Monday, November 12, 2001
UK struggles to win final exhibition
Wildcats meet Western Ky. Thursday
The Associated Press
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Tayshaun Prince scored 19 points and Gerald Fitch added 18 as No.4 Kentucky held off Athletes in Action 88-83 in overtime in an exhibition game Sunday.
The Wildcats scored the first five points of the overtime period, and Athletes in Action turned the ball over four times in the five-minute extra session to end any hopes of an upset.
Keith Bogans scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds as Kentucky scored 27 points off 19 turnovers and outrebounded Athletes in Action 40-28.
“It would have been pretty ugly if we'd lost this game,” Kentucky coach Tubby Smith said. “We got a good feel today for what we still need to work on.”
It was the final exhibition game for Kentucky, which opens the regular season against Western Kentucky Thursday in the NABC Classic.
Kentucky shot 49 percent, but made only 5-of-23 3-point shots and turned the ball over 14 times.
Prince's jumper and two free throws put Kentucky up 80-77 with 1:04 to play in regulation. Josh Hall's fourth 3-pointer tied the score with 42 seconds remaining.
Cliff Hawkins missed a free throw with 8.7 seconds to play, giving Athletes in Action one final chance to win the game.
Damian Long's 3-pointer from the right side over a charging Prince bounced off the back of the rim as time expired, sending the game to overtime.
“The way they were shooting, I know the fans were expecting that last shot to go in,” Prince said.
Prince then hit a 3-pointer and Jules Camara made two free throws to open the overtime period and give the Wildcats the lead for good.
“This game can be looked at negatively because we came out so slow,” Bogans said. “But it was also positive because we came out on top.”
Kentucky came out flat, missing seven of its first eight shots as Athletes in Action took a 10-3 lead by the first media timeout.
An aggravated Smith replaced all five starters with Hawkins, Camara, Erik Daniels, Chuck Hayes and Josh Carrier and got immediate results.
Camara and Hayes each scored four points during a 13-4 run that gave Kentucky its first lead, 16-14, with 12:54 remaining in the half.
“I thought that second group came in and did a great job,” Smith said. “They came in and gave us the spark and energy we needed.”
AIA — Grandison 4-11 0-0 10, Grimm 5-11 5-5 17, Hall 5-10 0-0 14, D. Daniels 4-8 0-0 10, Long 7-12 2-2 19, Fisher 2-3 0-0 4, Dunn 3-5 0-0 6, Spruel 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 31-62 7-7 83.
KENTUCKY — Prince 8-17 2-2 19, Stone 0-3 0-0 0, Bogans 6-16 4-8 17, Fitch 7-10 2-2 18, Blevins 3-4 0-0 6, Hawkins 2-3 0-1 4, Carrier 1-2 0-0 3, Daniels 2-4 1-2 5, Sears 0-0 0-0 0, Camara 3-7 2-2 8, Hayes 3-5 2-2 8. Totals 35-71 13-19 88.
Halftime—Kentucky 37, AIA 35. 3-point goals—AIA 14-30 (Grandison 2-7, Grimm 2-6, Hall 4-7, Daniels 2-4, Long 3-5, Spruel 1-1), Kentucky 5-23 (Prince 1-7, Bogans 1-6, Fitch 2-4, Blevins 0-1, Carrier 1-2, Daniels 0-2, Hayes 0-1). Fouled out—None. Rebounds—AIA 28 (Grimm 6), Kentucky 40 (Bogans 7). Assists—AIA 18 (Grimm 6), Kentucky 11 (Bogans 3). Total fouls—AIA 15, Kentucky 10. A—16,036.
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