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Kentucky has tied the 1953-54 team for the best start in UK history plus boxscore and other game notes

With 25 consecutive victories to begin the season, Kentucky has tied the 1953-54 team for the best start in program history.

Go here for boxscore.

  • is 25-0, 12-0 in the Southeastern Conference. South Carolina is 12-12 overall, 3-9 in league play.
  • Kentucky leads the series 49-11, including 26-2 at home.
  • With 25 consecutive victories to begin the season, has tied the 1953-54 team for the best start in program history.
  • Kentucky is 202-27 all-time when ranked No. 1 and has won 47 of the last 49 games as The Associated Press top-ranked team.
  • Calipari has led three schools to a No. 1 ranking (Massachusetts, Memphis, Kentucky) and has a 91-9 record as the top-ranked coach, including 50-4 at UK.
  • Calipari is now 177-37 (.827) as head coach at Kentucky, the best winning percentage of any coach in UK history.
  • Kentucky led the entire game. UK has trailed for only 144:57 of a possible 1,015 minutes this season.
  • Kentucky returns to action Tuesday at Tennessee. Game time is 7 p.m. EST and it will be televised on ESPN.

Team Notes

  • Kentucky held South Carolina to 23.6 percent from the field.
    • It is the 11th game this season that the Wildcats have held a team under 30 percent.
    • UK entered the game leading the nation in field-goal percentage defense at 34.2 percent.
  • South Carolina had only three assists on the 13 made baskets. It is the second-lowest opponent assist total of the season, next to one assist by Louisville in that game.
  • UK won rebounding 45-21. The 24 margin is the second-largest of the season and highest margin vs. an opponent.
    • The rebounding helped UK to a 14-3 advantage in second-chance points and 34-16 lead in points in the paint.
  • Kentucky shot 50 percent from the field, 27 of 54. It is the eighth game this season that the Wildcats made at least half their shots.
  • UK hit 75 percent at the free-throw line, 18 of 24. It is the 10th time in the last 13 games that the Cats have made at least 70 percent from the line and today's performance moved UK over 70 percent for the entire season at 70.1.
  • Balanced scoring featured seven Wildcats with at least eight points.
  • UK is 108-5 in the John Calipari Era when holding opponents to 63 or fewer points, including 20-0 this season.
  • UK is 55-0 in the John Calipari Era when holding opponents to 55 or fewer points, including 17 times this season.
  • Kentucky's streak of 925 consecutive games with a 3-pointer was extended when tripled at the 9:29 mark of the first half.

First-Half Facts

  • Kentucky's opening lineup featured , Aaron Harrison, , Karl-Anthony Towns andWillie Cauley-Stein for the eighth time this season.
  • Kentucky scored the first four points of the game and jumped out to an 18-3 lead.
  • UK led by as many as 27 points on two occasions before going to intermission with a 43-18 lead.
  • It is the 15th time this season that UK has held an opponent under 20 points in a half.

Second-Half Story

  • Kentucky started the second half with , , Andrew Harrison, Marcus Lee and .
  • Kentucky held South Carolina scoreless for the first 4:22 of the second half and without a basket for more than six minutes.
  • UK enlarged the lead to as many as 39 points at 72-33.

Player Notes

  • Dakari Johnson collected his second double-double of the season with 10 points and a career-high-tying 13 rebounds. He had the same stats in the season opener vs. Grand Canyon.
  • Karl-Anthony Towns had a perfect shooting day from the field, making 3-of-3 field goal attempts. He totaled nine points and is averaging 13.4 points over the last five games.
  • led the Wildcats with 14 points, his third-consecutive game in double figures. He's averaging 14 points over those three games.
  • Aaron Harrison chipped in 11 points, equaling his team-high average for the season.
  • Andrew Harrison contributed nine points and a game-high six assists.

 

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