Kentucky took advantage of an 18-0 run and improved defensive pressure Friday to begin a four-game homestand with a 75-46 rout of Alabama State in Memorial Coliseum. Sophomore point guard Carly Ormerod (Louisville, Ky.) led three players in double figures with a career-high 21 points, marking the fifth time in the last six games that three or more Wildcats have posted double-figure point totals.
The Wildcats (5-3) limited Alabama State (3-2) to a season-low 27.4 percent (17-of-62), including just six made field goals in the first half by the Hornets. The Cats also won the rebound battle by 22 (51-29) ? UK?s second-largest rebounding margin this season. Kentucky forced 17 Alabama State turnovers and capitalized with 15 points off of those miscues.
?We won,? UK Coach Mickie DeMoss said. ?We played in spurts and did some good things in spurts. Overall, it was not a pretty game to watch but we got people some minutes and had a chance to play a lot of people. I was proud of Carly Ormerod. It was good to see her have a good game with a career-high 21 points. Samantha Mahoney did some good things and I thought Chante? Bowman really hung in there and played very consistent, playing two positions. So there were some kids who stepped up and did some good things.?
Ormerod?s 21 points came on 6-of-10 shooting, including a perfect 7-of-7 from the free-throw line and two three-pointers. Her seven made free throws were a career-high. Junior guard Samantha Mahoney (Detroit) followed in the scoring column with 14 points, marking the fifth time in six games that she has scored in double figures, while junior center Sarah Elliott (McKee, Ky.) followed with 10 points and five rebounds, while moving up to sole possession of third place all-time on UK?s career blocks chart.
Kentucky, which led by nine, 23-14, with 4:23 left in the opening period, went on an 18-0 run, spanning both halves that put the Wildcats in front 42-16 with 17:27 remaining in the game. The Hornets would only come as close as 19 points, 54-35, the rest of the way.
Senior forward/center Jennifer Humphrey (Memphis, Tenn.) led Kentucky on the boards with a game-high 11 rebounds. Junior guard Chant? Bowman (Detroit) scored a season-high nine points and brought down a season-high five rebounds. Senior guard Nastassia Alcius (Lexington, Ky.) tied a career high with four rebounds.
Kentucky took a 34-14 advantage into the locker room at halftime after shooting 37 percent (10-of-27) from the floor. The 14 points that the Cats allowed in the first half were the fewest since UK allowed Charleston Southern just nine points by intermission on Dec. 10, 2004. The Wildcats closed the half on an 11-0 run, limiting Alabama State to just six field goals and 19.4 percent (6-of-34) shooting from the field.
Both teams started slow offensively to begin the game with the Wildcats taking a 13-5 advantage at the 9:54 mark of the first half on a pair of free-throws by Brittany Edelen (Springfield, Ky.) to cap off an 8-1 run. Kentucky continued adding to its advantage to go ahead by its largest margin of 20 points at intermission.
?It was hard to sit up there and watch that kind of basketball in the first half,? DeMoss said. ?Sometimes when you play a team that isn?t shooting the ball well it can affect your team. You start to let that dictate the way you play. I felt like we still maintained our intensity on the defensive end, kept pushing the ball up the floor in the second half.?
Kentucky has a week off for final examinations before returning to action Sunday, Dec. 17 when it faces Arkansas Pine-Bluff in Rupp Arena in the second game of a four-game homestand. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. EST and the game will be carried live on the Big Blue Sports Network (radio) with Neil Price.
Single-game general admission tickets are available for $5 adults/$2 senior citizens and children 6-18. Ages five and under are admitted free. UK students, faculty and staff also are admitted free with valid identification based on availability. For ticket information, log on to ukathletics.com or call the UK ticket office at 859-257-1818 or 1-800-928-CATS (2287).
