Kentucky will be without Lamont Butler vs Alabama in the SEC Tournament
Kentucky will be without a major part of their backcourt against Alabama on Friday in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament, as Lamont Butler has been ruled out after injuring his shoulder in the first half of Thursday’s win over Oklahoma. It seems like the injury bug has been biting Kentucky for well over a month now, and after finally getting Butler back to near full-strength, he went down on Thursday with another injury.
Along with Butler, Kentucky will also of course be without starting guard Jaxson Robinson, who was recently declared out for the remainder of the year with a wrist injury that required surgery, and Kerr Kriisa, who has been out since December against Gonzaga, and has since opted to take a medical redshirt to have another year of eligibility. Not just the backcourt, but Andrew Carr is getting back to full strength himself with a back injury that has lingered recently.
The Wildcats dealt with losing Butler in the first half of the Oklahoma game as well as fans could have hoped. As much of a catalyst Butler is in terms of tempo and flow, Kentucky was still able to keep battling and fighting, where Otega Oweh ultimately saved the day with a game-winning layup. Losing Butler is a big hit, no doubt, and the Wildcats will need some players to step up, especially ones off the bench coming in and giving the team a spark.
This time against Alabama, the major key to victory is still the same, and that is to get stops down the stretch against a high-powered offense. Can Kentucky get enough stops and keep up offensively without Butler?
