Compiled by UK Athletics
KENTUCKY at VANDERBILT
MEMORIAL GYMNASIUM
FEB. 17, 2021 ATTENDANCE: 164
Final Score: Kentucky 82, Vanderbilt 78
Team Records and Series Notes
· Kentucky has won two in a row and is now 7-13 overall, 6-7 in the Southeastern Conference.
o UK ended a four-game road losing streak.
· Vanderbilt is 6-11, 2-9 in league play.
· Kentucky leads the series 151-47 and has won 10 in a row vs. the Commodores.
o UK leads 60-29 in games played in Nashville.
· Next: Kentucky continues its tour of the Volunteer State by traveling to Knoxville for Saturday’s 1 p.m. CBS game at Tennessee.
Player Notes
· Davion Mintz led the Wildcats with 18 points, one below his season best, and tied his season high with four 3-pointers.
o Made a huge 3-pointer with 1:40 remaining, giving him three consecutive games with a clutch 3 in the final two minutes of the contest.
· Jacob Toppin had a career-high 16 points.
o He went 5 of 5 at the foul line, four of which came with the game on the line in the final 30 seconds.
· Isaiah Jackson scored 15 points and tied for the team high in rebounds with nine.
o However, all but two rebounds of his production came in the first half as foul trouble limited him to only five minutes of action in the second half.
o His 15 points is his second-best of the season, following his season-high 18 points Saturday vs. Auburn.
· Brandon Boston Jr. picked up 12 points, four rebounds and three steals.
· Olivier Sarr had 10 points, all coming in the second half when the Wildcats were struggling to hold on to their lead.
o He also had a season-high four blocked shots for the second game in a row.
· Although he scored just two points, Keion Brooks Jr. played an outstanding floor game with nine rebounds, plus career highs with five assists and four blocked shots.
Coach John Calipari
· Calipari is now 337-90 at UK.
· Calipari has a 782-230 all-time on-court record.
· UK is 274-52 under Calipari against teams unranked in The Associated Press Top 25.
· Calipari is 21-4 in his career vs. Vanderbilt.
Team Notes
· For the second game in a row, UK tied its season high of 82 points.
· UK had five players score in double figures, second time this season, also vs. Arkansas.
· With eight 3-pointers made tonight, UK has made 33 long balls over the last three games.
· UK made a season-best 96% at the foul line, 24 of 25.
· That mark is the fourth best under Calipari.
· With 17 assists and 15 turnovers, UK is now 7-2 this season when winning or tying assist/TO margin.
· UK limited Vanderbilt to 40% from the field.
· UK is 207-24 under Calipari when keeping the opponent at 40 percent or less, although only 5-5 this season when that occurs.
· Kentucky blocked 11 shots, one shy of the season high in that category.
· UK has won its last two games by four and two points, improving its record this season to 4-6 in games decided by one or two possessions.
In the First Half
· Kentucky started Devin Askew, Davion Mintz, Brandon Boston Jr., Isaiah Jackson and Olivier Sarr for the fifth-straight game and eighth time this season. UK is 3-5 with this lineup.
· Keion Brooks Jr. was the first substitute at the 16:31 mark.
· Kentucky scored the game’s first 10 points by the 16:20 mark.
· At 10-5, the Wildcats added a 15-3 run and led 25-8 midway through the opening stanza.
· Defense keyed the strong start, as by this juncture, UK had forced nine turnovers and had blocked two shots.
· UK went cold for four minutes as VU cut the gap to 25-15.
· Vanderbilt edged back within 32-25 with 1:44 left, but the Wildcats closed with a 10-5 spurt and went to halftime ahead 42-30.
· Jackson led UK with 15 points, 5-5 FG and 5-6 at the FT line, along with seven rebounds.
· Mintz also had 10 points in the half.
· Kentucky is now 4-5 this season when leading at halftime.
In the Second Half
· Kentucky opened the second half with the starting lineup.
· Vanderbilt came out with a 10-2 run, forcing a UK timeout at 16:09 with the score 44-40.
· At 13:56, UK was called for a technical foul for having six men on the court. VU made one of two free throws to tie the game at 46, the only tie of the game.
· As he did in the previous two games, Mintz hit a huge 3-pointer, putting UK back in the lead.
· UK stretched the lead to 62-53 with 7:23 remaining.
· Trailing 74-68 with 1:41 to go, Vanderbilt pulled to within 74-73 but missed two free throws with 32 seconds left.
· In the final 30 seconds, Jacob Toppin made four foul shots, Boston two and Askew two to preserve the win.
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