FINAL: Jaxson Robinson goes for 20 as No. 9 Kentucky cruises past Lipscomb 97-68

Despite having a full week off after beating Duke in Atlanta, Kentucky took care of business in its first game back.

On Tuesday night in Lexington, the No. 9 Wildcats (4-0) cruised from start to finish in a 97-68 win over the Lipscomb Bisons (2-4). Jaxson Robinson bounced back from his one-point showing against the Blue Devils by pouring in a game-high 20 points for the ‘Cats on 6-10 shooting. He was aided by 16 points from Lamont Butler and 14 more from Otega Oweh. Amari Williams nearly recorded a double-double, finishing with nine points and 11 rebounds, while Koby Brea hit a trio of triples.

Particularly on defense, Kentucky was excellent all night long. Lipscomb shot just 39 percent from the field and went a miserable 5-29 from long range. The Bisons only turned the ball over six times but missing so many outside shots was never going to be a recipe for success. On the other end, the Wildcats shot 55 percent from the floor and went 12-25 from beyond the arc, marking the first time in program history that UK has made at least 10 threes through the first four games of a season.

Admittedly, Kentucky opened the game looking like a team that hadn’t played in seven days. A couple of quick fouls on Oweh sent him to the bench early. The offense was sloppy for extended stretches, but it didn’t take long for UK’s talent to become too overwhelming.

Luckily, Lipscomb couldn’t hit a thing from three-point range either. The Bisons missed its first 13 shots from beyond the arc before Charlie Williams ended the drought with under five minutes before halftime. Lipscomb went on to make just two of 19 shots from deep by the break. In the meantime, the Wildcats were drilling its outside looks, going 8-13 through the first 20 minutes.

While the offense wasn’t always pretty (six turnovers with just four assists on 14 made buckets in the first half), Kentucky’s defense did more than enough to quickly build a sizable lead. Lipscomb made just over a quarter (9-34) of its first-half shot attempts. Jacob Ognacevic, a preseason All-ASUN member, was limited to only eight points on 3-9 overall shooting for the Bisons in the first half. Robinson led all scorers with 13 points for the ‘Cats, which held a 43-26 advantage going into the intermission on 50 percent shooting as a team.

The second half would start with more offensive rhythm for Lipscomb, but there was nothing the Bisons could do to slow down Kentucky on the other end. Robinson continued to hit shots. UK would extend its lead to 30-plus before we hit the midway point of the second half. Collin Chandler even started to get in on the fun with five second-half points.

By the under-eight-minute media timeout, Kentucky was in front by 35 points. The lead would grow to as many as 40 points at one point. Some members of the packed crowd began to leave the arena in a game that was never truly competitive. Travis Perry and Trent Noah checked in for the first time with a little over six minutes left in regulation. Kentucky settled on the 29-point victory.