‘We took our foot off the gas.’ UK women lose double-digit lead in loss to Florida.
Playing their second game without injured star and leading scorer Rhyne Howard, the University of Kentucky women’s basketball team could not find enough offense to get it done.
The 13th-ranked Wildcats blew a 10-point halftime lead and fell to Florida, 70-62, in Memorial Coliseum on Sunday. The loss ended UK’s five-game win streak over the Gators.
Kentucky (17-4 overall, 6-3 SEC) built a 14-point lead in the second quarter, but struggled to overcome its size disadvantage against the Gators. Florida (12-10, 3-6) outrebounded the Cats 45-27 and had two players put up double-doubles. Lavender Briggs had 18 points and 13 rebounds and forward Zada Williams dominated the paint, scoring 12 points on 5-for-6 shooting and hauling in 12 rebounds.
“You have to give Florida a ton of credit for outhustling us in every way imaginable in that second half,” UK Coach Matthew Mitchell said. “We had to fight hard there in the second half to try to make something happen and we just couldn’t do it … just hope we can get back and try to regroup and learn something from it, but a really tough second half for us there. Really disappointed in our effort.”
With Kentucky leading 50-43 in the fourth quarter, Florida went on a 27-12 run to close the game. The Gators outscored Kentucky 51-33 in the second half.
“I think we just came out and lost a little focus,” senior guard Jaida Roper said of UK’s fourth-quarter woes. “We were well-capable of getting this done today but we took our foot off the gas. It just wasn’t our day. So we’ve just got to sustain our effort through all four quarters and learn from that.”
Chasity Patterson did her best to rescue the Cats. She scored a career-high 25 points to go along with four steals, stepping up time and time again when UK most needed her.
Patterson, who scored 20 points in UK’s win in Gainesville in January, hounded the Gators on defense despite her diminutive frame (at 5-foot-5, she’s the shortest player on UK’s roster). Twice in the second quarter Patterson picked the pocket of a Florida player and raced down court for a fast-break layup. She had nine points, thee steals and two assists in the first half as UK built a 29-19 lead.
After the Gators went on a 7-0 run to open the second half, Patterson entered the game and scored four straight points to settle the Cats. Later in the third with UK up just one point, she sank a jumper in the paint. Early in the fourth she came up with another steal and converted a fast-break layup.
After the game, Patterson was asked how she approaches defending players who are typically much bigger.
“Just being very physical with my hands. Getting on the ball, putting pressure on the ball,” she said. “I see my potential on defense. Just seeing myself get steals like that, that kind of gets me going and so it gets the team going … Every game I try to focus in on that. Try to get a steal to get us going. Because every game we’re not going to be as sharp as we need to be on offense so we have to bring that intensity every time on defense.”
The Cats were vexed by foul trouble. Sabrina Haines picked up her fourth early in the second half, while KeKe McKinney went to the bench with four fouls late in the third quarter. Haines and Tatyana Wyatt fouled out. Roper was the only Wildcat other than Patterson to reach double figures, scoring 15 points to go along with five rebounds.
Kentucky shot 38 percent overall but hit just three of 20 three-pointers and 15 of 27 free throws.
Reinforcements arrive
Ogechi Anyagaligbo returned to the lineup for Kentucky on Sunday after clearing concussion protocol. She missed the last two games after being injured ahead of the win over Auburn last Monday.
Against the Gators, the senior forward came off the bench and had four points. She scored on a nice move deep in the post to put Kentucky ahead 29-19 with less than a minute to play in the first half and at the third-quarter buzzer banked home a layup off a sweet pass from Roper to make it 46-43 Cats.
Ladies’ day
The Wildcats celebrated National Girls and Women in Sports Day on Sunday. All current UK female athletes were honored during the game, along with many former Wildcats.
Former UK volleyball star and Lexington native Leah Edmond spoke to the crowd at halftime while the court was filled with female members of various UK programs.
During a media timeout in the first quarter former, Kentucky women’s head coach Bernadette Locke-Mattox appeared on the court and got a rousing ovation from the crowd.
Locke-Mattox joined the staff of Rick Pitino in 1990, becoming the first female assistant coach for a men’s Division I team in NCAA history. She coached the women’s team from 1995-2003 and in the 1998-99 season led the Wildcats to their first 20-plus win season and first NCAA Tournament victory in 17 years.
Next game
Alabama at No. 13 Kentucky
7 p.m. Thursday (SEC Network Plus)
This story was originally published February 2, 2020 at 3:30 PM.
