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The University of Kentucky women?s basketball team overcame a 13-point deficit in the first half to defeat Big 10 opponent Northwestern, 67-60, Sunday in Memorial Coliseum. With their second win in three days, the Cats move to 2-0 on the season.
?I thought we really fought hard after we got down 13 (points),? UK Coach Mickie DeMoss said. ?We didn?t fold and we fought hard and came back. Overall, I was proud of what we did and how we fought back. We found a way to win. I?m not sure that our wins are going to be real pretty, but I?ll take them. I?m real happy for this team.?
Northwestern came out on fire in the opening minutes, shooting 46.2 percent from the floor and taking a 21-8 lead. Kentucky never let down as junior guard Sara Potts drained a three-pointer with 9:03 left in the first half to cut the lead to ten. That three-pointer by Potts sparked a 14-2 run and fueled an offensive attack.
?That shot made me feel really good,? said Potts, who hit double digits for the second consecutive game and finished with 17 points. ?It made me play harder just by hitting those shots. It?s good to be making those three-pointers again.?
With three starters on the bench, the UK reserves continued to dig into the deficit as Keiko Tate hit two consecutive jumpers to pull UK within seven, 23-16. Pressure defense and a packed Memorial Coliseum crowd of 3,298 chanting ?defense?, helped UK force two Northwestern turnovers. Potts then sank her second three-pointer of the night, stole the ball and passed it to freshman point guard Angela Phillips who drove to the lane and was fouled. Phillips, who chipped in seven points and five assists off the bench, sank the layup and following free throw, helping the Cats take their first lead of the game, 30-29, at the break.
?Angela has a point guard mentality that?s hard to teach,? DeMoss said. ?She gets everybody where they need to be, has good leadership qualities and plays with a lot of energy that picks everybody up a notch. She brings a lot of intangibles on the court. She?s very poised for a freshman.?
The Cats continued to play suffocating defense and held Northwestern to one point in the first five minutes in the second half. The visiting Wildcats made it interesting, however, by rattling off ten straight points to tie the game at 43 apiece with 8:11 remaining in the game. Two Potts free throws and a Shambrica Jones steal and lay-in pushed UK back to an eight-point advantage. NU remained strong and closed the gap to 64-60 with a three-pointer by Samantha McComb with 23 seconds left. The Cats hit 3-of-4 free throws and Northwestern missed two three-point attempts in the end to seal the 67-60 victory.
?We?re a new team with a new dream,? Helm said. ?We have a different mindset. We?re just different all around. We fought so hard for this game, and there was no way we were going to walk out of here with a loss.?
Helm led Kentucky for the second consecutive game with 20 points, tying her with Karen Mosely for No. 16 on UK?s all-time scoring list with 1,135 points. With nine rebounds, Helm also led UK in rebounding and was one board away from her tenth career double-double.
Jones also had an impressive outing with nine points and eight rebounds, while Jenny Pfeiffer contributed eight.
Kentucky shot 46.3 percent from the field for the game while NU finished with 41.5 percent.
UK was outrebounded by the visiting Cats, 33-32, but forced 14 Northwestern turnovers that resulted in 20 UK points. The Cats committed only 10 turnovers in the game with just four coming in the second half.
NU (1-1) was led by Ifeoma Okonkwo and McComb?s 16 and 14 points, respectively. Sarah Kwasinski led the team with 10 rebounds and five assists.
The Cats return to action on Tuesday, Nov. 25 to face No. 14 North Carolina at 7 p.m. Kentucky is 11-3 all time in Rupp Arena.
