Thursday, December 28, 2000
Kentucky 102, High Point 49
Wildcats at .500 for first time
The Associated Press
LEXINGTON, Ky. — After a slew of early-season matchups against some of the nation's premier programs, Kentucky was looking forward to facing a team that clearly wasn't its equal.
The Wildcats got just that Wednesday night as they outshot, outmuscled and outplayed tiny High Point, their coach's alma mater, 102-49 at Rupp Arena.
“After playing tough teams like Michigan State and Indiana, we knew we could not have any type of letdown,” Kentucky forward Tayshaun Prince said. “If we played well early, we knew we could grab a big lead, and that's what we did.
“There's always a risk in playing an opponent like High Point. But we came out and took care of business.”
The victory pushed Kentucky to the .500 mark (5-5) for the first time this season with four of its next five games — including three important Southeastern Conference games — at home.
Jason Parker led the bigger, stronger Wildcats with 16 points. Erik Daniels added 14, Marquis Estill 13 and Prince and Keith Bogans 12 each as they scored more than 100 points for the first time since a 103-91 victory over Maryland during the 1998-99 season.
Every Kentucky player scored at least one point and all but one grabbed at least two rebounds. Freshman guard Gerald Fitch had eight rebounds to lead six Wildcats with at least five each.
“Games like this are very important for our freshmen and younger players,” Kentucky coach Tubby Smith said. “This should keep our confidence going in the right direction.”
Jermaine Wallace scored 12 points and Doug Alves added 10 to lead High Point (4-8).
Kentucky dominated every facet of the game. The Wildcats shot better than 50 percent from the field for the second straight game (51.3 percent) and outrebounded the Panthers 57-34, including a 28-18 margin at the offensive end.
They also forced 23 turnovers, leading to 39 points, and had 48 points from their bench to the Panthers' 22.
“Obviously we rebounded the ball well,” UK coach Tubby Smith said. “The numbers speak for themselves. We also were able to force some turnovers while cutting down on our own after having 12 in the first half.
“There was a lot of positive things in this game that we can build on as we get ready to enter the second phase of our season.”
High Point shot only 32 percent for the game, missing 28 of its 39 shots in the second half.
“I think we can play better than we did tonight,” said High Point coach Jerry Steele, who coached Tubby Smith during his senior season. “Kentucky completely dominated us in the second half.”
Tied 6-6 less than three minutes into the game, a 23-6 run gave Kentucky a lead that was never challenged.
During one stretch, Daniels scored six straight points to give Kentucky a 27-12 lead with 10:05 remaining in the half. Later, Parker scored nine straight points, and the Wildcats led 40-22 at halftime.
“We came out on fire and I really thought we would do something,” said Wallace, who also had nine rebounds. “We came out running, then it started to go downhill. But I think we learned a lot about being strong and playing the entire game.”
HIGH POINT (4-8) — Bennett 1-3 2-2 4, Kaukenas 3-7 0-0 6, Ignatavicius 0-3 0-0 0, Du. Van Weerdhuizen 3-14 0-0 7, Alves 4-10 0-0 10, Kalbaugh 0-1 0-0 0, Wallace 6-10 0-2 12, Clark 0-1 0-0 0, De. Van Weerdhuizen 3-8 0-2 7, Hart 0-1 0-0 0, Halsch 1-7 1-3 3, Wilson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 21-66 3-9 49.
KENTUCKY (5-5) — Bogans 4-10 2-2 12, Prince 5-11 0-0 12, Parker 6-9 4-6 16, Fitch 4-9 1-2 9, Smith 2-4 0-0 5, Hawkins 1-4 0-0 2, Blevins 3-4 0-0 8, Daniels 6-10 2-2 14, Heissenbuttel 1-2 2-2 4, Stone 2-2 2-4 6, Sears 0-3 1-3 1, Estill 5-8 3-4 13. Totals 39-76 17-25 102.
Halftime—Kentucky 40, High Point 22. 3-point goals—High Point 4-19 (Bennett 0-1, Kaukenas 0-1, Ignatavicius 0-1, Du. Van Weerdhuizen 1-10, Alves 2-3, De. Van Weerdhuizen 1-3), Kentucky 7-22 (Bogans 2-7, Prince 2-3, Fitch 0-1, Smith 1-2, Hawkins 0-2, Blevins 2-3, Daniels 0-1, Sears 0-2, Estill 0-1). Fouled out—None. Rebounds—High Point 34 (Wallace 9), Kentucky 57 (Fitch 8). Assists—High Point 5 (Halsch 2), Kentucky 15 (Hawkins 4). Total fouls—High Point 17, Kentucky 14. A—19,374.
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Kentucky 102, High Point 49