FINAL: Kentucky dominates LSU from start to finish in 95-64 Senior Night win

It might’ve been Senior Night, but it was the underclassmen who fueled Kentucky to a dominating conference win.

Powered by 24 points from junior guard Otega Oweh, the No. 19 Wildcats (20-10; 9-8 SEC) led the LSU (14-16; 3-14 SEC) Tigers for over 39 minutes of game time in a 95-64 blowout victory inside Rupp Arena. It only took a couple of segments before Kentucky put LSU to bed. The ‘Cats shot 50.7 percent from the field and 12-32 from deep in the largest win of conference play.

Oweh added eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals to his statline while sophomore center Brandon Garrison finished with 15 points and four assists on 5-8 shooting. Collin Chandler even knocked in a trio of three-pointers on his way to an 11-point night. The five playable seniors all made an impact too though.

• Amari Williams: nine points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block
• Lamont Butler: five points, five rebounds, five assists, and two steals
• Koby Brea: six points (2-7 3PT)
• Andrew Carr: eight points and six rebounds
• Ansley Almonor: 15 points (6-7 FG; 3-4 3PT)

It didn’t take long to see why Kentucky was a double-digit favorite coming into this one. In hindsight, that 12.5-point line should have been much higher. After LSU scored the first bucket of the night, the Wildcats responded with a 15-0 run, its first Kill Shot of the evening. But a series of lineup changes allowed LSU to rack up some points against the bench pieces, cutting its deficit to eight at the second media timeout.

That momentum didn’t last long though. Head coach Mark Pope brought back in a handful of starters as Kentucky was once again off to the races. This time, it was a 12-0 run for the ‘Cats — another Kill Shot — that stretched the lead to 20 points. UK “settled” for a 50-23 halftime advantage, the team’s largest lead of the season after 20 minutes. Oweh led the way with 15 first-half points as Kentucky shot 58.8 percent from the field and 7-14 from deep.

Kentucky continued to double-up LSU to start the second half. The Tigers attempted to slow UK down by mixing in some zone defense looks, but to no avail. LSU would finally knock down a three after going 0-9 in the first half. They needed much more than that though. Chandler’s third three-pointer of the night gave UK a 69-34 lead with 11 minutes to go.

There would be no dramatic comeback attempts from the Tigers either. Kentucky’s lead grew to as many as 38 points in the second half before Pope began to empty his bench. It was the perfect feel-good win in the home finale and a great send off for Pope’s first group of seniors in Lexington.