LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentucky hopes it has better luck chasing Tennessee in the standings the next few weeks than it had chasing Chris Lofton in Rupp Arena.

"This is one that really hurts,’’ coach Tubby Smith said after watching the 11th-ranked Vols run away with a 75-67 SEC win over his Wildcats on Tuesday night.

"Tennessee, at 8-1, it’s going to be hard to catch. Tennessee and Florida, they’ve both kind of separated themselves from the pack in the East.’’

The Vols’ third SEC road win in four tries gives them a three-game lead over the Wildcats (5-4) and at least a one-game lead over Florida. The Gators (6-2) play South Carolina tonight.

Lofton’s career-high 31 points separated the Vols from Kentucky. Not a bad homecoming for the Maysville, Ky., native who wasn’t recruited by Smith.

Asked if he second-guessed himself for snubbing Lofton, Smith gave a terse, one-word answer: "Yeah."

Asked if he regretted it a little or a lot, Smith shot back, "I said yes.’’

Next question.

Several of the Wildcat guards are homegrown. Lofton, the state’s Mr. Basketball in 2004, is no stranger to them.

"If I was in his shoes,’’ said Kentucky’s Brandon Stockton, "I’d want to come in here and give it all I’ve got and that’s what he did.

"He’s a great player.’’

Ravi Moss, another home-state Wildcat, was one of several defenders who took a crack at Lofton with little success.

"He does a good job of finding gaps in the zone or in the man-to-man to find his shot,’’ said Moss.

Lofton’s best friend among the Wildcats is point guard Rajon Rondo from Louisville.

"He’s got a lot of game,’’ said Rondo. "He’s got a lot of confidence and he’s one of the best in the country.’’

Tennessee’s confidence was an obvious factor, winning a close game in a tough environment.

Smith tipped his hat to the man in the orange blazer. Bruce Pearl may just be making a run at national coach-of-the-year honors.

"It’s been impressive,’’ said Smith, "the way his team battles.

"He’s energized ’em with a lot of enthusiasm.’’

After Kentucky battled back to take a 65-64 lead with 3:22 left, it was Tennessee that was energized in the stretch run.

The Vols answered with a 9-0 spurt to go up 73-65 with 21 seconds left.

"They just made the plays we weren’t able to make,’’ said Moss.

One of the things the ’Cats weren’t able to do at crunch time was penetrate the orange maze around center Randolph Morris. The alternative was jacking up 3-point tries that missed.

"They capitalized on our bad offense,’’ said Morris, "and turned it into good offense for them.’’

And that was the key to getting out of Rupp with a win.

"People were wondering,’’ said UT’s Dane Bradshaw, "if we’d still have it in the second half of the conference season.

"We’re off to a great start with a win tonight.’’

Get your chasing shoes on, Kentucky.

Bradshaw Ailing: Bradshaw played in pain after suffering a bruised hip diving into the scorer’s table to make a steal during the first half.

"He was very sore,’’ said Pearl. "He’s going to be really sore tomorrow.’’

Bradshaw played 30 minutes. He had only one basket, but made one of the game’s biggest plays, rebounding a Kentucky miss and throwing long to Lofton with 45 seconds to play.

Mike Strange may be reached at 865-342-6276.