Skal Labissiere scored 26 points, Isaiah Briscoe had a double-double and No. 2 Kentucky ran away from NJIT 87-57 on Saturday night for its second win in as many nights.
Seeking a strong tuneup with Tuesday night’s showdown looming against defending national champion and fifth-ranked Duke, the Wildcats (2-0) succeeded behind a dominant effort by their 6-foot-11 freshman. Labissiere made 10 of 12 from the field and all six free throws to nearly triple his scoring from the previous night against Albany.
After missing the opener with a bruised knee, Isaiah Briscoe, another freshman, debuted with a team-high 12 rebounds along with 11 points. Derek Willis added 11 points and Marcus Lee had 10 as Kentucky won the first meeting between the schools.
NJIT (0-1) led twice early before being overwhelmed by the taller Wildcats, who dominated the boards 54-23 and held the Highlanders to 31 percent shooting.
Damon Lynn scored 19 points for NJIT.
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.