National Basketball Association
Tennessee 88, Kentucky 58
When: 1:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 16, 2013
Where: Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville, Tennessee
Officials:
# Brian Shey, # Doug Shows, # Mark Whitehead
Attendance:
21678
By SportsDirect Inc.
Tennessee 88, Kentucky 58: Trae Golden had 24 points and eight assists as the host Volunteers - helped by the absence of the Wildcats' Nerlens Noel - scored their most decisive victory over Kentucky.
Jordan McRae added 15 points as Tennessee (14-10, 6-6 SEC) led by 20 midway through the first half en route to snapping a six-game losing streak to the Wildcats. The Volunteers, whose previous biggest victory over Kentucky was 87-59 in 1968, outrebounded the Wildcats 39-21 and outscored them 40-22 in the paint.
Kyle Wiltjer scored 18 points for Kentucky (17-8, 8-4), which suffered its worst loss of the season. Noel, a 6-10 freshman forward who leads the nation with 4.4 blocks and the SEC with 9.5 rebounds, suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Wildcats' 69-52 loss at Florida on Tuesday.
Josh Richardson's basket gave Tennessee a 33-12 lead with 9:49 left in the first half, marking Kentucky's largest deficit of the season. The Volunteers stretched the lead to 26 points on McRae's 3-pointer with 1:21 to go before they settled for a season high in first-half points and a 50-26 lead at the break.
Tennessee didn't let up and Golden's breakaway basket gave the Volunteers a 60-30 lead with 15:55 remaining. Kentucky's Alex Poythress and Willie Cauley-Stein, who started in place of Noel, fouled out 23 seconds apart midway through the second half with a combined six points after averaging nearly 20.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Tennessee F Jarnell Stokes had nine points and nine rebounds, snapping his double-double streak at six games. ... Kentucky assistant John Robic was ejected after receiving two technical fouls during a media timeout with 11:17 remaining in the first half. Golden converted both free throws to put Tennessee ahead 26-12. ... The Volunteers last scored 50 in the first half when they led Florida 50-31 on Feb. 27, 2007 en route to an 86-76 victory.
Top Game Performances
| Kentucky |
|
Tennessee |
|
Kyle Wiltjer 18 |
Scoring |
Trae Golden 24 |
|
Archie Goodwin 4 |
Assists |
Trae Golden 8 |
|
Kyle Wiltjer 6 |
Rebounds |
Jarnell Stokes 9 |
|
Kyle Wiltjer 6 |
Free Throws Made |
Trae Golden 11 |
|
Willie Cauley-Stein 1 |
Steals |
Armani Moore 3 |
|
Willie Cauley-Stein 2 |
Blocks |
Jordan McRae 3 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Kentucky
|
58 |
35.8 |
6-15 |
14-18 |
8 |
20 |
3 |
3 |
15 |
| Tennessee
|
88 |
58.0 |
5-5 |
25-31 |
14 |
33 |
6 |
7 |
15 |
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