Kentucky (16-9, 5-5 SEC)
vs. No. 3/3 Tennessee (22-2, 9-0 SEC)
Sunday, February 11 – 5:25 p.m. ET
Thompson-Boling Arena (24,535) ? Knoxville, Tenn.
TV: ESPN2
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LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky women?s basketball team rides its two-game winning streak into Thompson-Boling Arena Sunday, Feb. 11, looking to upset No. 3 Tennessee for the second year in a row. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN2 and the Big Blue Sports Network (radio) with Neil Price.
The Wildcats (16-9, 5-5 Southeastern Conference) earned their first win over a No. 1 ranked opponent in school history last season when it defeated the Lady Vols, 66-63, in Rupp Arena. It was UK?s first win over Tennessee in 20 years, snapping a 24-game losing streak to the Lady Vols. It also marked Coach Mickie DeMoss? first win over her former employer and mentor Pat Summitt.
?We know it is going to be a battle to face Tennessee in Thompson-Boling Arena,? UK Coach Mickie DeMoss said. ?It is kind of a double-edged sword to play down there because I look forward to being back where I spent 18 years of my coaching career, but when you look at UT?s record at home, it?s pretty staggering. Last year, when the buzzer went off at Rupp Arena, I immediately started thinking that we were going to have to go down and play in Knoxville this year. I hope our players will never forget beating Tennessee last year, because it was one of the highlights of their careers, but time moves on and there are other games and situations that we have to focus on.?
UK is coming off a crucial 69-61 win at Ole Miss on Thursday. Despite trailing by as many as 16 points in the first half, the Wildcats clawed back by using a stifling 3-2 zone defense that limited Ole Miss to 32 points and 33.3 percent shooting in the second half. UK, however, shot a blistering 63.6 percent from the field in the second stanza and outrebounded the Rebels, 47-27. UK has out-rebounded its last three opponents by double-digits. The 20-rebound margin was the highest for the Cats in an SEC game this season.
Four Wildcats scored in double figures led by senior guard Jenny Pfeiffer?s (North Vernon, Ind.) 18 points off the bench. The SEC?s leader in free-throw percentage finished 8-of-8 from the charity stripe. Junior center Sarah Elliott (McKee, Ky.) followed with a 14 points and 11 rebounds for her seventh career double-double while junior guard Samantha Mahoney (Detroit) and sophomore point guard Carly Ormerod (Louisville, Ky.) added 13 and 11 points, respectively. Senior forward/center Jennifer Humphrey (Memphis, Tenn.) continued her dominance on the boards by grabbing a game-high 16 rebounds. She is now just 14 rebounds away from climbing to No. 2 on UK?s all-time rebounding list.
Overall, Elliott leads the team in scoring, averaging 13.3 ppg while Mahoney follows with 13.1 ppg and a team-best 13.9 ppg in conference play. Humphrey, who ranks 23rd nationally in rebounding, is bringing down a squad-best 10.0 rebounds per game, while Elliott adds 7.0 rpg.
Sunday?s game marks the 47th meeting all-time between the two border rivals and the 19th match-up in Knoxville. UK has met UT more times than any other rival and the Lady Vols hold a 40-6 advantage in the all-time series dating back to 1976. Tennessee has won 24 of its last 25 games against Kentucky and is 16-2 all-time when playing in Knoxville. UK?s last victory on the road over UT was in overtime on Jan. 23, 1985, 76-72, in Stokely Athletics Center.
Last season, Kentucky became just the fourth unranked team in NCAA women’s basketball history to defeat a No. 1 team when the Wildcats knocked off the Lady Vols on Jan. 26. Pfeiffer led the Cats in scoring with 16 points, including 7-of-7 free-throws. She nailed the game-winning free-throws with 14.8 seconds remaining and junior guard Nastassia Alcius (Lexington, Ky.) added two charity shots in the waning seconds of the game to ice the victory.
