucky’s first-half struggles

Kentucky can’t keep ignoring the harsh truth that came out behind the celebration and chaos. This season has been the same: the Wildcats look lost in the first half, but after halftime, they turn into world-beaters. It’s become who they are, and not in a good way.

The game in Tennessee went exactly as planned. They were down 17 points early on and 11 at the break, but they came back to win. Does this sound familiar? That’s because it happened just a few days ago when Kentucky came back from an 18-point hole in the second half against LSU. These comebacks are great for the show, but they’re hiding a big problem that’s keeping this team from winning.

The frustrating part is that Kentucky’s 12-7 record could easily change if they played even halfway decent basketball for a whole game. If they could just play 32 solid minutes, not great but solid, they could probably turn three or four of those losses into wins. This season goes from being a letdown to being in the top 25, and no one is talking about NCAA Tournament bubbles.

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Pope has 14 SEC games left to figure this out. Before the game starts, the changes that need to be made at halftime need to be made. The Wildcats have already shown that they can be in charge for 20 minutes. Imagine how this team would play if they didn’t wake up in the middle of the game and played the whole 40 minutes. That’s the Kentucky that everyone thought they would see, and Pope needs to figure out how to unlock it right away.