Julius Randle – photo by Tim Hamblin | East KY Media
Julius Randle scored 15 of his 23 points in the second half to lead five Kentucky players in double figures and help the top-ranked Wildcats’ highly touted freshman class debut successfully with an 89-57 season-opening rout of UNC-Asheville on Friday night.
Randle, a 6-foot-9 forward considered the best of Kentucky’s six high school All-American recruits in an eight-man group some are calling the best ever, also grabbed 15 rebounds.
Reserve sophomore forward Alex Poythress added 10 points and 13 rebounds. Reserve Marcus Lee added 17 points,James Young had 11 and Aaron Harrison 10 as Kentucky’s freshmen helped the Wildcats overcome a ragged start.
Kentucky shot 17 of 30 in the second half to finish 28 of 59 (47.5 percent).
Will Weeks’ 19 points led UNC-Asheville, which debuted Nick McDevitt as the Bulldogs’ head coach.
Walter Cornett, of Glendale, Kentucky, is the owner and operator of Walter’s Wildcat World. He founded WildcatWorld.com in 1998 making it one of the oldest Kentucky basketball fan sites in operation today.
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Vanderbilt vs Kentucky (On time)
