KENTUCKY VS. AUBURN
THURSDAY, JAN. 26, 2023
MEMORIAL COLISEUM – LEXINGTON, KY.
Auburn 71, Kentucky 68 – FINAL
Team Records and Series Notes
- The University of Kentucky women’s basketball program is in its 49th season with an 891-580 (.605) all-time record.
- The Wildcats are now 9-11 overall and 1-7 in the league.
- The Tigers are now 12-8 overall and 2-6. in the league.
- Kyra Elzy is in her third season as the head coach of the Wildcats, holding a 46-32 overall record.
- She has an 18-21 overall record in the SEC.
- Auburn leads the all-time meetings over Kentucky, 27-26, in a series that began in 1980.
- UK remains the leader in games played in Lexington, 12-11.
- Kentucky will play host to Missouri on Sunday, Jan. 29 at 3 p.m. ET inside Memorial Coliseum on SEC Network for its annualNational Girls and Women in Sports Day game.
Team Notes
- Kentucky used the starting combination Jada Walker, Maddie Scherr, Robyn Benton, Blair Green and Nyah Leveretter for the 14th game this season. UK is 6-8 using that starting combination.
- Kentucky won the opening tip.
- Robyn Benton was the first player to score for Kentucky.
- Kennedy Cambridge and Adebola Adeyeye were the first substitutes off the bench for Kentucky.
- Kentucky held a two-point lead over Auburn, 10-8, at the first quarter media timeout (2:56), shooting 40.0 percent from the floor on four of 10 attempts.
- The Wildcats turned the ball over five times in the first seven minutes and four seconds of the game, allowing the Tigers to score seven of its eight points off those miscues.
- Auburn scored out of the timeout, then the Wildcats went on a 7-0 run, which included a make behind the arc by Emma King, before the Tigers went on a 5-0 run, which included an and-one play.
- Maddie Scherr capped the first quarter with a long two.
- Kentucky led Auburn, 18-15, at the end of the first quarter.
- Robyn Benton scored on a jumper to open the second quarter, then Auburn went on a 12-0 run to take a 26-20 lead at the 5:36 mark.
- Kentucky used the next two minutes to go on a 7-2 run to get within one point, 28-27, before the media timeout at 3:52.
- Out of the timeout, the two teams went back-and-forth in scoring until the end of the first half, with neither team going on a run greater than four points.
- The score was tied at 35-35 and Tigers, who had the ball with more than 30 seconds remaining in the half, drained a 3-pointer at the 11-second mark.
- Auburn led Kentucky, 38-35, at halftime.
- The Cats committed 12 turnovers in the first half, while the Tigers scored 21 points off those errors.
- The Tigers stretched their lead to seven points with a 4-0 run out of the break.
- However, Jada Walker’s layup at 8:10 in the third quarter sparked an 8-2 run to get the Cats back into contention.
- That included a 6-0 run by Scherr herself, which consisted of a 3-pointer and an and-one play.
- That 8-2 run helped Kentucky get within one point of Auburn, 43-44, with seven minutes and 25 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
- Auburn then went on a 9-0 run to take its largest lead in the game, 53-43, at 3:35 in the third quarter, which prompted Kentucky to take a timeout.
- Out of the timeout, AU stretched that to an 11-0 run and a 12-point lead.
- Nyah Leveretter drew a foul on Kentucky’s next possession and knocked down one of two attempts at the line at 2:15 to eclipse Auburn’s scoring streak.
- That was the start of a 7-4 run to take the Cats into the quarter break. Five of those seven points were free throws.
- Auburn led Kentucky, 59-50, at the end of the third quarter.
- However, Jada Walker’s layup at 8:10 in the third quarter sparked an 8-2 run to get the Cats back into contention.
- Auburn scored on a layup out of the break, but then Kentucky rallied a little 5-0 run to chip away at its trail, which included a jumper by Scherr and a three-point make by Benton.
- The Wildcats turned that into a 10-1 run to get within two points of the Tigers, 62-60, with 4:51 remaining in the game.
