No. 15 Kentucky Wins at Florida on Thursday
Georgia Amoore scored 18 points and the 15th-ranked Kentucky women’s basketball team beat Florida 71-55 on Thursday at Exactech Arena in Gainesville.
Dazia Lawrence had 14 points for the Cats, while Clara Strack had 12 points and eight rebounds.
The Cats forced 20 Florida turnovers and turned those miscues into 25 points.
Kentucky (14-1, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) got off to a hot start in Thursday’s game. Strack hit a baseline jumper just 13 seconds into the game, then the Cats got an Amoore layup and a Lawrence three to lead 7-0. After Florida got on the board, Amoore completed an old fashioned three-point play, making it 10-2 early.
After Florida hit a three, UK got consecutive baskets from Teonni Key to lead 14-5. Florida hit a pair of free throws before Amelia Hassett hit a three from the top of the key, giving the Cats a 17-7 lead. The Gators scored the next three points, but UK would lead 20-10 after one quarter.
Kentucky scored the first five points of the second quarter on a Lawrence three and an Amoore layup, building the lead to 25-10. After a Florida basket, Saniah Tyler hit a jumper for the Cats, followed by a Lawrence three to make it 30-12.
Florida (10-7, 1-2) hit a pair of free throws to make it 30-14, but the Cats got an Amoore basket and two Strack baskets made it 36-14. Florida scored five in a row, but UK answered with the last five points of the half, and the Cats took a 41-19 lead into the break. Amoore led all scorers with 14 points in the first half.
In the third quarter, the teams would exchange baskets, with the Cats eventually leading 49-29. Then, Clara Silva scored two straight and UK took a 53-29 advantage. Florida would end the period on an 8-3 run, but Kentucky held a 56-37 lead after three periods.
The Gators continued their surge early in the fourth quarter. Florida scored the first five points of the period and used a 10-3 run to close the gap to 58-47. Kentucky then got threes from Lawrence and Key to stretch the lead to 64-47.
Florida got within 15 points, 66-51, but Kentucky would allow the Gators to get no closer.
Kentucky returns to action on Sunday, hosting Auburn at Historic Memorial Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on the SEC Network.
