He saw No. 16 UK roll over Western Kentucky 88-70 Saturday night at Historic Memorial Coliseum as the Wildcats featured outstanding performances by several standouts. The win improved Kentucky’s record to 11-1.
Six-foot-5 sophomore Clara Strack led the Wildcat attack with her sixth double-double of the season, hitting a team-high-tying 21 points and a team-high-tying 12 rebounds. UK All-American guard Georgia Amoore nearly had a double-double with 21 points and a team-high nine assists. She hit 3 of 6 three-pointers.
“I think we’re a lot better after Game 12 than we were up at Game One,” said Brooks. “We got to continue to work at getting better. Obviously, with the SEC (games coming up), there are going to be some very difficult basketball games as the season goes along.”
The Wildcats will begin SEC action in their next game as they host Mississippi State on Thursday, Jan. 2 at 6 pm ET. The game will be shown on SEC Network+. SEC currently has eight schools in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
Against WKU, which dropped to 9-3, UK gunned in a season-high 52.9 percent from the field, while delivering 25 assists, the second most this season. In addition, the Wildcats had four players who scored in double digits for the 10th time this season.
Kentucky guard Georgia Amoore and Coach Kenny Brooks discussed strategy Saturday night against Western Kentucky. (Photo by Jamie H. Vaught)
Kentucky guard Georgia Amoore and Coach Kenny Brooks discuss strategy against Western Kentucky Saturday night. (Photo by Jamie H. Vaught)
“They’re always doing things they’re supposed to be doing (including academics),” Brooks said of his players. “They are always on time. They’re always respectful and I think that has accumulated into a really good team. They are not always perfect, but they always have perfect intent. They work hard. They’re fun to be around. That’s a coach’s dream to watch a team develop into something very special.
“We have 25 assists that means they’re playing together. They’re playing for each other.”
In addition to Strack and Amoore, Kentucky had several other weapons. Junior forward Teonni Key hit 15 points, while junior guard Saniah Tyler made a season-high 11 points, including 3 of 4 three-pointers. Junior Amelia Hassett had nine points and grabbed a team-high-tying 12 rebounds. Guard Dazia Lawrence had a season-high seven rebounds and a season-high-tying six assists while hitting seven points.