Kentucky Falls to No. 2 Mississippi State Sunday; Morris Pumped in 22 Points
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Maci Morris (pictured) had another outstanding performance but it still wasn't enough as UK women’s basketball team fell to No. 2 Mississippi State 85-63 on Sunday afternoon, Feb. 25 at Memorial Coliseum. Morris scored a game-high 22 points, marking her sixth straight game in which she has scored at least 20 points. The junior from Bell County High School moved into 24th place on UK’s career scoring list with 1,071 points with her effort on Sunday. She needs just 17 points to move into the top 20 on that prestigious list.
Kentucky (14-16, 6-10 SEC) got 13 points from freshman Dorie Harrison and 11 from junior Amanda Paschal. Taylor Murray had six points and seven assists for the Wildcats.
Kentucky got off to a fast start, leading 6-1 and eventually taking an 11-5 lead on a jumper by Murray. But Mississippi State would assemble a 12-2 run to take a 17-13 lead with 3:12 left in the period. Kentucky would get within a point on two occasions, but MSU held a 21-18 lead after the first quarter. Morris had 10 points in the quarter for the Wildcats. The second quarter did not start nearly as well for UK, as the Bulldogs scored the first nine points of the period to extend their lead to 30-18. Kentucky would cut the lead to nine, 40-31, on back-to-back three-pointers from Morris. But MSU closed the half on a 6-0 run and took a 46-31 advantage into the break. MSU (30-0, 16-0) would score the first four points of the third quarter to lead 50-31. Kentucky would cut it to 50-35 on baskets by Harrison and Morris. However, MSU would continue to extend its lead, taking a 62-41 advantage with 3:38 left in the period. The Bulldogs would lead 68-49 after three periods. In the fourth quarter, MSU would lead by as many as 23 points before setting for a 22-point victory. Kentucky returns to action on Thursday, as the Wildcats face Alabama in the SEC Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on the SEC Network.
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