The Kentucky women?s basketball team is off to their best start in five years heading into their final pre-Christmas game against first-time opponent Nicholls State. UK will meet the Lady Colonels Tuesday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. ET in Rupp Arena. Tickets are $5 for adults and $2 for children ages 18 and under. UK students, faculty and staff are admitted free with valid identification 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. All tickets are located in the lower level of Rupp Arena. The first 1,000 fans will receive a free blue foam cowboy hat.
The Wildcats (7-3) look to extend their winning streak to four after defeating UAB Saturday 90-60. The last time the Cats won four consecutive wins was during the 2002-03 season. Nicholls State (3-9) travels to Lexington after a 73-68 loss at Tulane Sunday.
?We?re excited to be playing Nicholls State at Rupp Arena,? UK Coach Mickie DeMoss said. ?It is always fun playing over there. I think the veterans probably know what that experience is like. I think with the freshmen, they may not understand the magnitude of what Rupp is all about. I know I didn?t understand last year when I walked in there for the first time. I said ?Wow! This feels like a Final Four arena.? I?ve been to 13 Final Fours and when you walk into the arena for the first time, it just has a certain atmosphere to it, a certain feel and that?s the way I felt at Rupp. When I walked in when we played, it was just a special atmosphere.?
The Cats play their 17th game in Rupp in their 30-year women?s basketball history. This marks the first of three games this season for the UK hoops team in the downtown venue. The Cats also will play host to Wake Forest (Dec. 30) and Georgia (Jan. 13).
UK is 12-4 all-time in Rupp Arena (75.0%). The Cats went 1-1 in Rupp last season after falling to No. 13/14 North Carolina, 75-59 and defeating intrastate rival Louisville in overtime, 84-80.
The Wildcats shot a season-high 57.6 percent from the floor in their last game vs. UAB, connecting on 34 of their 59 attempts. It was the second straight game UK hit over 50 percent of its shots. The Cats also hit 55.8 percent vs. Marshall. The Cats are now 3-0 this season when shooting 50 percent or better.
Senior Sara Potts and junior Jennifer Humphrey lead UK in scoring, averaging 15.1 and 10.2 points per game, respectively. Freshman Sarah Elliott follows in the scoring column with 9.8 ppg. Humphrey tops the team in rebounding, averaging 9.1 rebounds per game.
Nicholls State, a member of the Southland Conference, is located in Thibodaux, La., a city known as the ?Gateway to Bayou Country.? NSU is 50 miles southwest of New Orleans. Coach Mark Cook is in his first season at the school after a standout career at Dillard University in New Orleans. In six years at Dillard, he led his squad to three straight NAIA National Tournament appearances and was named Gulf Coast Conference Coach of the Year in 2001.
Nkechi Nwachukwu leads three Lady Colonels in double-digit scoring, averaging 10.8 points per game on 49.4 percent shooting. Cristin Burdette and Jamie Octave follow with 10.8 and 10.3 ppg, respectively. Nwachukwu also leads the team in rebounding with 6.6. rpg.
