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Kentucky is led by junior sharpshooter Sara Potts? 25 points
Sharpshooter Sara Potts blitzed the nets for 25 points while SeSe Helm and Jennifer Humphrey added 17 and 13 points, respectively to lead the Kentucky women?s basketball to a 88-59 victory over the Premier All-Stars on Saturday in Memorial Coliseum.
The Cats struggled to break away from the All-Stars in the first half, taking a slight 35-29 lead at the half. UK came out strong in the second half and built its first double-digit lead just over a minute into the second stanza. The Premier All-Stars, who saw only seven players reach the floor, battled back to trim the lead to 49-44 with 13:15 left in the game. UK?s transition offense took charge and Potts reeled off eight of the next 11 points to break open the lead. The Cats never looked back and breezed to the 29-point victory.
?Against certain teams we aren?t going to get those easy looks, but against this team tonight we were able to take advantage of their lack of transition defense,? UK Coach Mickie DeMoss said. ?The up-tempo style of play is what I enjoy coaching and most players enjoy playing. We were able to run and make good decisions in the second half. That allowed us to extend our lead.?
Potts? 25 points, which would have been a career-high, were accompanied by six rebounds, two assists and a steal while Helm added seven rebounds. Humphrey was the Cats? leading rebounder, pulling down eight boards. Senior point guard Racquel Ellis charted eight points and six assists while freshman point guard Angela Phillips also dished out six assists.
?We have team goals that we set and it seems like the last two games we?ve reached most of those goals,? DeMoss said. ?Sometimes, it doesn?t look pretty, but we?re finding ways to win and that?s the important thing.?
Both teams came out sluggish to start the game as UK shot 32.6 percent from the floor in the first half compared to Premier All-Stars? 30.8 percent shooting. The All-Stars continued to hang close with most of their points coming from the free throw line. Premier hit 13 of 15 from the charity stripe and was 19 of 27 for the game.
?I thought we came out the second half and played a little better and more disciplined on defense,? DeMoss said. ?We quit fouling so much and our tempo was a lot better. We pushed the ball and got some easy baskets. Our running game looked good and we challenged people to get on the boards in the second half. (Rebounding) is something that we?ve been working extremely hard on.?
The Cats dominated the boards with a 58-35 advantage. UK also committed only 12 turnovers while dishing out 17 assists. UK turned 16 Premier miscues into 10 points and behind the play of Helm and Humphrey, outscored the exhibition team 50-20 in the paint.
?We?ve emphasized taking care of the ball tonight,? DeMoss said. ?I?m a tough critic and I think we can still get better, but we are making better decisions. I think the team has taken more pride in taking care of the ball.?
The Cats are 4-1 all-time vs. the Premier All-Stars. UK defeated Athletes in Action in its first exhibition of the season, 73-64.
Premier was led by former Ohio State star Tomeka Brown?s 18 points. The 2001 WNIT Most Valuable Player Jamie Lewis and former Kodak All-American honorable mention Lisa Cline also contributed double-figure scoring with 15 and 12 points, respectively.
UK opens regular season play on Friday, Nov. 15, against IUPU-Ft. Wayne at 6 p.m. in Memorial Coliseum. Free UK schedule magnets will be given to the first 500 fans.
