Welcome back to the Starting 5 basketball column. The Starting 5 is written each week by Adam Spencer to keep you in the loop about all the news and events in the world of men’s college basketball. You can follow Adam on X at @AdamSpencer4.
1. Opening Tipoff
Last week, I asked if the “Malachi Moreno Shot” against LSU would spark something for Kentucky. Consider the question answered with a resounding “yes.”
The Wildcats didn’t just find a spark; they started a bonfire. Mark Pope took his squad into Knoxville on Saturday and walked out with an 80-78 win over No. 24 Tennessee. Then, for good measure, the Wildcats followed it up by fending off a pesky Texas team 85-80 on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena.
In Knoxville, it was the “Denzel Aberdeen Game.” The sophomore played perhaps his best game in a Kentucky uniform yet, dropping 22 points and hitting clutch free throws to ice the game.
.@DenzelAberdeen was on another level in the second half today. 22 PTS (18 in second half) | 2 AST | 2 STL | 0 TO pic.twitter.com/HZUh8umZ7o
— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) January 18, 2026But the real story was the resilience. Kentucky trailed by 11 at the half. In years past, a Kentucky team trailing double digits at Thompson-Boling Arena would have folded like a cheap lawn chair. Not this group.
The Wildcats held Tennessee to 36 second-half points and neutralized Vol freshman Nate Ament for long stretches. Mark Pope has this team playing with an edge now after some early season struggles with effort and injuries.
If you’re a Kentucky fan, you have to love the trajectory. From an “embarrassing” start in SEC play to back-to-back-to-back wins over LSU, Tennessee, and Texas? Now Kentucky’s NCAA Tournament résumé is starting to fill up nicely.
2. Home-Court Advantage
I’ll once again start this section by saying something my colleague Connor O’Gara says all the time — 2 things can be true at the same time.
First, Vanderbilt’s hot start to the season was one of the best stories in college hoops. Second, the Commodores have officially hit a wall.
After falling to Texas last week, Vandy lost a heartbreaker to No. 19 Florida at home (98-94) and then got absolutely dismantled by Arkansas on Tuesday. That’s 3-straight losses for Mark Byington’s crew.
The biggest problem for Vanderbilt continues to be on the glass. Here are the rebounding totals from the Commodores’ 3 losses:
Texas 42, Vanderbilt 24 Florida 40, Vanderbilt 26 Arkansas 39, Vanderbilt 27You simply cannot get trounced on the boards like that and expect to win games against quality SEC opponents. Vanderbilt needs to get that area of its game fixed ASAP.
Next, let’s talk about the teams doing the dismantling.
Georgia is a problem: Mike White’s Georgia Bulldogs are no longer just “scrappy.” They are dangerous. They dominated No. 17 Arkansas 90-76 on Saturday, led by Jeremiah Wilkinson’s 20 points. On Tuesday night, they went to Mizzou Arena and held off a late surge from the Tigers to earn a 74-72 victory. They play with a pace and defensive intensity that is frankly exhausting to watch. If they keep this up, they aren’t just a tournament team; they’re a second-weekend threat. The Hogs have bounced back: John Calipari doesn’t stay down for long. After the loss in Athens, Arkansas returned home and looked like the juggernaut we expected, blowing out Vanderbilt. Darius Acuff Jr. is playing like the best freshman in the country (more on him later). Bediako is back? Big news out of Tuscaloosa this week as a judge granted former (and now current again?) Alabama big man Charles Bediako immediate eligibility. The NCAA is already fighting back, but for now, Nate Oats has a massive rim protector back in the lineup. Just in time for a huge showdown with Tennessee this weekend. Never mind that he recently was quoted as saying guys in similar situations to Bediako’s were stealing roster spots from high school athletes. Hmmm…Now let’s move on to some stories from the rest of the hoops world.
3. Around the World
It finally happened. No. 11 BYU’s 13-game winning streak came to a screeching halt in the South Plains.
Texas Tech remains one of the most difficult places to play in the country, and the Red Raiders proved it by erasing a 9-point BYU lead in the second half to win 84-71. The atmosphere in Lubbock was, as the kids say, “feral.”
JT Toppin was the best player on the floor, finishing with 27 points and 12 rebounds.
