LEXINGTON, Ky. ? The Kentucky women?s basketball team looks to get back on the winning track when it travels to Columbia, S.C., Sunday, Jan. 28 for a rematch with the Gamecocks. UK defeated South Carolina earlier this season in its conference opener in Lexington, 59-55. Game time in the Colonial Center is 3 p.m. EST.
The game will be carried live on the Big Blue Sports Network with Neil Price. Due to an overlap with the men’s game vs. Tennessee beginning at 1 p.m. EST, the women’s game will be carried live on WMJK-FM (105.5) in Lexington.
Kentucky (14-7, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) is coming off a heartbreaking loss in double overtime to Mississippi State in Rupp Arena on Thursday. The Wildcats managed just 39.2 percent (29-of-74) from the floor and were a mere 2-of-20 from long distance as MSU outscored UK 8-0 in the second overtime.
Senior forward/center Jennifer Humphrey continued her dominance in the paint, charting her second consecutive double-double with a career-high 22 points to complement 16 rebounds. Junior guard Samantha Mahoney also had a career night as she became the 25th member of UK’s 1,000 point club. Mahoney scored 12 points vs. the Lady Bulldogs to improve her career total to 1,010 in a career-best 48 minutes. Sophomore point guard Carly Ormerod followed in the scoring column with 13 points in a career-high 42 minutes.
A balanced scoring attack is anchored by juniors Sarah Elliott and Mahoney. The duo average 13.8, and 13.4 points per game, respectively. Sophomore Carly Ormerod and senior Jenny Pfeiffer follow close behind with 9.4 and 9.1 ppg. Humphrey is the squad’s leading rebounder with 9.9 boards per game. It?s the best rebounding average by a Wildcat since Debra Oden averaged 10.6 rebounds a game during the 1977-78 season.
South Carolina (12-9 overall, 2-4 SEC) is coming off an impressive 79-51 win over Florida in its last game. Melanie Johnson recorded 22 points – 19 coming in the second half – and a season-high 12 rebounds to lead the Gamecocks. Iva Sliskovic and Lauren Simms both inched closer to the 1,000-point plateau with Sliskovic scoring 12 points and Simms adding 10. Prior to the win over Florida, South Carolina lost a pair of road games at No. 24 Ole Miss and at Mississippi State.
Overall, Simms and Sliskovic lead the team in scoring, averaging 9.6 and 9.4 points per game, respectively. Sliskovic also is the leading rebounder with 5.2 rpg, followed by Johnson?s 5.1 rpg.
This is the 38th meeting in the all-time series vs. South Carolina. UK leads the series 23-14 but trails 10-6 when the game is played in Columbia. UK has won six of the last seven meetings, including three consecutive. The Cats have won two of the last three meetings in Columbia, including a 75-71 decision last season.
In the earlier meeting between the teams this season, Mahoney scored a game-high 19 points and Elliott added 16 as Kentucky held off a late South Carolina charge to post a 59-55 win in Memorial Coliseum.
After the USC game, Kentucky returns for two straight home games when it plays host to No. 15/14 Vanderbilt Thursday, Feb. 1 (7 p.m.) and Florida on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 4 (Noon). Both games will be played in Memorial Coliseum.
