Kentucky Falls on the Road to Duke

Photo Britney Howard | UKAthletics

The 8th ranked Kentucky women’s basketball team fell behind early and was unable to claw back this afternoon on the road, falling to 13th ranked Duke 89-68. The Wildcats got the turnovers they wanted, and were even able to rebound their own missed shots at a high clip, but when UK had opportunities they did not capitalize. The Blue Devils played as a cohesive unit, dismantling the defense of Kentucky all over the court, and without senior leader Bria Goss the Cats looked frustrated and disheveled.

Duke came into today’s game with a 7-3 record, having losses to South Carolina, Texas A&M and Nebraska, but they took their frustration out on the visiting Wildcats. Six Blue Devils scored in double-figures, as Kentucky was unable to cut off the vision of Duke’s passing lanes. Kentucky is now 10-2, having failed to play a complete 40 minute game the entire season with a tough SEC schedule looming in the New Year.

A silver lining of an otherwise dark cloud, was the offensive performance of Kentucky’s post. Freshman Alexis Jennings netted a career high 17 points, while Azia Bishop notched another double-digit scoring effort with 15. What was lacking was the guard play for the Cats, which usually is the strength of UK, but not tonight. Jennifer O’Neill finished with 17 points but only on 5-21 shooting. The best way to describe today’s game…this video of Matthew Mitchell:

Kentucky returns to action next Sunday in their final non-conference game of the season and final game of 2014 as Tennessee State visits Memorial Coliseum for an afternoon match-up.

@WilderTreadKSR