But the real story was how Tech defended AJ Dybantsa. The potential No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft was held to just 13 points on 6-of-17 shooting. One of those misses? Well, Toppin swatted it away in a key moment in the second half:
JT TOPPIN HUGE BLOCK IN THE CLUTCH ON TOP NBA PROSPECT AJ DYBANTSA Toppin had 27 PTS and 12 REB in the win over No. 11 BYU pic.twitter.com/kVXWHh056V
— ESPN (@espn) January 18, 2026Texas Tech made its final 7 shots of the game. When you shoot like that and have a crowd like that behind you, you can beat anyone in the country. The Red Raiders will need that home-court advantage again on Saturday night when No. 6 Houston brings its undefeated Big 12 record into Lubbock.
Now for some more quick hits from across the college hoops map:
The Illini are humming (but hurting): Brad Underwood’s squad moved to 16-3 after a dominant 89-70 win over Maryland on Wednesday — the Illini’s 8th straight victory. But it’s a “good news, bad news” situation in Champaign. The bad? Star guard Kylan Boswell is out until mid-February with a fractured hand. The good? Andrej Stojakovic is officially a superstar. He dropped 30 points and 9 boards against the Terps, looking like the engine of a team that can win the Big Ten.Andrej Stojakovic had his best game of the season:30 PTS9 REBS9-18 FG4-7 3PT@IlliniMBB pic.twitter.com/7L2lmViRyj
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) January 22, 2026 Brad Underwood also sits at 99 career Big Ten wins heading into a massive Saturday showdown. Virginia keeps rolling: Ryan Odom has the Hoos at 15-3. They aren’t always pretty, but they are effective. A massive test against North Carolina looms on Saturday. Duke is going to be tough to catch atop the ACC standings, but Virginia could stay a game behind the Blue Devils with a win on Saturday. More on that game in the next section.Let’s take a look at the weekend ahead in the college basketball world.
4. Games to Watch
Buckle up, because Saturday is an absolute gauntlet. Here are the 5 games you need to clear your schedule for:
Tennessee at No. 17 Alabama — Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN — This is the heavyweight fight of the weekend. Both teams are desperate to stay in the hunt for what appears to be a wide-open race for the SEC regular-season crown. Expect a lot of points and maybe a technical foul or 2. No. 22 North Carolina at No. 14 Virginia — Saturday at noon ET on ESPN — A clash of styles. UNC wants to run; UVA wants to turn the game into a 50-possession grind. Whichever team can control the pace in this one should emerge with a massive Quad 1 victory. Villanova at No. 2 UConn — Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET on FOX — The Big East still runs through Storrs, but Villanova is finally playing with some consistency. Can the Wildcats pull off the upset at Gampel? This might be one of the only chances for a team to actually beat Dan Hurley’s squad in Big East play. No. 11 Illinois at No. 4 Purdue — Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on FOX — Keaton Wagler (the draft sleeper I told you about last week) heads into the Mackey Arena hornets’ nest. The Boilermakers will be playing with a bit more desperation after suffering a disappointing midweek loss at UCLA. No. 6 Houston at No. 12 Texas Tech — Saturday at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN — Tech just ended BYU’s streak. Can the Red Raiders take down Kelvin Sampson’s defense? The winner in this one will keep pace with Arizona in the Big 12 race.Now let’s hit one more topic before we get out of here for the weekend and rest up for Saturday’s incredible slate of games.
5. Buzzer Beater
If you haven’t been watching Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff Jr., you are missing the show.
He’s currently averaging 21.5 points in SEC play. In the win over Vanderbilt, he was the best player on the floor by a mile, looking like a veteran floor general rather than a kid who is fresh out of high school. It’s not often that a dominant 17-point performance actually lowers your scoring average, but that’s where we’re at with Acuff:
Darius Acuff Jr. vs Vanderbilt tonight..17 PTS (7-14 FG, 3-7 3PT)5 AST2 REBSThere not much to say here more than we already know..What team in a good draft position would we like to see him at? pic.twitter.com/xhKOoHjeyR
— Frankie Vision (@Frankie_Vision) January 21, 2026He’s got the “it” factor. He’s shifty, he’s a 3-level scorer, and he plays with the kind of swagger that John Calipari teams are built on. He’s currently mocked in the mid-lottery for 2026, but if he keeps carrying the Hogs like this, don’t be surprised if he starts knocking on the door of the top 5 come June.
Enjoy the Starting 5? Have a question? Want to yell at me about my SEC power rankings? Follow me on X @AdamSpencer4 or email me at [email protected].
Starting 5: Kentucky finds its spark, Vanderbilt hits the wall and more Saturday Down South.
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