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Boxscore and Game Notes: Kentucky vs South Carolina

Kentucky falls to 21-8 overall and 11-5 in Southeastern Conference action. South Carolina improves to 11-18 and 4-12 in league play.

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  • falls to 21-8 overall and 11-5 in Southeastern Conference action. improves to 11-18 and 4-12 in league play.
  • Kentucky still leads the overall series 47-11 and 18-7 in Columbia.
  • The Wildcats return to action with the season's home finale on Tuesday, March 4 at 9 p.m. ET. Kentucky welcomes Alabama to Rupp on Senior Night.
  • Today's attendance was 15,303.

Team Facts

  • Kentucky's starting lineup was comprised of all freshmen for the ninth-straight outing. Aaron Harrison, AndrewHarrison,  and  formed the lineup. That squad is now 6-3 on the year as the opening five.
  •  was the first sub off the bench for . It's the second time this season he's been called upon first.
  • Young hit a 3-pointer at the 15:10 mark in the opening half to extend UK's 3-streak to 889 consecutive games. It is the third largest streak in the country.
  • South Carolina held a 31-28 lead at halftime. UK is 3-6 and 1-4 when trailing at the break.
  • Kentucky scored 33 points on free throws which is the second most in a single game in the  era.

First Half Facts

  • Kentucky scored the game's first three points, but South Carolina scored the next five to take a 5-3 advantage into the opening media break. UK missed four of its first five attempts from the field.
  • UK shot 17-of-23 from the free throw line as the Gamecocks were whistled for 14 first half fouls.
  • The Blue and White hauled in 30 rebounds in the opening half and held a rebounding margin of +15 in the opening stanza.
  • South Carolina shot 35.7 percent from the field including 50.0 percent from behind the arc in the opening half compared to just 17.2 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from 3-point range for the Cats.

Second Half Facts

  • South Carolina opened the half on a 6-0 run to spark a 13-point advantage at 43-30 entering the first media timeout of the second stanza.
  • John Calipari was ejected from the game at the 10:23 minute mark and UK trailing 53-39. It is the second time in his career at UK he has been ejected from the contest.
  • Kentucky went on a 14-2 run to pull to within four at 57-53 with 4:09 remaining before the Gamecocks snapped the stretch with the front end of a double-bonus keeping the lead at two possessions.
  • An  3-pointer at the top of the key brought UK to within three at 59-56 at the 3:13 mark.
  • On the ensuing possession for South Carolina two free throws made it a two-possession game yet again.
  • Kentucky would get within one point at 68-67 on a Randle traditional three-point play with 21 seconds remaining but South Carolina converted four-straight free throws for the win.

Individual Notes

  •  led the team in scoring with 21 points.
    • Hit 11-of-12 shots from the free throw line. The makes was a career-best total.
    • Knocked down two 3-pointers to move into ninth place all-time in the single-season freshman record books.
    • Also added six rebounds.
    • Moved to 17th in the single-season freshman scoring record book with 401 points on the year.
  • Julius Randle picked up his 15th double-double of the season with 10 points and 15 rebounds.
    • Has logged 10 or more rebounds in five-straight contests.
    • Moved into fourth place in freshman record books with 303 rebounds on the year moving past Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
    • Advanced to 11th in the freshman scoring record book moving past Sam Bowie with 449 points on the year.
  • James Young posted 19 points.
    • Made career-high eight free throws.
    • With 19 points he moved into 13th place in the single-season freshman scoring record books.
    • Knocked down a 3-pointer for the seventh-straight contest with at least one triple.

On This Day In UK Basketball History

On March 28, 1992, in what many called the “best NCAA Tournament game ever,” Kentucky takes defending NCAA champion Duke into overtime before losing 104-103 in the East Regional finals in Philadelphia. A last-second shot by Christian Laettner sends Duke to the Final Four, and breaks the hearts of Wildcat fans everywhere. It is Cawood Ledford’s last game as the “Voice of the Wildcats.”

 

On March 28, 1998, against Stanford, Kentucky rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit, then grabbed a 5-point overtime lead, before fending off the Cardinals to advance to the title game for the third straight season. Jeff Sheppard canned three long-range three-pointers - two in the final three minutes and one in overtime - en route to a career-high 27 points.

 

On March 28, 2014, unranked Kentucky beat No. 5 Louisville 74-69, in the 2014 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.  Aaron Harrison buried a three-pointer from the left corner with 39 seconds left that put UK ahead to stay before 41,072 in Lucas Oil Stadium.

 

On March 28, 2015, No. 1 Kentucky defeated No. 8 Notre Dame, 68-66, in the 2015 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.  With its 37-0 record on the line, Kentucky trailed Notre Dame 59-53 with 6:14 left. UK rallied in front of 19,464 fans in Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena and preserved its perfect season thanks to a crucial blocked shot by Willie Cauley-Stein and two game-deciding free throws from Andrew Harrison in the final seconds.

 

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