Playing in her final regular season game at Memorial Coliseum, senior guard Janee Thompson scored 24 points to lead No. 15 Kentucky to a 69-59 win over 24th-ranked Missouri on Thursday night.
With her team trailing 51-50 heading into the fourth quarter, Thompson took over the game. She accounted for Kentucky’s first 14 points of the final stanza, scoring six in a row and then assisting on a basket by Akhator before hitting a pair of driving layups and a jumper of her own, giving Kentucky a 64-55 lead.
Evelyn Akhator scored 15 points and pulled down nine rebounds for Kentucky (20-6, 9-6 SEC), while Makayla Epps added 14.
Kentucky shot just 40 percent (26-of-65) from the floor in the game, including just 3-of-17 (18 percent) from three-point range. But the Wildcats held Missouri to just 38 percent shooting and forced the Tigers into 17 turnovers.
In the first quarter, the game was tight until the end. Kentucky closed the period on an 8-0 run over the last 2:31 to lead 22-14.
The Tigers cut into the lead early in the second quarter, only to see Kentucky close out the period much like it did the first, with a 5-0 run to make it 39-26 at the half.
Missouri (21-7, 8-7) came out hot in the third quarter, outscoring Kentucky 25-11 in the third stanza to take a 51-50 lead at the end of three. Missouri hit six of its nine shots (66.7 percent) in the quarter and was nine of 10 from the line during the same period.
Missouri freshman Sophie Cunningham led all scorers with 29 points. Jordan Frericks was the only other Missouri player in double figures, adding 12 for the Tigers.
Kentucky finishes the regular season on Sunday, visiting Reed Arena to face Texas A&M. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on ESPN.
