Cats Come Up Short at South Carolina
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Kevin Knox scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds, but No. 18 Kentucky fell to South Carolina 76-68 on Tuesday night at Colonial Life Arena.
Knox scored at least 20 points for the fifth time this season, and also notched his 14th double-figure scoring effort.
Kentucky (14-4, 4-2 SEC) got 12 points from Nick Richards and 10 from PJ Washington.
Jarred Vanderbilt saw his first playing time of the season, and the freshman responded with six points, five rebounds and three assists in 14 minutes of action.
The Wildcats hit 22 of their 49 field goal attempts (44.9 percent), but Kentucky made only one of its 11 shots from behind the arc. Kentucky was also hampered by 16 turnovers.
South Carolina jumped out to a 7-0 lead to begin the game, forcing Kentucky into an early timeout. The Gamecocks would lead by as many as nine, 21-12, before the Wildcats rallied. In fact, Kentucky would assemble a 14-3 run to take a 26-24 lead with 6:40 left in the half.
The teams traded leads for the rest of the half until Kentucky hit three free throws inside the half’s final minute to take a 37-34 lead into the break.
Kentucky seemed to take control early in the second half, as a 15-4 run gave the Cats a 52-38 advantage with 13:25 remaining. The Wildcats had a 57-43 lead with 11:34 left in the game when South Carolina mounted its rally.
The Gamecocks would go on a 22-8 run to tie the game at 65 apiece with 4:02 left in the game. And South Carolina would continue its hot stretch, finishing the game on a 33-11 run to win by eight. Kentucky missed its last eight shots from the field and did not have a field goal in the final 6:12 of the game.
South Carolina’s Chris Silva led all scorers with 27 points, while Frank Booker added 18 for the Gamecocks.
Kentucky returns to action on Saturday, when the Wildcats host Florida at Rupp Arena. Tipoff is at 8:15 p.m. and the game can be seen on ESPN.
