No. 16 Kentucky Holds Off LSU, 57-52
Taylor Murray scored 18 points to lead Kentucky to sixth straight win
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Taylor Murray made seven of her eight shots from the floor on her way to 18 points as the 16th-ranked Kentucky women’s basketball team topped LSU 57-52 on Sunday afternoon at Memorial Coliseum.
Kentucky (23-5, 10-4 SEC) had three other players in double figures, led by freshman Rhyne Howard and sophomore Tatyana Wyatt, who each scored 12 points. Despite being saddled with foul trouble in the first half, senior Maci Morris finished with 10 points.
The difference in the game came at the free throw line, where Kentucky made 18 of its 22 attempts while LSU made only nine of its 22 tries.
Kentucky took an early 5-0 lead before LSU could get on the board. The Tigers missed their first four shots, and after they did score, the Cats answered with four points in a row to lead 9-2 with 5:30 left in the first period. LSU would eventually get within four, 10-6, but Kentucky would take a 12-6 advantage into the second quarter. LSU hit just two of 12 shots from the floor in the period while committing six turnovers. Kentucky hit five of 12 from the field and committed five turnovers.
LSU scored the first basket of the second period to cut UK’s lead to 12-8. However, the Cats went on 6-1 run to take an 18-9 advantage with 6:18 left in the half. Kentucky took its first double-digit lead on an and-one by Howard with 2:04 left in the half. The Cats would hold a double-figure lead for the remainder of the half, taking their largest lead, 28-15, into the break. Murray led all scorers with 10 points in the first half and Howard added eight. LSU hit just five of 29 (17.2 percent) from the field in the half while committing 10 turnovers.
In the second half, Kentucky built the lead to as many as 15, 34-19, before LSU found its offensive rhythm, hitting six of its first eight shots to cut the UK lead to 36-27. The Tigers would eventually get within seven, 39-32, but the Cats scored the last six points of the period, to lead 45-32 with 10 minutes to play.
LSU scored the first basket of the fourth period, but Kentucky answered with five points in a row to take a 50-34 advantage with 8:14 to play. But the Tigers would not quit, mounting an 8-0 run to cut the UK lead to 50-42 with 5:15 left in the game. After Kentucky got a pair of free throws from Morris, LSU scored five in a row to get within five, 52-47 with 3:12 to play. After a pair of Howard free throws gave the Cats a 54-47 lead, the Tigers again scored five straight, cutting the lead to 54-52 with 1:45 left in the game.
Kentucky led 55-52 with under 30 seconds remaining when Murray made the play that sealed the game. After missing a jumper, Murray stole the ball and was ultimately fouled with 16 seconds left. The senior calmly made both free throws to provide the final margin of victory.
LSU (16-10, 7-7) got 19 points from Ayana Mitchell.
Kentucky returns to action on Thursday, hosting Texas A&M at Memorial Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on SEC Network Plus.
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat, or Kentucky Women’s Basketball on Facebook.
Kentucky Head Coach Matthew Mitchell
Opening statement…
“Well, just very happy to win any SEC game. Always grateful for a victory, but particularly on senior day and in particular with this senior class. It was not a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but two tough teams working hard trying to earn a victory and real proud we were able to win and make up enough plays to win. For the seniors, it was a special day for them. They’ve done a lot for our program and we’re grateful for them, and there’s a lot of basketball left to play. We’ve worked hard and we’re in position now where we’re playing meaningful SEC games at the end of our schedule and looking forward to post-season play, so this is a great day and great celebration of our seniors. Very fortunate to get the win and I thought LSU was extremely tough and we were excited to be able to get the win today.”
On Taylor Murray missing a shot, then the steal, and the reflection on her as a player…
“Well, on a day where it was just hard for us to get the ball in the basket, thank goodness she was really on today and just played the kind of game on senior day that you probably dream about having, and just really played a great game. LSU is so tough defensively, they’re just so tough and had a great game plan. They paid a lot of attention to our three leading scorers and gave the other opportunities to people that we felt like were opening in our range and just had a hard time getting the ball in the basket. So, every point was important today and certainly Taylor’s performance was just superb, and I know she will remember her senior day fondly.”
