The Breeders' Cup ended on Saturday, but the races have just begun for the season at Memorial Coliseum.

It was there on Sunday that Kentucky used a breakneck pace to zoom past Coker College in an 86-44 exhibition win.

Using its superior size and speed, No. 18 UK scored 29 unanswered points to open the second half and end any doubts in their only tune-up before the season opener at Morehead State on Friday.

"We don't slow down a lot," Coach Matthew Mitchell said when asked about the frenetic pace. "It is constant up and down."

Kentucky forced 40 turnovers (in part thanks to 15 steals) and turned them into 45 points in the rout.

"What we did was not a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but I don't care who you're playing, it takes a lot of energy and effort to create 40 turnovers," Mitchell said, citing things to work on, such as rebounding and half-court defensive rotations. "That is a good sign for our team."

The Cats had seven players score eight or more points, led by freshman McDonald's All-American Bria Goss, who had 17.

Goss said getting used to the pace that Kentucky plays and practices was difficult at first.

"When I first got here, it took a lot of adjustment," she said.

But Goss has made a speedy transition, her coach said.

"She tries harder than anybody on our team," Mitchell said of the swing player from Indianapolis, who made six of her 10 tries. "If you ask her to do something, she's going to try extremely hard to get that done, and that is a joy to coach."

Samantha Drake added 11 points and four rebounds. Brittany Henderson had 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Junior A'dia Mathies and sophomore Maegan Conwright also had 10 points apiece for the Cats. Mathies added five rebounds and four steals.

Everyone who played for Kentucky, which made 38.3 percent of its shots, scored.

The shooting percentage was not what Mitchell was hoping for, but he doesn't expect perfection quite yet.

"The big message was, don't let our offensive woes — we were missing so many layups there — don't let those affect us on defense with our energy," Mitchell said. "We got discouraged because we made some poor plays on offense."

Fifth-year senior Amber Smith got the loudest ovation of the day from the crowd as she seemed to "shake the rust off," which her coach demanded in the pre-season.

Smith had several big plays, including getting a steal, then a behind-the-back pass to Henderson for a layup. She had another no-look pass to fellow senior Keyla Snowden for a three-pointer.

"I was excited to be on the court and be with my teammates," Smith said. "I just want to make plays for my teammates and help us win. ... Definitely saw some flashes, and there will be more of that."

The senior, who came back after her second knee reconstruction in three seasons, had two points, three assists and two steals.

Coker is coached by Jenny Finora, who is better known to Kentucky fans as Jenny Pfeiffer, a former UK standout. Her assistant coach is Vic Finora, a former men's basketball graduate assistant for the Cats.

"It was very special having her come back and coach a game here on the floor where she had so many great games," Mitchell said of Finora, who played from 2003-04 and then again during the 2006-07 season.

The Cobras, who were held to 26.9 percent shooting, were led by Jessica Cohen's 17 points and game-high 20 rebounds.

Note

Kastine Evans sat out Sunday's exhibition with a sore hip. She is listed as day-to-day and most likely will be available when the Cats open their season at Morehead State on Friday night.