Tshiebwe’s Big Second Half Lifts No. 16 Kentucky Past Yale
No. 16 Kentucky found itself in a tussle on Saturday. A feisty Yale squad scored the first eight points of the second half to turn a six-point halftime deficit into a two-point lead with 17:37 left in the game. Kentucky needed something good to happen. So the Cats and head coach John Calipari did exactly what made sense – they got the ball to the defending National Player of the Year, Oscar Tshiebwe. And, as he did so often for the Cats last season, Tshiebwe delivered. By the time the Cats secured a 69-59 victory, Tshiebwe had registered his 33rd double-double in 41 career games at UK. Tshiebwe finished with 28 points, two shy of his career high, and 12 rebounds in Saturday’s win. He scored 22 of his points in the second half and he added two assists, two steals and two blocked shots in the game. And the Cats needed every one of them.
Kentucky Falls to Louisville on Sunday
Robyn Benton scored 20 points but the Kentucky women’s basketball team lost to No. 24 Louisville 86-72 on Sunday at Rupp Arena. Kentucky (7-2) got a solid all-around performance from guard Maddie Scherr on Sunday. The Union, Kentucky, native had 18 points, six assists, five rebounds and two blocked shots in the contest. Ajae Petty was the only other Kentucky player in double figures, scoring 11 points and grabbing six rebounds. Louisville (7-4) lived at the free throw line in Sunday’s game. The Cards made 33 of 39 (84.6 percent) from the charity stripe, while Kentucky managed to make just 10 of 21 (47.6 percent) of its free throws.
RV/#24 Cardinals Tame Wildcats, 86-72
The RV/#24 Louisville Cardinals kept the state red as they defeated Kentucky, 86-72, Sunday afternoon at Rupp Arena in the Battle for the Bluegrass. It was the sixth-straight win for the Cardinals (7-4) over the Wildcats (7-2), the longest winning streak Louisville has had in the rivalry’s history. Junior guard Hailey Van Lith scored a game-high 21 points in the win, the fourth time in her last five games she has scored 20 points or more. Liz Dixon had one of her best games of the season with a season-high 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Morgan Jones had 12 points, a season-high eight rebounds and tied a career high with four blocks. Olivia Cochran had a team-high nine rebounds to go with nine points.
Cardinals Set Season High in Assists, But Fall at Florida State
Louisville men’s basketball couldn’t claim its first win of the season in its first true road game of the year, falling 75-53 at Florida State on Saturday. The Cardinals (0-9, 0-2 ACC) set a new season high with 14 assists on 20 made baskets and knocked down nine 3-pointers, but they struggled from inside the arc where they lost the points in the paint 36-14. Florida State (2-9, 1-1 ACC) led wire-to-wire and scored 17 points off Louisville’s 16 turnovers.
>>College Basketball Roundup
(Undated) — Tennessee is now 9-and-1 after beating 13th-ranked Maryland 56-53 in the Basketball Hall of Fame Invitational. The 7th-ranked Vols will play Number-9 Arizona on the road next Saturday. Vanderbilt fell to 5-and-5 following a 64-62 loss to Grambling State. The Commodores will play NC State on the road next weekend. Memphis improved to 8-and-2 after an impressive win over 14th-ranked Auburn in the Holiday Hoopsgiving tournament. The Tigers will stay in Atlanta to play 10th-ranked Alabama.
Lady Toppers Win Defensive Battle with Little Rock
WKU women’s basketball led from start to finish against Little Rock on Sunday afternoon at Diddle Arena, earning a 48-25 victory. It was the lowest points total allowed by a WKU team since holding Centre College to 24 on Feb. 6, 1976 and it was the fewest the Lady Toppers has held a Division I team to in the modern era (since 1973-74). For the fifth time in seven games, WKU outrebounded its opponent. The Lady Toppers crashed the board for 44 rebounds while Little Rock collected 30. In that last two games, WKU has outrebounded its opponent by 15 (at Ball State) and by 14 (vs. Little Rock). The Lady Toppers had ten players in the scoring column. Teresa Faustino was the leading scorer with 11 points. It was her third double digit game of the season and the second time this season she has led the team in scoring. Acacia Hayes had eight points. Jaylin Foster and Josie Gilvin each had six points and six rebounds. The WKU bench scored 23 points in the game. Through seven games, bench players are averaging 32.0 points per game for the Lady Toppers.
McKnight Dominates with 32 Points in Tops’ Win over Raiders
After a 10-day hiatus from games, WKU Hilltopper Basketball returned to E.A. Diddle Arena on Saturday night and was led to victory over the Wright State Raiders by Davyion McKnight. The junior guard had 32 points in the Hilltoppers’ 64-60 home win, resulting in a perfect home non-conference slate for the second time in three seasons. WKU moves to 8-1 on the season, the best mark since the 2006-07 crew started with the same record through nine games.
Racers late Comeback Falls Short at Bellarmine
The Murray State Racers (5-4, 2-0 MVC) nearly made a second-half comeback complete in a 69-58 loss to the Bellarmine Knights at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. Trailing by 18 points with 11:52 left in the game, the Racers pressed the Knights and ignited a 14-0 run, to get the deficit to two points (50-48) with 6:39 to play. However, MSU never got closer and saw their back-to-back win streak stopped. Rob Perry led the way for the Racers with 24 points, while JaCobi Wood had his second double-double in the first nine games with 11 points and 10 rebounds to go with five assists.
Austin Peay hosts Lindsey Wilson
The Austin Peay State University men’s basketball team hosts Lindsey Wilson at 7 p.m., Monday, in the Winfield Dunn Center. The game is televised online on ESPN+.