No. 13 Kentucky 72, No. 4 South Carolina 99 – FINAL
Team Records and Series Notes
- Kentucky is 11-2 (0-1 SEC), while South Carolina is 13-1 (1-0 SEC).
- This was the league opener for both teams. Kentucky is 1-4 in its last five SEC lid lifters.
- Kentucky is 834-542 all-time, including 234-272 all-time in away games.
- This was the 66th all-time meeting between Kentucky and South Carolina in women’s basketball.
- Kentucky leads the all-time series in games played 34-32.
- South Carolina leads the all-time series in games played in Columbia, 19-11.
- Matthew Mitchell is in his 13th season as the head coach of the Wildcats.
- Mitchell is 322-156 overall in his career and 292-127 during his tenure at Kentucky.
- Kentucky is ranked 13 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 and No. 13 in the latest USA Today/Coaches Top 25.
- UK is 0-2 against ranked teams this season with both losses coming to top-seven ranked teams.
Team Notes
- Kentucky used the starting combination of sophomore guard Rhyne Howard, senior guards Sabrina Haines and Jaida Roper and junior forwards KeKe McKinney and Tatyana Wyatt.
- The Wildcats have used this starting combination in each of their last two games and are 1-1.
- UK lost the tip for only the fourth time this season.
- Howard scored first for Kentucky, marking the team-best sixth time this season that she has scored first.
- South Carolina jumped out to a 9-2 lead early in the game forcing a Kentucky timeout. The Wildcats hit just one of their first seven shots in the game.
- Howard scored Kentucky’s first eight points in the game with Patterson hitting two free throws with 3:47 to go in the first quarter to break that run. Howard and Patterson were the only Wildcats to score in the first quarter.
- Kentucky trailed 24-12 at the end of the first quarter, which was its largest deficit of the season.
- UK went 4-of-16 from the field in the first 10 minutes, while South Carolina was 10-of-15.
- South Carolina scored 49 points in the first half, which is the most UK has allowed in the first half this season. The Gamecocks were 20-of-32 from the field for 63 percent shooting.
- The Gamecocks had 38 points in the paint in the first half. The high UK had allowed in a game in the first half this season was 36 vs. Louisville.
- UK had 11 turnovers in the first half and allowed South Carolina to score 18 points off those miscues. UK’s season high points off turnovers allowed prior to the game was 18 by Virginia.
- The Gamecocks shot 61.0 percent from the field in the game, which is their highest percentage from the field in a game this season
- South Carolina attempted 33 free throws in the game, which is the most for an opponent against Kentucky this season. The previous high for free throws attempted vs. Kentucky this season was 24 by Morehead State.
- SC’s season high for free-throw attempts was 32.
- This was the first time that Kentucky has allowed 90 or more points since Baylor scored 90 on Nov. 30, 2017.
- Kentucky scored 72 points, which is its most points scored on the road this season. The previous high was 63 against Cal.
- Kentucky tonight scored their third most points in a road game against an AP Poll Top 5 opponent in the Matthew Mitchell era (72) (83 at No. 3 Notre Dame, Dec. 18, 2011; 75 at No. 5 Louisville, Dec. 9, 2018).
- The 72 points were the most that South Carolina has allowed an opponent this season.
Player Notes
- Sophomore guard Rhyne Howard scored a game-high 28 points in the game.
- Howard has hit at least one 3-pointer in 40 of her 45 career games.
- Howard has scored 10 or more points in 38 of her 45 career games.
- Howard has scored 20 or more points in 18 of her 45 career games.
- Howard has led UK in scoring in 25 of her 45 career games.
- Howard was 4-of-8 from long range in the game.
- The 28 points were the most for Howard ever in an SEC game.
- Howard has scored 25 or more points in each of the last three games and has scored 20 or more in eight games this season.
- Junior guard Chasity Patterson scored a career high 15 points.
- This was the first double-digit point scoring performance for Patterson at Kentucky.
- Patterson also led Kentucky with two assists.
- This was Patterson’s second game at Kentucky after sitting out the second semester of the 2018-19 season and first semester of the 2019-20 season.
- Senior guard Amanda Paschal scored 13 points in the game.
