The Kentucky women?s basketball team will play host to Xavier Tuesday, Jan. 1 in Memorial Coliseum to open the new year. Game time is slated for 7 p.m. EST and it 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).
The Wildcats (5-7) return to Memorial after a much-needed win on Sunday. UK defeated South Alabama, 66-56, snapping a three-game losing streak. Sophomore Lydia Watkins (Hopkinsville, Ky.) was impressive in the victory as she came off the bench to lead UK in scoring with a career-high 17 points. Thirteen of her points came from the free-throw line as she netted a career-high 13-of-13. Her 100 percent accuracy tied the school record (minimum 10 attempts) for free-throw percentage in a game. She has now hit 17 consecutive free throws, dating back to Dec. 20 vs. Louisville. That mark ranks tied for 10th on the consecutive free throws made list. Seniors Sarah Elliott (McKee, Ky.) and Samantha Mahoney (Detroit) followed in the scoring column with 15 and 11 points, respectively. Senior Chelsea Chowning (Berea, Ky.), a transfer from Xavier, also came off the bench and provided a spark for the Cats, charting eight points and seven rebounds.
?Xavier is a good team and they have big-time players on their squad,? UK Coach Matthew Mitchell said. ?It will be a tremendous test for us but hopefully our last win will give us life and get us going toward playing good basketball against Xavier.?
Mahoney leads the team in scoring this season, averaging 15.7 points per game which ranks sixth in the Southeastern Conference. Elliott follows Mahoney in the scoring column with 12.7 ppg. She also pulls down a team-high 7.3 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game.
Xavier (8-4) enters the contest after a 79-54 win over Mercer at home. Three players are averaging in double-digit scoring this season led by sophomore All-America candidate Amber Harris with 16.3 points per game. Junior guard Jerri Taylor follows with 15.7 ppg while freshman center Ta?Shia Phillips adds 14.3 points and an impressive 12.2 rebounds per game. Her rebounding mark ranks second in the nation.
The Wildcats meet Xavier for just the sixth time in school history and the first since 2005. UK is 1-4 in the series but won the last matchup between the teams in Memorial Coliseum. UK met XU in the quarterfinal round of the postseason WNIT, winning 67-62.
This is just the second time in school history UK has played on the first day of the year. UK is 1-0 all-time on Jan. 1. The Wildcats defeated Morehead State, 84-64, on Jan. 1, 1981.
