Highlights, MVP and Twitter reactions to Kentucky beating Texas

In a game that featured a tied score, 40-40 at halftime, and 11 ties and lead changes, Kentucky Basketball went on a 19-9 run in less than five minutes midway through the second half to create a split with Texas. That was the difference between Kentucky and Texas, which survived 85-80 Wednesday night at Rupp Arena.

Denzel Aberdeen, who led the Wildcats with 19 points, made six decisive free throws in the final minute to preserve the Wildcats’ victory.

Advertisement

It was no walk in the park for Kentucky. Texas is a really strong team, and they showed a lot of fight Wednesday night.

But the Wildcats managed to extend their winning streak to four games, hitting 30 of 35 from the free throw line.

First half

Andrija Jelavić got the start for Kentucky tonight in the fourth spot, and he quickly scored four points to get the Wildcats’ offense going early.

It was a hotly contested first half, with both teams trading points to take an even score of 40-40 into the locker room. Neither team led by more than five points, and there were 11 ties and eight lead changes.

Advertisement

Kentucky entered Wednesday night having trailed by at least 12 first-half points in each of its last three games. Against Texas, the Wildcats never trailed by more than three points in the first half, shooting 41.7 percent from the floor and knocking down seven of eight free throw attempts.

Otega Oweh had his engine on full throttle, managing to double the numbers in less than 12 minutes and putting seven-foot Texas big man Matas Vokietatitis on a poster with an emphatic baseline dunk.

Malachi Moreno, making his first home start since his buzzer-beater at LSU last Wednesday, was all over the stat sheet in the first 20 minutes. Moreno had six points, three rebounds (all offensive), three assists and two blocks.

Second half

Kentucky got off to a strong start in the second half, hitting a high percentage of shots that opened a lead as large as six points in the first four minutes.

Advertisement

A key moment came when Texas’ Simeon Wilcher was flagrantly fouled on Kentucky’s Otega Oweh with just over 10 minutes left in the second half.

With the Wildcats hanging on 57-56, Oweh converted both free throws, then threw a pass to Malachi Moreno on Kentucky’s ensuing inbounds drive. Moreno was fouled in the air and he converted both free throws to extend Kentucky’s lead to 61-56.

Those four free throws were just the start of a 19-9 run that ended up

Box Score

MVP: Collin Chandler

It wasn’t even known if Chandler would play Wednesday night, having been ill before the game. But just like Otega Oweh at LSU last Wednesday, Chandler’s illness didn’t bother him. He came out and played a good game, especially in the second half.

Advertisement

Don’t look now, but Chandler is playing with a lot of confidence. With Kam Williams leaving tonight’s game with a foot injury (there were no updates at the time of publishing this story), Chandler stepped in and delivered a dynamite performance. The next man; this team embodies that mantra. Chandler was the definition of that Wednesday night.

Chandler tied Otega Oweh for a team-high 18 points, and he also tied a team-high with seven rebounds and had two steals. More importantly, he made a perfect six-for-six from the free throw line.

Highlights