Jan. 22, 2012
Box Score | Quotes | Notes | AP Photo Gallery 
| Photo Gallery
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) – Kastine Evans scored all of her 10 points in the second half to help No. 6 Kentucky hold off Florida 57-52 Sunday.
The Wildcats (18-2, 7-0 Southeastern Conference) created separation early in the second half. After playing to a 21-all halftime tie, Evans scored eight points during a 17-2 Kentucky run to open the second half.
Florida led for much of the opening 20 minute, while the Wildcats couldn’t find an offensive rhythm. Kentucky leading scorer A’dia Mathies was scoreless at halftime and finished with a season-low two points.
Jordan Jones led the Gators (13-7, 3-4) with 13 points.
Florida slowly chipped away at the lead, limiting the Wildcats to just three field goals in the game’s final 10 minutes. The Gators pulled to 50-48 with 25.2 seconds left on Lanita Bartley’s layup, but the Wildcats hit seven of eight free throws in the final 30 seconds to hold on.
Mathies, the SEC’s third-leading scorer, averaged 16.1 points prior to Sunday but shot 1 of 7 from the floor in 27 minutes against the Gators.
Mathies has averaged 5.7 points in the three games since she scored 34 in a win over Tennessee on Jan. 12. She missed a pair of free throws with 1:01 left that allowed Bartley’s layup to put Florida within one possession for the first time in about 19 minutes of play.
Kentucky stretched its second-half lead as wide as 15 with 13:19 to play before the Gators had a 6-0 run to trim the deficit to single digits.
