SEC’s top two scorers, player-of-the-year candidates collide when UK hosts Texas A&M
On Thursday night, the University of Kentucky women’s basketball team faces a critical test as it looks to jockey for position in the Southeastern Conference race.
Winners of three straight games, the Wildcats host Texas A&M in Memorial Coliseum at 6:30 p.m. Kentucky (14-2, 3-1 SEC) is looking to end a four-game losing streak to the Aggies, whom they leapfrogged in this week’s Associated Press Top 25 poll.
After wins at Alabama and Florida, UK rose from No. 14 to No. 11. Texas A&M (14-2, 2-1 SEC) fell from No. 10 to No. 12 after splitting a pair of home games. The Aggies trounced Mississippi by 44 points before losing to unranked LSU, 57-54.
Two of the best players in the country will face off in Thursday’s game. Texas A&M junior guard Chennedy Carter was voted preseason SEC Player of the Year by both the media and the league’s coaches. UK sophomore guard Rhyne Howard was runner-up in the preseason voting. Both players have lived up to the hype.
On Tuesday, Howard was named SEC Player of the Week for the second time in a row after matching the program’s single-game scoring record with 43 points against Alabama. She followed that with a game-high 22 at Florida.
Howard leads the SEC in scoring and is third nationally, averaging 23.8 points per game. Carter is second in the SEC and seventh in the country at 21.9. Last week, both were named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 List, which tracks the top candidates for national player of the year. UK Coach Matthew Mitchell said Carter will present a unique challenge.
“She has a high skill level and can handle the basketball with either hand and get to the basket seemingly at will,” Mitchell said of the 5-foot-7 Carter. “She just has a great change of pace, change of direction, great ball-handling skills that allow her to create shots at just about any time she wants to create a shot, so she is a handful.”
The Aggies represent the biggest challenge for the Wildcats since they were pounded by then-No. 4 South Carolina in the SEC opener. The Gamecocks are currently ranked No. 1.
“Well, I think what we found out on the opening night of conference play versus South Carolina was one, that South Carolina is a very good team, but two, we didn’t come out with the kind of competitive fire that we need each time we take the floor in the conference,” Mitchell said. “So, we’re going to need to work hard in our preparation and try to lock in, focus in on what we’re going to need to do to beat a very good Texas A&M team.”
Thursday
No. 12 Texas A&M at No. 11 Kentucky
When: 6:30 p.m.
Where: Memorial Coliseum
TV: SEC Network
Radio: WLAP-AM 630
Records: Kentucky 14-2 (3-1 SEC), Texas A&M 14-2 (2-1)
Series: Texas A&M leads 6-4
Last meeting: Texas A&M won 62-55 on Feb. 28, 2019, in Lexington.
