Demarre Carroll scored 15 points, added 11 rebounds and iced the game with four free throws down the stretch to give Vanderbilt a 57-52 victory over Kentucky on Tuesday night at Rupp Arena.
The win was the Commodores first at Rupp in 29 tries and the first in Lexington since 1974. The Wildcats lost to Vanderbilt (11-2, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) for just the third time in their last 29 meetings overall.
Kentucky (10-5, 0-1) had won 17 of its previous 18 SEC openers entering the game. With the loss to Kansas on Saturday, the Wildcats have now dropped consecutive games for the first time since the 2001-02 campaign.
The loss also spoiled the return of sophomore Randolph Morris, who played for the first time this season after sitting out the first 14 games of the year due to an NCAA suspension.
Morris entered the game to a rousing ovation at the first media timeout when UK coach Tubby Smith pulled the entire starting line up after watching the Commodores sprint out to an 8-0 lead.
His presence was felt immediately. The first time he touched the ball, Morris powered through Ted Skuchas with an up-and-under for a basket. On his first three offensive possessions, he scored, hauled in an offensive rebound and drew three fouls. He finished the game with 10 points, seven rebounds and a pair of blocks in 28 minutes of action.
As Morris commanded the attention of the Vandy defense and drew double teams, he kicked the ball out to teammates for open looks. However, Kentucky?s shots were not falling as the team misfired on its first seven threes of the game and hit just 5-of-20 total.
Overall, UK shot just 35 percent from the field and only 61 percent from the free throw line. In contrast, the Commodores made half of their three-point attempts and buried 21-of-25 from the charity stripe.
Kentucky?s 52 points followed a 47-point outing against the Jayhawks. The 99 combined points over two games are the lowest combined point total for UK over a two-game span in the shot clock era.
The Wildcat?s dug an early 10-point hole, 19-9, before a Joe Crawford basket finally got UK in double digits with just over five minutes left in the opening half.
After Crawford?s basket, Morris scored on back-to-back possessions and Patrick Sparks ended UK?s drought from behind the arc with a deep three to cut the deficit to 21-18. Vanderbilt took a 23-20 lead into the break.
Kentucky scored first on a free throw in the second half, but wouldn?t make their first field goal until a Crawford bucket with 12:27 left. Meanwhile, the Commodores capitalized with a 14-2 run over a three minute span for a 37-23 lead.
Crawford?s basket sparked a rally as Ravi Moss drained three three-pointers and Lucasz Obrzut fed Sheray Thomas for a wide open dunk and a 42-41 UK lead with 6:49 left.
The Commodores retook the lead 1:23 later on a pair of Julian Terrell free throws before Shan Foster scored eight straight Vandy points, including three-pointers on back-to-back possessions, to keep his team in front for good.
Moss brought UK within three, 55-52, with 18 seconds left on a short jumper. On the ensuing inbound, Foster got trapped in the corner and stepped on the line to give the Wildcats a chance to tie it. However, Crawford misfired on a three-pointer from the top of the key that would have tied it.
Crawford had seven points on 2-of-9 shooting and missed all five of his three-pointers. Foster and Moss each had 16 points to lead their teams.
Kentucky returns to action Saturday when it hosts Alabama. Tip off is at 1 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally by CBS.
