Three-Point Barrage Leads No. 16 Cats Past Bulldogs
Kentucky set a school record by making 18 three-point shots as the 16th-ranked Cats topped Mississippi State 91-69 on Thursday night inside Historic Memorial Coliseum.
The most threes a Kentucky team had ever made previously was 16 against Alabama on Jan. 9, 2020.
On Thursday, it was UK’s backcourt that did the majority of the damage. Shooting guard Dazia Lawrence made 8 of 12 from the field, including 7 of 11 from behind the arc, on her way to a season-high 28 points. Her backcourt running mate, Georgia Amoore, made 7 of 10 from three-point range on her way to 27 points. Amoore added nine assists in the game.
Amelia Hassett was the third Kentucky player in double figures, making 3 of 6 from beyond the arc on her way to 14 points.
Kentucky (12-1, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) got on the board first when Amoore drove into the lane, then kicked the ball out to Lawrence for a three. After an MSU basket, Amoore hit a jumper and Clara Strack hit a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 7-2. The Bulldogs would score the next four points before Amoore hit a three from the top of the key to make it 10-6.
The Cats stretched the lead when Amoore found Teonni Key with a beautiful pass for a layup that gave UK a 12-6 advantage. After a pair of MSU free throws, the Cats got a layup from Clara Silva and a three from Lawrence to lead 17-8. UK would get threes from Lawrence and Amoore to extend the lead to 23-13 and UK would lead 25-16 after 10 minutes of action.
Early in the second quarter, Amoore hit another three to extend the lead to 28-16. After an MSU basket, UK got a layup and free throw from Lawrence to lead 31-18. After another two free throws by the Bulldogs, Amoore hit another three-pointer, her fourth in four attempts, and the Cats led 34-20.
Kentucky would score nine points from the free throw line over the rest of the half and the Cats took a 49-35 lead into the break. Amoore led all scorers with 16 points in the first half.
In the third quarter, Kentucky blew the game open on threes from Lawrence and Amelia Hassett that stretched the lead to 55-35. After an MSU timeout, the run continued with a pair of Lawrence free throws and a Hassett layup. The 10-0 run made it 59-35 Cats.
MSU would respond later in the third with a 7-0 run to get within 18 points, 62-44. A Key layup gave UK a 64-44 lead, but MSU scored the next seven, completing a 14-2 run that made it 64-51. Amoore would stop the run with another three, making it 67-51, which would be the score after three quarters.
The Bulldogs scored the first basket of the final period before UK got two free throws from Key and a three from Lawrence to extend the lead to 72-53. After an MSU basket, Lawrence hit another three, giving the Cats a 75-55 lead.
Kentucky returns to action on Sunday, facing Vanderbilt in Nashville. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on SEC Network Plus.
