Men's Basketball
Kentucky-South Carolina Postgame Notes

Kentucky-South Carolina Postgame Notes

KENTUCKY MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTGAME NOTES
RUPP
ARENA AT CENTRAL BANK CENTER | LEXINGTON, KY

JAN. 10, 2023
ATTENDANCE: 19,393

 

Final Score: South Carolina 71, Kentucky 68

 

Team Records and Series Notes

  • Kentucky is now 10-6 on the season, 1-3 in the Southeastern Conference.
  • South Carolina is 8-8, 1-2 in league play.
  • Kentucky holds a 54-14 advantage in the all-time series, including 29-3 in Lexington.
  • Next for UK: on Saturday, the Wildcats are at Tennessee for a noon game that will be televised on ESPN.

 

Team Notes

  • Kentucky opened with a starting lineup of Sahvir Wheeler, Cason Wallace, Chris Livingston, Daimion Collins and Oscar Tshiebwe for the first time this year.
    • Wallace was limited to just eight minutes because of back spasms and usual starter Jacob Toppin missed the game because of an injury sustained at Alabama.
  • Kentucky shot 50.9 percent from the field, the seventh game this season that the Wildcats made at least half their shots.
  • Coming in as one of the best rebounding teams in the nation, the Wildcats were outrebounded for only the fourth time this season, 32-28, and USC won second-chance points 21-12.

Player Notes

  • Oscar Tshiebwe had 19 points and 12 rebounds, his SEC-best ninth double-double of the season.
    • Tshiebwe has 37 double-doubles in 48 career games for UK.
    • He also had three steals, tying his season high.
    • He entered the game leading the nation with 13.2 boards per contest.
  • Dealing with a right-hand injury that forced him to miss the previous three games, CJ Fredrick played a season-high 29 minutes.
    • He had 14 points, most since the South Carolina State game on November 17.
  • Antonio Reeves had 13 points, his 11th double-figure game of the season.
  • Sahvir Wheeler had 10 points, his third straight game with double-figure scoring, with three assists.
    • This marked the 12th time this season and 83rd time in his career he led the team in assists.
  • Daimion Collins made his first start of the season and second of his career, also one during his freshman season in 2020-21. He had two points, four rebounds and blocked three shots while playing a season-high 21 minutes.
  • Cason Wallace scored four points in eight minutes in the first half but departed the game with a lower back injury and did not play in the second half.
    • Wallace entered the game as the only freshman in the nation averaging at least 12 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and two steals per game.
  • Jacob Toppin did not play because of an injury sustained in the Alabama game.

 

Coach John Calipari

  • Calipari is 16-5 vs. South Carolina, including 13-5 at UK.
  • Calipari has an 820-247 all-time on-court record and is 375-107 in 14 seasons at UK.
  • UK is 308-60 (83.7%) against unranked competition under Calipari.

 

Rupp Arena

  • Tonight’s game ended UK’s 28-game home win streak (last game of 2021 season, 18-0 in 2021-22, and 9-0 this season). It is the fifth-longest streak in Rupp history and was the second-longest active win streak in the nation.
  • Kentucky is 642-78 (89.2%) in the 47-year history of Rupp Arena.
  • Kentucky is 215-18 (92.3%) in Rupp Arena under Calipari.

 

In the First Half

  • South Carolina scored the first five points and had a 13-2 lead when UK called timeout at the 15:34 mark.
  • The Gamecocks extended the lead to 15 points, its largest of the game, at 21-6 at the 13:10 mark.
  • Kentucky pulled within four points at 26-22 but the Gamecocks steadied and went to halftime ahead 42-32.
  • Meechie Johnson scored 16 points for South Carolina in the first half, making 4 of 5 on 3-pointers. Tshiebwe paced Kentucky with 12 points and eight rebounds.

 

In the Second Half

  • Kentucky opened the second half with Wheeler, Reeves, Fredrick, Collins and Tshiebwe.
  • Trailing 59-48 with 12 minutes remaining, Kentucky rallied within 61-58, with 6:47 left.
  • South Carolina replied with eight straight points to push the count back to 69-58 with 3:58 to go.
  • Reeves hit a 3-pointer, Collins got a tip-in, Wheeler scored on a drive, and a Fredrick 3-pointer with 50 seconds left got the Cats within 69-68.
  • Jacobi Wright hit two free throws for South Carolina with 31 seconds left to make it 71-68.
  • The Wildcats had two shots to tie but were unable to do so as the Gamecocks held on to win.

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