Kentucky placed four players in double figures, and the Wildcats held off a second-half rally by Arkansas to win 77-63 on Sunday at Memorial Coliseum.
Makayla Epps led Kentucky with 16 points, despite going just 6-of-19 from the floor. Epps added seven rebounds and three assists in the win, which was the fourth straight for the Wildcats.
Evelyn Akhator posted her ninth double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds for Kentucky. Sophomore Alexis Jennings had 14 points for the Wildcats, while freshman Maci Morris had 10.
Kentucky (19-6, 8-6 SEC) took the lead eight seconds into the game on a jumper by Janee Thompson. Arkansas tied the game at two, but when Batouly Camara scored on a layup with 8:42 left in the first quarter, the Wildcats held a lead that they would not relinquish for the rest of the game.
Kentucky stretched the lead to as many as 20 in the second quarter, and settled for a 44-26 lead at the break.
But in the third quarter, Arkansas put together a 13-3 run to cut Kentucky’s lead to seven at 51-44. However, the Razorbacks were unable to get any closer.
Kentucky dominated the rebounding battle, 37-24. The Wildcats grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and turned those into 15 second-chance points.
In the second quarter, Kentucky got a scare when senior guard Thompson went down with an ankle injury. Thompson was taken to the locker room and did not return to the game.
Arkansas (11-16, 6-8) was led by Jessica Jackson, who had a game-high 18 points.
Kentucky returns to action on Thursday night, facing the Missouri Tigers in Lexington. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game can be seen on SEC Network Plus.
