Kentucky shot a season-high 57.6 percent from the field and five Wildcats scored in double figures to lead the UK Hoops team to a 90-60 win against Alabama-Birmingham Saturday in Memorial Coliseum.
The Wildcats (7-3) connected on 34 of their 59 shots from the floor and hit a season-high 80.8 percent (21-of-26) from the free-throw line. While the Cats were dominated offensively they also were able to hold the Blazers (1-8) to just 33.9 percent (20-of-59) shooting and forced them to commit 23 turnovers. UK was able to make the most of UAB?s miscues, scoring 29 points off the Blazers? turnovers.
Junior forward/center Jennifer Humphrey and junior transfer Nastassia Alcus combined for 36 points, leading the team with 18 points apiece. Humphrey?s 18 were a season-high while Alcius notched a career-high to complement a career-high five assists. Senior guard/forward Sara Potts moved up to 13th place on UK?s career scoring list with 13 points while Keiko Tate and Sam Mahoney each scored 12. Humphrey and Tate led the Cats on the boards with six rebounds each, but the Cats were out-rebounded for the first time in three games, 45-22.
?It was a great win tonight over a very good UAB team,? UK Coach Mickie DeMoss said. ?I?m not really happy about losing the rebound battle, but that?s something we will work on and improve. I thought UAB played extremely hard and with a lot of passion. They are a very athletic team and we had a hard time keeping them off the boards. I thought we did a good job on the offensive end and kept our intensity for an entire 40 minutes. I am very pleased with our offensive execution and I thought it was a good team win.?
The Wildcats opened the game connecting on four of their first five shots to pull ahead 12-5 on a three-point play by Humphrey. After UK completed an 11-1 run to take a 16-5 lead, the Blazers went on a 7-0 run of their own to narrow UK?s lead to four, 16-12. Back-to-back baskets by Alcius and a smooth jump shot by Tate sparked a 6-2 Kentucky run to push the Cats? advantage back to seven, 22-15, at the 8:29 mark of the opening stanza.
UK took a 47-25 advantage into the locker room at halftime after shooting an impressive 56.7 percent (17-of-30) of its shots, including 81.3 percent (13-of-16) from the free-throw line. The Wildcats held UAB to just 31.3 percent (10-of-32) from the floor in the opening period and forced the Blazers into 14 turnovers. Kentucky was able to make the most of UAB?s miscues, scoring 16 points off of turnovers.
?I thought we did a good job and were able to convert those turnovers into points, which is very positive,? DeMoss said. ?I thought our defensive effort was good. We got our hands on a lot of passes and made deflections. Our transition game was very positive and it allowed us to get some easy baskets in the second half.?
The Wildcats came out of halftime strong extending their lead to 53-27 on a basket by Humphrey. Successive baskets by Tate pushed UK?s edge out to 59-36 with just under 13 minutes remaining in the game. A steal by Alcius allowed the Wildcats an easy bucket, as she scored on a layup, giving the Cats a 78-47 lead with 4:02 to go. UK would not let up and ended the game with the 30-point victory.
Kentucky returns to action on Tuesday as it hosts Nicholls State. Tip off is set for 7 p.m. ET in Rupp Arena. Tickets are $5 for adults and $2 for children ages 18 and under and may be purchased online at www.ukathletics.com, in person at the athletic ticket office in Memorial Coliseum or by phone at 859-257-1818 or 1-800-927-CATS. UK students, faculty and staff are admitted free with valid identification. All tickets are located in the lower level of Rupp Arena. The game will be carried live on WLXG-AM with Chris Cross and live stats will be available on ukathletics.com.
