UK MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES
KENTUCKY vs. AUBURN
NCAA TOURNAMENT, MIDWEST REGION FINAL
SPRINT CENTER | KANSAS CITY, MO.
MARCH 31, 2019
ATTENDANCE: 17,174
Final Score: Auburn 77, Kentucky 71 (OT)
Team Records and Series Notes
- Kentucky finishes the season 30-7 overall. Auburn is 30-9.
- UK entered the game ranked No. 7 nationally and the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region.
- Auburn entered ranked No. 14/18 nationally and the No. 5 seed in the Midwest.
- Kentucky leads the series 94-20, including two wins by UK during the 2019 regular season. This was the first time the teams have met in the NCAA Tournament.
In the First Half
- Kentucky started the combination of Ashton Hagans, Tyler Herro, Keldon Johnson, EJ Montgomery and Reid Travis for the fourth straight game.
- Kentucky jumped out to a 7-0 lead and led by as many as 11 points at 22-11.
- UK led 30-20 with three minutes left but Auburn went on a 10-2 run to narrow the gap to 32-30.
- Hagans hit a 3-pointer with 11 seconds remaining to send the Wildcats to the locker room ahead 35-30.
In the Second Half
- Kentucky began the second half with the starting lineup.
- UK scored the first basket of the half but Auburn came back with 10 straight points to go ahead 40-37, the Tigers’ first lead of the game.
- UK reclaimed the lead at 45-44 on a steal by Johnson, leading to a fast-break alley-oop dunk by Washington.
- Auburn went back ahead 47-46 on a 3-pointer by Bryce Brown.
- Trailing 56-50, UK cobbled together an 8-2 run to tie it at 58 with 2:55 remaining.
- Washington rebounded his own miss and scored with 56 seconds left to shove UK back ahead.
- Auburn’s Jared Harper tied it at 60 on a driving layup with 37 seconds left and neither team scored on its final possession to send it to overtime.
In the Overtime
- Kentucky began the overtime with Hagans, Herro, Johnson, Washington and Travis.
- Auburn scored the first four points of overtime and the Tigers never trailed en route to the 77-71 win.
Team Notes
- Auburn shot 40 percent today. UK is 182-16 (.919) under Calipari when keeping the opponents to 40 percent or less, including 18-1 this season.
- Kentucky won the rebounding, 41-37. UK is 25-5 this season when outrebounding the opponent.
- UK is 260-6 (.977) under Calipari when leading by 10 or more points at any time during the game.
- PJ Washington and Keldon Johnson each had a double-double today. The last time UK had two players with double-doubles was the January 19 win over Kansas.
- UK is 7-5 this season vs. Associated Press Top 25 opponents.
- This was Kentucky’s second overtime game of the year, also vs. Seton Hall.
Player Notes
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Playing on a sprained foot, PJ Washington led all players with 28 points and 13 rebounds. He added two steals and two blocked shots.
- It is his ninth double-double of the year and 12th of his career.
- The 28 points is one shy of his career high set earlier this season vs. Seton Hall.
- Keldon Johnson notched his fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
- Ashton Hagans reached double figures with 10 points, adding five rebounds and three assists.
- In his final game as a Wildcat, Reid Travis scored nine points on 4-of-5 shooting and had six rebounds.
- Tyler Herro had seven points, three rebounds and a game-high six assists. The six assists are one shy of his career high set vs. Winthrop.
In the NCAA Tournament
- Kentucky has an all-time record of 129-52 in the NCAA Tournament, more wins than any team in NCAA history.
- UK made its NCAA record 58th appearance in the tournament.
- UK is 25-8 as the No. 2 seed in the tournament. UK is 8-4 vs. No. 5 seeds.
- This was Kentucky’s 10th overtime game in the NCAA Tournament and UK is now 4-6 in OT games.
- UK is 31-8 in the NCAA Tournament under Calipari.
Calipari
- Calipari is now 305-71 at UK.
- Calipari has a 750-211 all-time on-court record.
- Calipari has a 56-19 record in the NCAA Tournament, including 31-8 at Kentucky.
- Calipari is 6-6 in Elite 8 games, including 4-3 at Kentucky.
- UK is 59-31 vs. AP Top-25 competition under Calipari.
- Calipari is 82-54 in his career when both teams are ranked in the AP Top 25, including 51-27 at Kentucky.