On not shooting the ball much in the final five minutes…
“I think we were trying to move the ball and be patient. We made some great plays in the game, but they were just kind of spread out and weren’t consistent enough. I think just trying to be patient and make sure we didn’t shoot too quickly with LSU. Because, they really, really are aggressive and can force some turnovers and get you out of sorts. So we certainly need to make sure we’re working hard and people are in the gym and trying to get to a spot where we can shoot from the field a little better, we certainly have all season long. Some days you have days like this. We have to give them a ton credit for their game plan, it was extremely effective today. Really proud of the team and to get the win.”
On his time with this senior class…
“I think it feels like it’s gone fast because I love them so much and enjoy being around them so much and they’ve meant so much to our program and they’ve meant so much to me personally. I feel like they’ve helped me grow as a coach and as a person. You never feel like you have enough time with these players and on the other hand it flies by. Real grateful that this isn’t the last game they’re going to play in here, but we wanted to honor them on a Sunday when everyone could come out. So I really want to thank the crowd, tremendous crowd in Memorial Coliseum today and showed a lot of love and support for those seniors, which they deserve.”
On what Maci Morris has meant to this program…
“It’s hard to describe in words adequately, I’m not sure I can put them into words, she’s meant a whole lot. She’s just come in from day one and really worked. She doesn’t talk a lot, say a whole lot, she just lets her work ethic make a statement for her. She’s grown and developed as a player, she’s grown and developed her leadership and has been able to maintain a great attitude over the four years. Certainly has endeared herself to the fans. You heard in her comments after the game to recognize her folks back home. So just an incredible young women and representative for our program and the University. So we’re real proud of Maci and happy she got a win on her senior day.”
On Taylor Murray’s growth…
“Really grown in so many ways, all four of the seniors have grown as people. But, Taylor was very shy, very quiet coming in and is really running our team right now. She had it under control there in a strategic standpoint there in the fourth quarter. She and I were having great conversations. She was checking in with me and everything she was saying was right on point so she has a good grasp of what we’re trying to get done. She has grown so much with her ability to come out of her shell and just be a wonderful representative of our program. We’re real proud of her and she’s playing some awfully good ball right now.”
UK’S PLAYER QUOTES
#24, Taylor Murray, Sr., G
On when she realized that she was going to step up in scoring…
“Just the matter of staying aggressive, especially if they’re denying Maci (Morris) or Rhyne (Howard). I’m just taking advantage of that situation. I’m not the top scorer on our team, but whenever I’m given the opportunity I’m going to take the shot.”
On what it felt like to be at the line on her senior day…
“I think it’s just pay-back and redemption for when we played Arkansas and I missed both free throws. But, I made both free throws. Just the matter of staying focused and hitting the shots whenever I’m given the opportunity.”
On what was going through her head when the final buzzer sounded…
“We’re all happy for each other because it’s senior day, but we all play for each other each game. This was a gutty win because we were able to handle adversity while staying consistent.”
On what she will remember most about her time at Kentucky…
“I would just remember playing for my teammates while playing with each other. You also have a great coaching staff that helps develop you both on and off the court. You work from June to now, but you also have the chance to develop great relationships.”
On her thoughts of taking the easy layup at the end of the game…
“I wasn’t going to take the layup because coach would have screamed. Why go for the layup when you can just run the clock out? That’s just being respectful to the other team as well. I didn’t know Maci was going to pass me the ball, but the smart thing to do was to run the clock out.”
#4, Maci Morris, Sr., G
On what she will remember most about her time at Kentucky…
“Like Taylor said, you just meet so many people at Kentucky. You build great relationships and you have both good times and bad times that you get to share with your peers. That’s how you build those strong relationships. Like Taylor said, your teammates, coaches, staff, other classmates, everybody has such a big impact on you and that is what I’m going to remember the most.”
On what was going through her head during pregame and walking through the poster…
“Just trying to enjoy the moment and be thankful, I have a lot of gratitude for everyone thatcame out and supported us today. It was just amazing to see all of the fans supporting us.”
On her living out her dream of playing basketball at Kentucky and what it means…
“It just keeps building and hopefully we can make it even more special if we continue to win at a high level. Just trying to compete in the tournament, so we’re going to try to make it our best year yet.”
#10, Rhyne Howard, Fr., G
On what she thought about the scoring struggles in the fourth quarter…
“We were getting a lot of good shots, it was just a matter of putting them in the basket. Just staying poised and focused on our shots.”
On what she has learned from Maci and Taylor and what she will take from them moving forward…
“Always have high energy in practice and in games and do what the coaches say.”