UK MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES
KENTUCKY vs. VMI
RUPP ARENA | LEXINGTON, KY.
NOV. 18, 2018
ATTENDANCE: 20,207
 
Final Score: No. 10/2 Kentucky 92, VMI 82
                                                             
Team Records and Series Notes

• Kentucky improves to 3-1 on the season, while VMI falls to 3-2.
• The Wildcats lead the series with the Keydets by a 6-3 margin with tonight’s win.
• Next for Kentucky: the Wildcats will host Winthrop on Wednesday for the third of the four-game Ohio Valley Hardwood Showcase. That game is slated for a 1 p.m. tip on the SEC Network.

 
In the First Half

• Kentucky started Immanuel Quickley, Tyler Herro, Keldon Johnson, PJ Washington and EJ Montgomery for the first time this season.

  • It marked the first start of Montgomery’s career.
• Johnson scored UK’s first points of the game on a 3-pointer from the corner after the Cats displayed great ball movement. It’s the third time he’s scored the opening points for UK and the first off a 3-pointer.
• At the first media timeout, UK led 8-6 in large part to an 8-3 edge on the boards.
• VMI got hot from long range scoring five consecutive buckets off 3-pointers to take an 18-16 lead with 12:25 to go.
• Back-to-back possessions where the Cats got free throws from Quickley and Quade Green gave the lead back to the Cats at 20-18 with 10:34 to go.
• Reid Travis knocked down free throws on consecutive offensive possessions to lift UK to a 28-24 lead with 6:46 to play.
• A momentum-changing sequence began with steal from Green which resulted in a fast-break layup from Washington. On the ensuing possession by VMI, Ashton Hagans was disruptive and forced a turnover in the backcourt. Travis got an offensive rebound and put it in to push UK’s edge to 38-29, marking its largest of the half, with 3:36 remaining.
• Herro assisted a run-out dunk for Montgomery to lift Kentucky to a 48-34 lead with 12.4 seconds remaining equaling the team’s biggest lead of the half for the intermission score.
• Washington nearly had a double-double in the opening half alone with 10 points and nine rebounds.
• Travis led the team with 12 first-half points to couple with four boards.
• As a team, UK corralled 14 offensive boards which was more than VMI accounted in all (11). Travis and Washington had nine of the 14. 
• Montgomery and Hagans led the way defensively. Montgomery had three first-half swats and Hagans had a pair steals. Both of those totals were career-best marks in the first stanza alone.
• Kentucky was 15 of 18 (83.3) from the free-throw line in the half.
• UK assisted on nine of its 15 made baskets in the stanza for a 60-perent rate.
• Every player who checked in for the Cats scored at least two points.

 
In the Second Half

• Kentucky started Hagans, Johnson, Quickley, Montgomery and Washington to begin the second half.
• Johnson scored UK’s first four points of the half increasing UK’s lead to 15 less than two minutes into the frame.
• Listed as questionable to return with an eye injury at halftime, Travis, wearing protective eyewear, reentered the game just three minutes into the half and promptly scored a bucket.
• Green drained a 3-pointer and then swiped a pass on the ensuring VMI possession that resulted in a Herro fast break dunk to increase UK’s lead to 17 midway through the second half with 13:14 to play.
• VMI utilized a 12-2 run over 2:55 of game clock to pull to within nine at 67-58 with 9:15 to go. Washington generated a traditional three-point play off another offensive rebound to snap the spurt.
• The Keydets would not go away and trimmed the lead to seven with 4:38 to play.
• VMI’s Bubba Parham drained his 10th 3-pointer of the night to pull the visitors to within six with 1:37 to play.
• Green calmly sank a 3-pointer on the offensive end to get it back to a double-digit lead at 11 with under a minute to go.
• VMI hit 12 3-pointers in the second half at a 54.5 percent rate.
• The Keydets outscored the Cats 48-44 in the second half.
• Kentucky was 14 of 17 from the line (82.4 percent) to help put the game away.

 
Team Notes

• Kentucky won the game despite VMI hitting 19 3-pointers in the game for a 50 percent rate.
  • It’s the most 3-pointers ever made in a game against Kentucky in its history.
  • Parham knocked down 10 of the Keydet’s 19 3-pointers. That’s the second most for a single player against the Cats. Only Corey Allmond (11) from Sam Houston State on Nov. 19, 2009 has hit more in a game against Kentucky.
  • Parham scored a game-high 35 points. It’s the most points the Cats have given up in a game and in Rupp Arena since Texas A&M’s Elston Turner scored 40 on Jan. 12, 2013.
• The win marked the 46th consecutive home win over an unranked AP poll nonconference opponent.
  • UK is now 226-38 under John Calipari against unranked competition.
• UK is now 6-5 as an Associated Press No. 10-ranked team under Calipari.
• UK improved to 236-5 (.979) under Calipari when leading by at least 10 points at any point in the game.
• Kentucky continues to earn a lot of free throws and is averaging 32.5 attempts per game and making an average of 25.
  • The Cats sunk 29 of 35 (82.9 percent) in tonight’s win. That’s tied for the ninth-most makes in a single game under Calipari.
  • It’s the most makes in a game since hitting 29 against Illinois State on Nov. 30, 2015.
• Kentucky outrebounded VMI by a plus-21 margin. UK has outrebounded each of its last three opponents by 21 or more.
  • Kentucky is plus-79 on the boards for the season for an average of 19.8 a game.
• Kentucky’s bench outscored the Keydets 50-9. Travis and Green combined for 39 off the bench.
• UK won points in the paint 42-14 and second-chance points 23-3.

Player Notes  

• One game after scoring a career-high points, PJ Washington produced his fourth career double-double with 19 points and a career-high 18 rebounds.

  • It’s the third-most rebounds in a single game under Calipari. Teammate Nick Richards had 19 against Southern Illinois earlier this season and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had the same number against Louisville on Dec. 31, 2011.
  • The double-double is the second of the season for a UK player. Keldon Johnson had the first against North Dakota on Wednesday.
  • Seven of Washington’s rebounds came on the offensive end.
• Reid Travis came off the bench for the first time since Stanford played Miami in the NIT championship game on April 4, 2015 during his freshman season.
  • It snapped a streak of 73 consecutive starts. He had started 73 consecutive games prior to tonight.
  • He led the Wildcats in scoring for the first time this season with 22 points.
    • That matches his season high that he also achieved against Duke.
  • He hit a season-high 10 free throws.
• Quade Green posted 17 points and added a pair of assists and two steals.
  • He’s charted two or more steals in back-to-back games after swiping a career-high three against North Dakota.
  • The 17 points is a season high and the most since he scored 18 against Ole Miss on Feb. 28, 2018.
• Ashton Hagans had the most complete game of his young UK career. He logged five points, a game-high four assists, two blocks and two steals.
  • The four assists matches a career high, which he also set against Duke.
  • The two blocks and the two steals are both career bests.
  • The five points is a career high.
  • He also played a career-high 21 minutes.

 
Calipari

• Calipari is now 278-65 at UK.
• Calipari has a 723-205 all-time on-court record.
• He is now 19 wins away from tying Joe B. Hall for the second-most victories by a UK head coach in program history.