FINAL: Kentucky WBB falls to Cincinnati 65-41 in final game of Paradise Jam

In seemingly common fashion for the Wildcats, a must-win game was once again decided by the end of the first quarter.

Following a 96-53 loss to No. 3 Colorado on Friday, Kentucky women’s basketball (2-5) couldn’t quite pull out the victory against the Cincinnati Bearcats (3-3) on Saturday to close out the Paradise Jam. Kentucky finished the three-day run in the U.S. Virgin Islands with a 65-41 defeat to the Bearcats. This loss marks their third of the event and their fifth loss in a row.

Kentucky was able to keep the game close for the first few minutes. But, Cincinnati sealed the deal with a 7-0 run to end the first and make it 16-9. It was all Bearcats from there. 41 points is a season-low for the Wildcats. They lost all three games at the Paradise Jam by a combined 82 points.

Final. pic.twitter.com/xzsDqeuzoi

— Kentucky Women’s Basketball (@KentuckyWBB) November 25, 2023

Cincinnati is ranked near the bottom of the Big 12 Conference, shot 23-60 (38.3%) from the field on Saturday, and outrebounded the Wildcats 38-33. The Bearcats came off losses from two top-ten teams: No. 3 Colorado (77-60) and No. 10 NC State (79-45), but then again, so was Kentucky.

Despite senior Maddie Scherr scoring a team-high 25 points (8-19) including five three-pointers, the rest of the Kentucky offense was dull and lifeless. Aside from Scherr, Kentucky went 4-27 (14.8%) from the field as a team.

Kentucky’s second-highest scorer was sophomore Saniah Tyler, who only had five points. Scherr’s 25 points were more than the rest of her teammates combined (16). Scherr is still recovering from an ankle injury that she seemingly reaggravated during the third quarter.

Cincinnati, however, had three players with double-digit scoring: Jillian Hayes (13), Destiny Thomas (13), and Mya Jackson (11). Seven out of the 11 Bearcats who saw the floor put up at least six points against the Wildcats. To make matters worse, 28 of Cincinnati’s points came from the paint.

Kentucky, on the other hand, only scored four points in the paint, thanks to Cincinnati’s outstanding defense. The Bearcats held senior Ajae Petty to four points, all of which were from the free-throw line. Petty added seven rebounds, a team-high.

The Wildcats also gave up 21 turnovers compared to Cincinnati’s nine. Those 21 turnovers turned into 14 points for the Bearcats, while the Wildcats didn’t score a single point off Cincy’s miscues.

The Wildcats will be back in action on Thursday, Nov. 30 for the SEC/ACC Challenge against Boston College, which will take place at Transylvania’s Clive M. Beck Center at 7:00 p.m. EST. This will be the second out of four games the Wildcats are playing at Transy this season. It will be broadcast on the SEC Network+.