No. 15 Kentucky Pounds No. 11 Tennessee on Thursday
Playing their final regular season game in Historic Memorial Coliseum on Thursday, the Kentucky women’s basketball team put on a historic performance.
No. 15 Kentucky crushed No. 11 Tennessee 82-58 in the venerable venue on Thursday, in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated. It was the largest margin of victory ever for Kentucky over Tennessee, besting the 21-point win (86-65) the Cats had over the Lady Vols in the 2020 SEC Tournament.
Clara Strack had a huge game for the Cats in the win. The sophomore had 23 points and tied her career high with 15 rebounds. She added three blocked shots and two assists.
Strack had plenty of help. Georgia Amoore had 18 points and seven assists for UK, while Teonni Key had 18 points and 10 rebounds. Dazia Lawrence had 13 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Kentucky (22-5, 11-4 Southeastern Conference) scored first on a Key putback, and Strack followed with a basket that made it 4-0. After a UT bucket, Strack scored two consecutive baskets for UK and the Cats led 8-2. After a Lady Vols basket, Strack connected on a three and UK led 11-4. UT would score to make it 11-6 before an Amoore three extended the lead to 14-6.
A Key fast-break layup stretched the lead to 16-6 and a Clara Silva layup gave UK an 18-6 advantage. The Lady Vols hit a three to get within nine, but Amoore scored on a drive to the basket at the buzzer and Kentucky led 20-9 after one period.
Kentucky scored the first four points of the second quarter on layups by Key and Amoore, taking a 24-9 lead and forcing a Tennessee timeout. After a UT three, Strack scored again, and the Cats led 26-12. After a UT bucket, Key scored again and the Cats led 28-14. After a Lady Vols’ three, Strack scored underneath, stretching the lead to 30-17.
The Cats got two Key free throws to lead 32-17. However, Tennessee would cut into the UK lead, getting within 12 and 36-24. But Kentucky finished the half on a 9-2 run and the Cats led 45-26 at the half. Strack led all scorers with 17 points in the first half.
Kentucky opened the third quarter on an 8-2 run to take a 53-28 lead. Amoore had half of the points in the run. After two UT free throws, Silva scored to give UK a 55-30 lead. The Lady Vols scored again before Lexi Blue scored to start a 6-2 UK run that gave the Cats a 61-34 advantage.
After Tennessee banked in a three for the second time in the game, Silva hit two free throws and UK led 63-37. The teams would trade baskets, with Key scoring for the Cats, extending the lead to 65-39. Tennessee would score the next three, but UK closed the quarter on a 9-3 run and the Cats led 74-45 through three periods.
In the fourth quarter, Kentucky got a layup from Amoore and two baskets from Strack to lead 80-45. That would be Kentucky’s biggest lead, and the Cats would settle for the 24-point victory.
Kentucky returns to action on Sunday, visiting South Carolina in Columbia. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on ESPN.
