Feb. 15, 2003
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KENTUCKY POST-GAME NOTES
Final score: Kentucky 68, Louisiana State 57
Kentucky is now 20-3 overall, 10-0 in the Southeastern Conference. LSU is 14-9 overall, 3-8 in the league.
Kentucky has a 14-game win streak, the longest active streak in the nation following losses earlier this week by Manhattan and Louisville.
Fourteen consecutive wins represent UK’s longest single-season winning streak under Coach Orlando “Tubby” Smith. The Wildcats had an overlapping win streak of 17 under Smith – the final 13 games of the 1998 national championship season, plus the first four games of the 1998-99 campaign.
This is Kentucky’s 13th consecutive 20-win season, including Coach Rick Pitino’s final seven seasons at UK and all six years under Smith. This is the 38th 20-win season in the 100 years of Kentucky basketball.
Coach Smith has 10 consecutive 20-win seasons as a head coach, including six at Kentucky, two at Georgia, and two at Tulsa.
Kentucky leads the LSU series 73-21, including 36-4 in Lexington.
Kentucky has won its last nine games by double-figure margins.
Today’s game is the sixth time in the last nine games that the “SuffoCats” have held their opponent under 40 percent field goal shooting. UK limited LSU to 21 points in the first half, tying the Tigers’ season low for points in a half.
Once again, Kentucky put the clamps on the opponent’s top scorer. Forward Ronald Dupree, averaging 15.9 points entering today’s game, was limited to 10 today. Dupree had only four points in the game’s first 35 minutes, including just two in the first half, before getting six on the board during LSU’s late rally.
LSU had 17 turnovers today. UK’s opponents have averaged 18.3 turnovers per game during the Wildcats’ 14-game winning streak.
Key run: leading 34-30, UK went on a 20-5 run for a 54-35 lead. Most of the points came with UK’s “small” lineup on the floor, as Marquis Estill and Jules Camara were in foul trouble with four fouls each.
After LSU rallied late in the game, cutting the margin to five, UK made its last six free throws to seal the win.
Junior forward Erik Daniels and sophomore forward Chuck Hayes each claimed 10 rebounds. It was the second straight game that two Wildcats had double-figure rebounds. Ten boards is a career high for Daniels.
Hayes had a career-high six blocked shots, the most rejections by a Wildcat this season. Hayes also played a career-high 35 minutes, despite playing with a severe hip contusion.
Junior forward Antwain Barbour had six rebounds and three steals, both of which marked his highs as a Wildcat.
UK’s “Kingfitch,” junior guard Gerald Fitch, again rose to the top in the second half. After scoring two points in the opening half, he poured in 13 in the second stanza for a total of 15.
Senior guard Keith Bogans finished with a game-high 20 points and added seven rebounds. It was his ninth 20-point effort this season, his 32nd of his career. He’s now three points shy of Alex Groza, who owns ninth place on the all-time UK scoring chart. Bogans has 1,741 points.
Kentucky returns to action Wednesday at 8 p.m. EST at Arkansas. The game will be a live regional telecast by Jefferson-Pilot Sports.
