Kentucky Falls to Tennessee in SEC Tournament on Thursday
Ajae Petty scored 12 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, but the Kentucky women’s basketball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday as the Cats lost to Tennessee 76-62 in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament.
For Petty, it was her 18th double-double of the season and the 20th of her college career.
Saniah Tyler led UK in scoring with 17 points and Eniya Russell came off the bench to score 11. The Cats were again without Maddie Scherr, who missed the game due to injury.
Kentucky (12-20) got off to a quick start, getting offense from some unexpected sources. The Cats took an early lead on an Emma King three and a Cassidy Rowe jumper. After Tennessee got a three, Rowe hit a three of her own to give UK an 8-3 advantage. Tennessee would answer with an 11-6 run to tie the game at 14-14.
Tyler scored to give the Cats a 16-14 lead before UT tied the game. An Eniya Russell layup gave UK an 18-16 advantage before a Sara Puckett three gave the Lady Vols a 19-18 lead, which would be the score after one period of play.
Both teams struggled offensively in the second quarter. Kentucky made just one of its first six shots and had four turnovers early in the period, while Tennessee made just two of its first 10 and had three turnovers. It proved to be a low-scoring period and when it ended, the Lady Vols had a 28-26 lead.
Kentucky tied the game early in the third quarter on an Amiya Jenkins basket. After Tennessee took a 30-28 lead, UK tied it again on a Rowe jumper. However, Tennessee scored the next five points to lead 35-30.
UK would respond, with Petty converting a layup, then a Jenkins layup and free throw, tying the game at 35 apiece. But Tennessee scored the next 10 points and the Lady Vols would lead 53-44 through three quarters.
Tyler did her best to keep the Cats in the game in the fourth quarter. She scored seven of UK’s first nine points in the final period, getting UK within nine, 63-54.