- The two teams evenly traded basketsover the next four minutes and 51seconds, going 8-8 down the stretch.
- Honesty Scott-Grayson made a free throw under a second left in the game to go up one.
- Auburn defeated Kentucky, 71-68.
- The Wildcats shot 42.1 percent from the field on 24-of-57 shooting, while the Tigers were 45.8 percent from the floor on 27-of-59 shooting.
- Both teams went to the line more than 20 times, with the Cats knocking down 16-of-22 and the Tigers going 15-of-20.
- Kentucky outrebounded Auburn, 36-30.
- UK committed 20 turnovers, allowing AU to scored 32 points off those miscues.
- Meanwhile, Auburn made just 16 turnovers.
Player Notes
- Graduate guard Robyn Benton led Kentucky with 19 points.
- She has scored in double digits in all 19games she has played in this season.
- She made at least one 3-pointer for the 14th straight game.
- She added three rebounds and a block
- Sophomore guard Jada Walker had14 points.
- It marked her 15th game this season she has scored at least 10 points
- She added three rebounds and a steal.
- Junior guard Maddie Scherr had 16 points.
- She has scored at least 15 points in five straight games and she has scored at least 10 points in six straight games.
- She added eight rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks.
- She leads Kentucky with an active streak of 11 straight games recording at least one steal.
- She has dished out at least three assists in 18 games this season.
- Junior forward Nyah Leveretter led Kentucky with a career-high 11 rebounds, including six offensive rebounds and five defensive rebounds.
- She added five points on 1-of-2 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the line.
- Graduate forward Adebola Adeyeye had a complete game with six points, six rebounds, two steals, a season-high tying two blocks and an assist.
UK ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME QUOTES
Kentucky Head Coach Kyra Elzy
On how she feels about the post players …
“I was so proud of Ade (Adebola Adeyeye), and our whole post group. I challenged them before the game. We needed 15 rebounds between that group. We needed at least 12 plus points. We needed them to sell out defensively. I thought Ade brought the defensive energy that we needed. She made some big buckets down the stretch. Huge defensive plays. And then Nyah Leveretter. 11 boards, six of them offensively, five points. So, I thought today, they brought what we need to continue to move this team forward.”
On the final play …
“We were in the bonus. We rearranged the lineup. Obviously, I want the ball in Maddie (Scherr), Jada (Walker), or Robyn Benton’s hands, so we shuffled the alignment. We needed something quick and going downhill because we were in the bonus, trying to turn the corner and get to the rim, shoot a layup, or get fouled. You’re only down by two. The ball went back to Robyn – which, we want it in her hands – and then we didn’t read it from there. The ball went to a freshman, and she was trying to make a play downhill, which we needed, but we can’t put her in that position.”
On message sending your team going on 9-11 this season …
“Obviously, this is a new team. And, you know, we have to find a way to finish. I talked about it in the pregame to them. It’s not what you want to do or how you think you should do it. It’s what we need to do. And all of the intangibles. In this league, every possession matters. We can’t take any possessions off whether it’s hitting a free throw, getting a box out, or finishing a layup. We need all of the intangibles to finish as you say these games are coming down to one possession game.”
On experimenting new lineups with a five-guard lineup…
“Yeah, you know, we talk about it, but it’s also depending on who you’re playing. It is great on offense with a five-guard lineup. On the flip side, if they have two bigs, that’s not necessarily a great matchup on the other end. You just go back to the drawing board. See what we can do, down, but not defeated and we just have to go back to work.”
On Maddie’s fifth game straight scoring 15 or more points …
“You know, Maddie has really stepped up. I love her heart, competitiveness, and spirit. She has a high basketball IQ. She’s playing to win and that’s the mentality that we want and need.”
| Camiran “Cami” MooreAssistant Director of UK Athletics Communications & Public RelationsWomen’s Basketball, Women’s Golf, Football | |
| University of Kentucky AthleticsJoe Craft Center | 338 Lexington Ave.Lexington, Ky. 40506-0604 | |
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