No. 13 Kentucky Begins 2020 at No. 4 South Carolina
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Coming off a strong performance in the non-conference portion of its schedule with 11 wins, the No. 13 University of Kentucky women’s basketball team looks for more of the same as the calendar rolls to 2020 as it begins Southeastern Conference play Thursday at No. 4 South Carolina at 7 p.m. ET inside Colonial Life Arena.
The game will be shown in its entirety online at SEC Network+ with Courtney Lyle and Carolyn Peck on the call. SEC Network will begin its whip around coverage of all of Thursday’s action with the Wildcats and Gamecocks before breaking off into other games. Fans who want to see the entire UK-SC game should rely on SEC Network+. Darren Headrick will have the call on the UK Sports Network on 630AM WLAP in Lexington. Live stats and free live audio will be available online at UKathletics.com.
Kentucky (11-1) is coming off a thrilling 63-61 win at California before the holiday break. After scoring 22 points in the first half, the Wildcats scored 41 in the second half thanks to 24 second-half points from Rhyne Howard, who hit a 15-foot jumper with :03 seconds remaining to win the game. Howard scored 19 points in the fourth quarter alone, hitting four 3s in the game. The win ended Kentucky’s non-conference schedule with 11 victories, including three on the road. UK’s only loss this season came to top-10 ranked Louisville, falling in a tight battle to the in-state rivals by one point.
So far this season, it has been the Kentucky defense that has been the team’s backbone as the Wildcats are allowing just 48.7 points per game which ranks top-10 nationally and first in the SEC. UK is the only team in the league that has limited every opponent this season 67 points or less. As a team, the Wildcats are averaging 73.1 points per game, hitting 42.6 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from long range. UK ranks high nationally in turnovers forced and turnover margin forcing 278 turnovers this year and scoring nearly 300 points off those miscues.
Howard leads Kentucky with 20.9 points per game adding 5.4 rebounds per game along with a team-best 25 steals and 30 assists. The sophomore has scored 20 or more points in seven games this season and ranks high nationally in total points and points per game. Senior guard Sabrina Haines is averaging 10.9 points per game and ranks high in the league in 3-point field-goal percentage at 44.4 percent. Senior guard Jaida Roper is averaging 8.5 points per game and leads with 49 assists, while sophomore guard Blair Green is averaging 7.5 points per game and has hit nine 3s. Junior guard Chasity Patterson, who played her first game for Kentucky against Cal, scored nine points in the game and led Kentucky with four steals. Junior forwards Tatyana Wyatt and KeKe McKinney are having nice seasons with Wyatt averaging 7.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game while McKinney is averaging 6.6 points per game and 4.5 rebounds per game with 23 blocks.
South Carolina enters Thursday game ranks No. 4 in the Associated Press Top 25 and No. 5 in the USA Today/Coaches Top 25. The Gamecocks have played four games against ranked teams this season, defeating then-No. 4/5 Maryland, then-No. 2/2 Baylor and then-No. 25/21 South Dakota. The only loss for the Gamecocks was to No. 17/23 Indiana in the 2019 Paradise Jam. SC is 6-0 at home this season and are on a four-game home stretch with wins against Purdue, Duke and South Dakota.
As a team, the Gamecocks are averaging 81.0 points per game this season hitting 46.0 percent from the field and 35.6 percent from long range. South Carolina is limiting teams to 52.7 points per game and just 30.8 percent from the field and 27.6 percent from long range. SC has a +11.3 rebounding margin and +3.3 turnover margin this season.
Senior forward Mikiah Herbert Harrigan is leading the team with 12.9 points per game this season adding 6.5 rebounds per game, while freshman post Aliyah Boston is averaging 12.6 points per game with a team-best 7.6 rebounds per game and 41 blocks. Senior guard Tyasha Harris is averaging 11.8 points per game with a team-best 62 assists while freshman guard Zia Cooke is the final Gamecock in double figures with 10.4 points per game.
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
