Kentucky-South Carolina Postgame Notes

Jan. 11, 2015

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Kentucky falls to 14-3, 3-1 SEC, while South Carolina improves to 16-0, 4-0 SEC.
Kentucky moves to 726-489 (63.1) all-time in 41 seasons of varsity women’s basketball and 191-159 (55.1) in the month of January.
Matthew Mitchell, UK’s all-time winningest coach, falls to 214-103 overall, 184-74 at UK.
- Mitchell is now 74-38 in SEC play, 9-7 vs. South Carolina.
This was the 53rd meeting between the programs since UK became a varsity sport in 1974-75.
- UK leads the all-time series 31-22, but now trails, 9-16 in Columbia.
- Marks UK’s third straight loss in Columbia.
The Cats are now 2-2 vs. the ranked this season, including 2-1 vs. top-10 teams.
UK falls to 1-17 all-time vs. No. 1 teams.
South Carolina visits Lexington on March 1 in Memorial Coliseum for Senior Day.
Today’s attendance was 17,156.
Next up: UK faces Florida on Thursday night at 7 p.m. ET in Memorial Coliseum. The game will be shown live on the SEC Network.

UK started with the lineup of Janee Thompson, Alexis Jennings, Linnae Harper, Makayla Epps and Azia Bishop for the first time this season.
- UK is 1-1 with this lineup and has used it the last two games.
Every UK player that played in the first half scored.
Senior Jen O’Neill led all UK scorers with nine points in the first half.
UK forced South Carolina into seven turnovers. Kentucky scored 12 points off of the Gamecocks’ turnovers. USC only managed to score seven points off of UK’s seven turnovers.
Kentucky trailed by as many as six points at 7-1, before taking its largest lead of the half at seven points with 4:58 remaining in the first half.
UK went on a 12-5 run to take a 30-23 lead, its largest of the half. UK had four different players score during that stretch.
Kentucky shot 42.4 percent from the floor, going 14-of-33 in the opening half, including 2-of-6 (33.3) from 3-point range.
UK had 16 bench points to South Carolina’s nine.
The lead changed nine different times, with two ties in the opening 20 minutes.
The Wildcats went 8-of-10 from the free-throw line.
UK is now 6-1 when leading at the half. It marked the first time this year UK lost when leading at the half.

UK began the second half with Janee Thompson, Makayla Epps, Azia Bishop, Jen O’Neill and Alexis Jennings.
South Carolina opened the second half on a 9-2 run.
Kentucky’s Janee Thompson left the game with under five minutes with a dislocated left ankle injury.
Kentucky shot 3-of-19 in the second half for 15.8 percent, a season low for a half.
USC shot 19 free throws in the second half, making 13 of them.
South Carolina outscored Kentucky 33-22 in the second half.

UK held South Carolina to 68 points, USC’s third-lowest scoring output of the season.
Coming into the game, USC was shooting an SEC-high .501 percent from the floor. UK held the Cocks to just 33.8 percent, their lowest of the season.
Kentucky forced 16 turnovers, scoring 19 points.
- UK is now 13-2 this season when forcing double-digit turnovers.
- It’s the first time in 10 games UK did not force 20 or more turnovers.

The Wildcats outscored South Carolina 20-15 in bench points.
Kentucky had 11 assists on its 22 made baskets.
UK had 10 steals in the game, marking the fifth straight game in double digits.
The Wildcats recorded eight blocks, the second highest of the season.
All eight Wildcats scored at least three points and grabbed at least one rebound.

Senior guard Jen O’Neill scored 13 points off the bench.
- Marks her fifth straight game in double figures and now has scored in double digits in 14 of 16 games this season.
- Has made a 3-pointer in seven straight games.
Freshman forward Alexis Jennings scored 10 points, while grabbing four rebounds.
- Marks her eighth game in double figures this season, including seven of the last eight.
- Her two blocks ties her career high.
Junior point guard Janee Thompson scored nine points before exiting the game with a dislocated left ankle.

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