No. 14 Kentucky Welcomes Winthrop to Rupp Arena Wednesday

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 14 University of Kentucky women’s basketball team will continue its seven-game homestretch Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET when it plays host to Winthrop inside historic Rupp Arena. Wednesday’s game is the first of two games inside Rupp Arena this week for Kentucky, which will also host No. 7 Louisville at the venue on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
 
Tickets to both games are available at UKathletics.com/tickets. Fans can purchase $3 tickets for the Louisville game by using the promo code UKWBB19. UK students get into all Kentucky women’s basketball games free of charge with a valid UK Student ID, while UK faculty and staff get in free plus up to three guests with a valid UK ID.
 
Wednesday game vs. Winthrop will be live streamed online at UKathletics.com. Darren Headrick will have the call on the UK Sports Network on 630AM WLAP. Live stats and free live audio will be available online at UKathletics.com.
 
Construction along the back of Rupp Arena, near the Jefferson Street bridge, has eliminated a majority of parking in the Manchester Street lot. This will cause a number of spaces in the High Street lot to now be utilized for game day operations. Due to reduced parking in the High Street lots, fans are encouraged to use alternative game day parking options that are listed below.

• Transit Center Garage (150 East Vine Street) — 600 spaces, $5 per vehicle
• Helix Garage (150-160 West Main Street) — 250 spaces, $5 per vehicle
• Courthouse Parking Garage (105 Barr Street) — 350 spaces, $4 per vehicle

Lexington Center will still provide accessible parking on a game-by-game basis in the High Street Lot inside Gate 1. This lot will open approximately four hours prior to tip-off. This lot requires a state-issued disabled placard and will be cash only.
 
Kentucky (9-0) has been playing well during the homestretch, winning all five games thus far. In its last five games, UK is averaging 81.2 points per game hitting 48.5 percent from the field and 38.7 percent from the free throw line. Defensively, UK is limiting opponents to just 45.8 points per game and 33.1 percent from the field. Sophomore guard Rhyne Howard, who was tabbed the Southeastern Conference Player of the Week on Tuesday, is averaging 24.8 points per game with 5.6 rebounds per game during that stretch, while senior guard Sabrina Haines is averaging 12.2 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game.
 
Overall this year, Howard is averaging a team-best 20.4 points per game with 6.2 rebounds per game. She also leads the team with 22 steals, while she sits third with 23 assists and second with 10 blocks. Haines is averaging 11.7 points per game and 5.2 rebounds per game while she leads the league by hitting 47.5 percent from long range. Sophomore guard Blair Green is averaging 7.7 points per game, while junior forwards Tatyana Wyatt and KeKe McKinney are each averaging 7.1 points per game adding 5.5 and 4.8 rebounds per game, respectively.
 
Winthrop enters Wednesday’s game with a 1-5 record. The Eagles lone win this season was a 56-46 decision at North Carolina Central. The losses have been home vs. Iona, Georgia Southern and College of Charleston and on the road at Old Dominion and Wofford. In its last outing, Winthrop fell vs. College of Charleston 84-73 at home.
 
As a team, the Eagles are averaging 56.7 points per game this season while allowing opponents 69.5 points per game. Winthrop is hitting 35.8 percent from the field and 30.8 percent from long range this season, while it has a 1.2 rebounding margin. The Eagles are averaging 19.7 turnovers per game.
 
Sophomore guard Jah’Che Whitfield leads the team by averaging 12.2 points per game with 5.8 rebounds per game. Sophomore forward Kem Nwabudu is averaging 8.5 points per game with 5.5 rebounds per game while senior guard Miquela Santoro has a hit a team-best seven 3s and is averaging 6.3 rebounds per game.
 
This is the second all-time meeting between Kentucky and Winthrop in women’s basketball. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 1-0. The first and only meeting occurred Jan. 3, 2000, when the Wildcats earned a 94-39 win over the Eagles in Memorial Coliseum. Kentucky owns a 14-1 all-time record against teams from the current alignment of the Big South Conference. UK’s only loss to a Big South team came to Liberty in 1998. Winthrop is the only Big South team that UK is scheduled to face this season.
 
Kentucky holds a 27-18 all-time record at Rupp Arena, including an 8-9 mark under Matthew Mitchell. Last year, UK won both of its games in Rupp Arena defeating Virginia 63-51 and Florida 62-51. UK has played at least one game in Rupp Arena each of the last nine years. The Wildcats will play two games in Rupp Arena this season, marking the third straight year it has played two or more games in the historic venue.
 
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.