By Chris Duncan
The Associated Press

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Kentucky coach Guy Morriss sported white tape wrapped tightly around his swollen right hand with his pinky finger stabilized in a splint.

The usually mild-mannered Morriss broke his hand Saturday punching a locker during a halftime tirade at Mississippi State on Saturday. The Wildcats trailed 17-16 at the time, and Morriss' outburst worked. Kentucky exploded for 21 third-quarter points and won 45-24.

"It was worth it. We played much better in the second half," Morriss said at his weekly news conference Monday.

If that's what it takes to get his team to beat No. 17 LSU (6-2, 3-1) on Saturday, Morriss said he'll be glad to sacrifice his other hand.

"There's nothing like winning. If it takes hitting a locker, or several of them, I'm going to do it," Morriss said.

The Wildcats (6-3, 2-3 Southeastern Conference) have already matched their victory total from 1999 - the year after Tim Couch left.

But Morriss said he's been worried for weeks about how his team struggles to put together two well-played halves. His wife, Jackie, suggested last week it was up to Morriss to solve the problem.

"Jackie and I talk about a lot of different things and she's a little bit more fiery than I am," he said. "She was deadly serious. She said, 'You've got to do something that gets their attention, gets them cranked up.'

"It's not something you ever stage or plan, but then I thought maybe she was right. Let's get 'em fired up."

Morriss held off until Kentucky blew a 10-0 first-quarter lead in Starkville and trailed at halftime for the third time in five games. He couldn't wait any longer to unleash his rage.

"The second quarter, we started self-destructing again. We're missing reads, we're missing tackles. Here we go again," he said. "I was just really, really angry. On my way in, that's when I thought, 'Hey, I need to shake these guys up a little bit.' I got a little carried away."

Junior Derek Abney led the post-tirade comeback with two third-quarter punt returns for touchdowns. Abney has four punt returns for touchdowns this season, a school and conference record.

Artose Pinner rushed for 104 yards, his sixth 100-plus-yard rushing game of the season. He needs four yards on Saturday to become UK's fifth 1,000-yard rusher.

Morriss said his team has to learn it can't rely on a few good players.

"We talked after the game about the need for coaches to be fussing at halftime and for me to have to break a hand to get them to come out and play hard," he said. "It's part of the process of learning how to win. We're a team that has to come out and play with emotion and stay very focused during the course of the week and take no one for granted."

Morriss remains frustrated by penalties and Kentucky's kicking game.

The Wildcats were flagged 12 times for 92 yards against Mississippi State and lead the SEC with 82 penalties this season.

"We talk to our kids every day about playing within the framework of the rules. We just try to keep stressing it to them and see if we can get it corrected," Morriss said.

Redshirt freshman Taylor Begley missed two extra-point kicks and a field-goal try against the Bulldogs. Morriss said he might bench Begley in favor of sophomore Clint Ruth, who handles kickoffs.

"We're still making dumb mistakes that should've been corrected a long time ago," Morriss said.

Despite the occasional lapses, the Wildcats still have a chance to match the program's best record since 1984.

"To be honest, I'm not really surprised at all," Morriss said. "We told our kids in camp that they could be as good a team as they wanted to be. If they were willing to pay the price, we could win six, seven or eight games. Maybe anybody outside of the circle doubted us, but I don't think these kids doubted it."