Roper’s record day fuels latest UK rout. Now, a date with Louisville in Rupp looms.
Fresh new venue, familiar result for the University of Kentucky women’s basketball team.
Paced by a career night from senior guard Jaida Roper, the 14th-ranked Wildcats cruised to a 91-36 victory over Winthrop in Rupp Arena on Wednesday.
Roper came off the bench to lead UK with a career-high 30 points, shattering her previous record of 15 in last year’s win over Murray State. She was on fire from the outset, hitting her first eight shots. Roper finished 12-of-13 from the field, including 3-of-4 from three-point range, and dished out four assists.
She scored eight straight points as part of a 21-4 run that put the Cats up 24-8 in the first quarter. She tied her career-high on her third three-pointer of the night, then passed it on a transition layup that pushed Kentucky’s advantage to 46-17.
“So much fun,” UK Coach Matthew Mitchell said when asked about Roper’s night. “She just really got into a great rhythm. She made some really great plays there in the first half cutting to the basket. She shot the three well, she was doing a good job from the field ... I thought she really took good shots and didn’t force anything tonight and just played a really smart floor game. I’m happy for her, it’s got to be a great feeling to have that kind of game.”
Roper confirmed Mitchell’s suspicion.
“Tonight was real fun, I hope to do it again real soon,” she said with a laugh, then after a pause added: “Not the 30, just the win.”
KeKe McKinney, who had four of UK’s 14 steals, quickly corrected her.
“And the 30-piece,” McKinney said.
While Roper fueled the offense, Winthrop (1-6) had no answer for Kentucky’s full-court pressure. The Eagles, coached by two-time Olympian and all-time women’s Division 1 scoring leader Lynette Woodard, turned over the ball 35 times. Kentucky (10-0) forced 23 turnovers in the first half as it built a 54-18 lead.
UK’s hot start bought some well-earned rest for sophomore star Rhyne Howard, who set a career scoring mark of her own in a 30-point performance in Sunday’s 79-49 win over Samford. Howard hit all four of her three-point shots Wednesday to score 12 first-half points then spent the second half cheering from the bench. Roper started the second half in her place.
Howard briefly exited the game early in the first quarter and had her ankle checked out after stepping on an opponent’s foot. She returned and played the rest of the first half. Mitchell said he decided to sit her in the second half out of “an abundance of caution.”
“She could have gone and would have gone, we were just trying to be really cautious there,” he said. “It happened very early in the first half and she played a good half. (We) just wanted to make sure we didn’t put her in any jeopardy with the (scoring) margin being there.”
Roper said her biggest cheerleader as she piled on the points was Howard.
“When I had like 25 she looked at me and said ‘you better get 30.’ It was a challenge, so I had to step up to it. Hopefully she comes back and she gets 30 next game,” Roper said. “We can play a game, tit-for-tat.”
Kentucky shot 52 percent from the field and hit 13 three-pointers, one shy of the program record. Five Wildcats scored double figures. Blair Green pitched in 13 points off the bench while Tatyana Wyatt scored 10 and Sabrina Haines 11.
Kentucky has steamrolled through the first third of its schedule. The Wildcats have beaten their last five opponents by an average of more than 40 points per game. Against a schedule that ranks 173rd in the nation in terms of difficulty, it’s a bit tough to gauge exactly how good the Cats are at this point — but a measuring stick is right around the corner.
On Sunday Kentucky faces its stiffest test of the season in a showdown with No. 7 Louisville in Rupp Arena. The Cardinals are 9-1 and own perhaps the most impressive signature win in women’s basketball this year. Louisville beat then-No. 1 Oregon, 72-62, in the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam on Nov. 30. The Cardinals jumped to No. 2 after the victory, then lost their next game at unranked Ohio State.
Louisville has beaten Kentucky three straight years. Last season the Cardinals entered the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed and advanced to the Final Four for the third time in program history.
But, judging by the attitudes of Roper and McKinney after Wednesday’s blowout, the Wildcats like their chances against the Cardinals.
“We’re not worried about Louisville. It’s just another game,” McKinney said. “We’re going to treat it like it’s another game. We’re going to go out there, play Kentucky ball and pull the ‘dub.’”
“Period,” Roper added.
View the Kentucky-Winthrop box score.
Next Game
No. 7 Louisville at No. 14 Kentucky
1 p.m. Sunday in Rupp Arena (ESPN)
This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 8:52 PM.
