Rupp Arena had fallen silent.

After Kentucky had answered everything Tennessee threw at it for the first 33 minutes, the Vols suddenly had their largest lead of the game after Zakai Zeigler made a layup off the fastbreak with 6:32 left.

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Tennessee was up five and had all of the momentum. Then the Wildcats snatched it back and used it for a strong close. Koby Brea hit two 3-pointers in the final two minutes as part of a 12-2 run that put Kentucky up for good to beat the Vols for the second time in two weeks, 75-64 on Tuesday night in Lexington.

Fifth-ranked Tennessee (20-5, 7-5 SEC) shot better in this one than it did the first time the two teams played in Knoxville, but No. 15 Kentucky (17-7, 6-5) shot it better.

The Vols shot 42.6% from the field, but were just 3-of-18 from three-point range while the Wildcats shot 50% from both.

Zeigler scored a game-high 17 points while Igor Milicic Jr. finished with 16 and Chaz Lanier had 10, all crucial performances in bringing Tennessee back, but ultimately not enough.

Tennessee had the ball for about two seconds before Lamont Butler poked it away from Zakai Zeigler and scored on the other end.

Kentucky led 6-0 before the Vols' first basket more than two minutes in--an Igor Milicic Jr. and-1 that cut the Wildcats' lead in half after the free throw. Felix Okpara free throws pulled Tennessee within one, but a two-plus minute scoring drought followed.

Koby Brea rattled in a jumper before Zeigler answered with the Vols' first field goal in in four minutes. He gave Tennessee its first lead with free throws on its next offensive possession, 9-8 with 12:49 to go in the first half.

The Vols left a little too much space for Brea and he paid it off with a long 3-pointer to put Kentucky back in front, and after Darlinstone Dubar missed a dunk after a steal, Trent Noah laced another three to stretch the Wildcats' advantage to 14-9.

Jordan Gainey quelled Kentucky's quick run with two-straight scores to get back within one, a needed response as the Wildcats started to heat up from deep. Kentucky went back up five before Chaz Lanier made his first basket and Okpara pulled down a Zeigler lob pass for a dunk to trim Tennessee's deficit to 18-17 with 7:13 remaining.

Scores from Okpara and Cade Phillips in the paint drew the Vols even at 21-21 with inside of six minutes to go, then Zeigler scored to stay within a possession. But Noah sunk his second 3-pointer from the corner and the Wildcats were up 27-23 with 3:28 left.

Kentucky went on a 6-0 run off of threes from Noah and Brandon Garrison to stretch its lead to 33-24 and force Rick Barnes into a timeout with 1:55 left before halftime. Tennessee remained cold out of the break, though and a goal-tend put it behind by double-digits, 35-24 as the clock ticked inside of a minute.

Free throws got the Vols within nine and the goal-tend call was overturned to get the deficit down to seven, but going the last 5:03 of the half without a field goal while Kentucky shot 50% from three-point range was the story at the intermission.

The Wildcats got those two points back on their first possession of the second half, but Milicic uncorked a deep shot from near the logo and knocked it through for Tennessee's first 3-pointer with 19:08 left.

Zeigler followed it up with a drive and layup that had the Vols back within four before Ansley Almonor clapped back with a three and Amari Williams made a tough basket to swell Kentucky's lead back to nine at 40-31.

The Wildcats' ability to have an answer every time Tennessee cut its deficit down continued in the second. The Vols were back within five, but Almonor sunk a three in response.

When a Zeigler steal turned into a Milicic layup, Almonor tipped in a shot. When Milicic tacked on his second 3-pointer, Travis Perry tallied one of his own.

Tennessee eventually did come up with a stop. The Vols defense forced a desperation heave from Garrison late in the shot clock that led to a turnover and a Gainey layup to get them within three, 50-47 with 12:34 left.

As back-and-forth as the first 13-plus minutes of the half has been, neither team could make a shot for more than three minutes. Then the shootout commenced. Oteg Oweh scored off of a Tennessee turnover and Chaz Lanier made a jumper.

Lanier matched a Butler score with a 3-pointer to get back within two at 54-52 with 9:14 left. Phillips tied it with free throws less than a minute later.

Kentucky led again for a moment off of a free throw, but two-straight jumpers from Gainey and Zeigler gave Tennessee its biggest lead to that point, 58-55.

The Wildcats, who had been without their starting point guard in Butler since he exited the game with an apparent elbow injury, withstood the Vols' push, though. Brea hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 4:21 to go.

Brea's shot opened the way for a 7-0 run that Lanier ended with a dunk, but Brea connected from deep again and Kentucky's lead was 68-62 with two minutes left. Tennessee never got back in it.

Tennessee will get its second crack at Vanderbilt on Saturday.

The Vols host the Commodores, who handed them a 1-point loss at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville last month, at Food City Center (1 p.m. ET, SEC Network).

Vanderbilt (17-7, 5-6) is coming off of a home loss to No. 1 Auburn on Tuesday.

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