Wildcats will return to action next Thursday vs. Tennessee in Rupp Arena
No. 15 Kentucky Falls at Ole Miss
Wildcats will return to action next Thursday vs. Tennessee in Rupp Arena
KENTUCKY POSTGAME NEWS CONFERENCE RECORDINGS
OXFORD, Mississippi – Rhyne Howard scored 26 points, but the 15th-ranked Kentucky women’s basketball team was upset by Ole Miss 72-60 on Saturday night at the Pavilion at Ole Miss.
Howard struggled from the floor for the first three quarters before getting hot in the final stanza. She had half of her points in the final period. Howard had 10 rebounds and four assists in the game.
Chasity Patterson was the only other Kentucky player in double figures, scoring 14 in the game.
Kentucky (13-5, 6-4 SEC) made just 21 of its 66 shots from the floor (31.8 percent), including just six of 26 (23.1 percent) from behind the arc. The Cats did have 25 second-chance points, compared to 12 for Ole Miss. But the Rebels won the rebounding battle 48-34 and dominated points in the paint 42-20.
The lead changed hands five times early before Kentucky went on a 5-0 run, keyed by a Howard layup and free throw, to take a 9-5 lead. After an Ole Miss basket, Kentucky got a three from KeKe McKinney to lead 12-7 with 5:56 to play in the first period.
Kentucky would lead 14-9 before Ole Miss went on a run of its own. The Rebels scored eight in a row to take a 17-14 advantage with 2:10 left in the first quarter. From there, neither team would score until UK’s Patterson converted a layup with two seconds left in the period. Ole Miss would lead 17-16 after 10 minutes of play.
Ole Miss scored the first four points of the second period to lead 21-16. Kentucky would get a layup from Patterson to cut it to 21-18 but Ole Miss’ Shakira Austin answered with a layup of her own. Patterson then made another driving basket to cut the Ole Miss lead to 23-20.
After Ole Miss extended the lead to 27-20, Patterson hit from behind the arc to make it 27-23 with 5:43 left in the half. But the Rebels scored the next eight points to build the lead to 35-23 with 2:57 remaining in the half.
Kentucky was able to stop the run on a pair of Howard free throws with 2:08 left in the half, cutting the deficit to 35-25. After an Ole Miss basket, Howard hit two more free throws to cut the Ole Miss lead to 37-28. But the Rebels would score the last four points of the half to lead 41-28 at the break.
In the second half, Kentucky looked like a different team. The Cats came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders. UK got the scoring started on a three from Jazmine Massengill. Kentucky then got layups from Howard and Patterson to cut the lead to 41-35. After Ole Miss’ Austin hit a jumper, Kentucky got a Tatyana Wyatt layup and a Patterson three to cut the deficit to 43-40. It was a 12-2 run for the Cats
Ole Miss would not go away quietly. The Rebels answered UK’s run with one of their own. Ole Miss went on a 10-4 run to extend the lead back to nine, 53-44, with 2:43 left in the period. The Rebels would lead 55-47 after three periods.
Howard got the scoring started in the fourth quarter with a three, cutting the deficit to 55-50. After a pair of Ole Miss free throws, Howard would score again to make it 57-52. But the Cats would get no closer
NO. 15 KENTUCKY AT OLE MISS
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2021
THE PAVILION AT OLE MISS – OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI
No. 15 Kentucky 60, Ole Miss 72 – FINAL
Team Records and Series Notes
- Kentucky is 13-5 on the season and 6-4 in the SEC, while Ole Miss is 8-7 on the year and 2-7 in the SEC.
- This was the 43rd all-time meeting between Kentucky and Ole Miss in women’s basketball.
- Ole Miss leads the series 24-19, including a 14-8 mark in games played in Oxford.
- Kyra Elzy is in her first season as head coach at Kentucky.
- Elzy is now 13-5 as head coach of Kentucky.
- UK is now 858-553 all-time in its 47th year of varsity women’s basketball.
- Kentucky is ranked No. 15 in the latest AP Top 25 and No. 14 in the USA Today/Coaches Top 25.
- The Wildcats will return to action Thursday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. ET vs. Tennessee.
- The game will be played at Rupp Arena and be stream on SEC Network+.
Team Notes
- Kentucky used the starting combination of senior guard Chasity Patterson, senior forwards Tatyana Wyatt and KeKe McKinney and junior guards Blair Green and Rhyne Howard.
- This was the third time this season that UK has used this starting combination, holding a 2-1 record in those games.
- Blair Green scored first for Kentucky in the game – the third time this season she has been the first Wildcat to score.
- Dre’una Edwards and Robyn Benton were the first subs for Kentucky.
- It is the team-leading 11th time this season that Benton has been the first sub and the sixth time for Edwards.
- Ole Miss won the tip, marking the 13th time this season that UK has lost the opening tip.
- Kentucky held a 14-9 lead with 4:54 to go in the first quarter but the Rebels responded with an 8-0 run to retake the lead.
- UK hit just one of its last eight field goal attempts in the quarter.
- The one make was a Chasity Patterson floater at the buzzer to make it 17-16 Ole Miss at the break.
- Ole Miss picked up right where it left off by starting the second quarter with four straight points after forcing back-to-back UK turnovers.
- The quick 4-0 run led to a UK timeout just :29 seconds into the second quarter.
- Chasity Patterson ended the run with a layup at the 8:30 mark.
- Kentucky trailed 41-28 at halftime after the Rebels outscored UK 24-12 in the second quarter.
- UK was just 3-of-11 from the field in the second quarter.
- Twenty-six of Ole Miss’ 41 first-half points were scored in the paint.
- It was Kentucky’s largest deficit in an SEC game this season and tied the longest of any game. UK also trailed Indiana by 13 at halftime.
- UK started the third quarter on a 12-2 run to cut the Rebels lead to three at 43-40, but would get no closer as Ole Miss stretched the lead to 55-47 at the end of the third quarter.
- Ole Miss won the fourth quarter 17-13 to clinch the win.
Player Notes
- Junior guard Rhyne Howard scored 26 points with 10 rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
- Howard has made 192 career 3s, which ranks fourth most in school history.
- Howard has 1,454 career points as a Wildcat, which ranks her 14th all-time in scoring at UK.
- She needs 28 more points to tie Stacey Reed for 13th all-time.
- This was the fifth double-double of the season for Howard and her second straight.
- In 74 career games, Howard has …
- Hit at least one 3 in 66 career games, including 13 games this season.
- Made three or more 3s in 33 career games, including seven games this season.
- Scored 10+ points in 66 career games, including 14 games this season.
- Scored 15+ points in 53 career games, including 10 games this season.
- Scored 20+ points in 38 career games, including seven games this season.
- Scored 25+ points in 20 career games, including twice this season.
- Led UK in scoring in 46 career games, including eight times this season.
- Led UK in rebounding in 39 games career games, including eight games this season.
- Led UK in assists in 24 career games, including eight games this season.
- Led UK in steals in 24 career games, including one game this season.
- Led UK in blocks in 26 career games, including five games this season..
- Senior guard Chasity Patterson scored 14 points with two steals.
Kentucky has Sunday off and will not play again until next Thursday. That’s when the Cats will host Tennessee at Rupp Arena. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ETand the game can be seen on SEC Network Plus.