Men's Basketball

KENTUCKY MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES 
HOLIDAY HOOPSGIVING
KENTUCKY VS. GEORGIA TECH

STATE FARM ARENA | ATLANTA
DEC. 6, 2020 
ATTENDANCE: 0 (No fans were permitted due to COVID-19 protocols)
 
Final Score: Georgia Tech 79, No. 20/9 Kentucky 62
 
Team Records and Series Notes                                       

  • Kentucky falls to 1-3 and Georgia Tech is 1-2.
  • UK is 57-16 against Georgia Tech all-time and 9-3 in neutral-site games.
  • Next: Kentucky returns home to host Notre Dame on Saturday. The game will air live on CBS at Noon. 

Player Notes   

  • Terrence Clarke led the Wildcats with a career-high 22 points.

    • He also made his first 3-pointers of his career and finished with a trio.
  • Brandon Boston Jr. scored 11 points and had four rebounds.
    • He’s scored in double figures in all four games.
  • Isaiah Jackson finished with nine points, 12 rebounds, four assists, a block and a steal.
    • He had nine rebounds in the opening half.
    • He’s the first UK player with double-digit rebounds in three straight games since PJ Washington from Jan. 26-Feb. 2, 2019.

Coach John Calipari 

  • Calipari is now 331-80 at UK.
  • Calipari has a 776-220 all-time on-court record. 
  • UK is 268-46 all-time under Calipari against Associated Press unranked teams.
  • Kentucky is 55-15 under Calipari following a loss.
    • This is just the second time in his 12-year run as UK’s coach he has dropped three or more games in a row. UK lost four straight during the 2017-18 season.
  • The Wildcats are 78-25 under Calipari at neutral sites.
  • It was Calipari’s first loss to a former assistant. He was 17-0.
    • John Pastner, Georgia Tech’s head coach, was an assistant under Calipari during the 2008-09 season. 

Team Notes 

  • Kentucky is 1-3 for the first time since the 2000-01 season. That team went on to finish the year ranked in the top 10 of both major polls. The Wildcats also were co-champions of the Southeastern Conference and won the league tournament.
  • Kentucky is 70-33 in the Atlanta metro area in program history.
  • UK is 58-42 all-time against teams comprising the Atlantic Coast Conference and will play its second straight ACC opponent on Saturday.
  • The Wildcats committed 21 turnovers and have 15 or more in all four games this season.
    • Georgia Tech converted those turnovers into 33 points.
  • UK had struggled from 3-point range in its first three games, but made a season-high 8 of 20 (40%) in today’s outing.
  • The Wildcats dished out 16 assists, two off from a season high.
  • Kentucky outrebounded Georgia Tech 28-23 and have outrebounded opponents in three of four games.
  • Georgia Tech shot 51.7% (31 of 60) from the field. It’s the first time a UK opponent has shot higher than 50% this season.

In the First Half 

  • The starting lineup consisted of freshmen Devin Askew, Brandon Boston Jr., Terrence Clarke, Isaiah Jackson and senior Olivier Sarr, for the third time this season and second straight game.

    • For the fourth straight game, Davion Mintz was UK’s first substitute at the 15:17 mark.
  • After another slow start offensively, Clarke scored UK’s first bucket at the 17:07 mark and then assisted Boston on his first 3-pointer of the season.
  • Georgia Tech, powered by a pair of traditional three-point plays, claimed a 10-5 lead with just under 14 to play.
  • Jackson sparked the start of a 6-0 run for the Wildcats as they grabbed an 11-10 lead with an offensive rebound that turned into a Clarke 3-pointer and then a block on the defensive end on the next possession.
  • Clarke scored 13 of UK’s first 20 points.
  • The Yellow Jackets took their largest lead of the half fueled by a 13-0 spurt to push the lead to 10 at 32-22.
    • An Askew 3-pointer snapped the run with 1:19 to play in the half.
  • Kentucky faced a 34-27 halftime deficit, it’s first of the season.
  • There were eight lead changes and two ties in the first 20 minutes.
  • The Wildcats committed 12 turnovers in the first half and have committed double-digit miscues in all four games this season.
    • UK knocked down four 3-pointers in the first half. UK had only made three in its last two games.

 In the Second Half 

  • Askew, Boston, Clarke, Jackson and Sarr opened the second half as UK’s starters.
  • Georgia Tech got off to a quick start and earned a 41-30 lead at 17:24.
  • Kentucky rebounded with a 7-0 spurt of its own to pull to within four at 41-37.
    • Georgia Tech generated a 4-0 run of its own to claim a three-possession lead.
  • A Jackson floater pulled Kentucky to within three at 45-42, but the Yellow Jackets utilized a 16-4 run to earn a 17-point lead at 61-44 with 8:05 to play.

 
 
 

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