UK’s rising star passed her first test at point guard. ‘I’m definitely a facilitator.’
University of Kentucky women’s basketball coach Kyra Elzy wanted to shake things up ahead of Thursday’s important matchup with No. 16 Tennessee in Rupp Arena. She decided to start Jazmine Massengill at point guard against the Volunteers — for whom she played two seasons before transferring to UK in April — and move Chasity Patterson to shooting guard.
It was Massengill’s first start for the 20th-ranked Wildcats, and if the results against the Vols are any indication, many more are forthcoming.
UK dominated much of the game and came away with a 71-56 victory, avenging last month’s 17-point rout in Knoxville. Freed from the burden of directing the offense, Patterson put on a show. She lit up the Tennessee defense for a team-high 21 points on 9-for-16 shooting. Massengill was UK’s second-leading scorer with 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting and dished out three assists while not once turning over the ball.
Following the win, Massengill said she was surprised she drew the start but grateful for Elzy’s faith in her abilities. It appears Massengill is right in her comfort zone when playing the point.
“I’m definitely a facilitator. I’m a pass-first point guard,” Massengill said. “I can be very unselfish. Our coach constantly motivates me to be more aggressive.
“I’m definitely more of a facilitator, looking to get my teammates open and just kind of doing whatever I need to do in order for us to get the win.”
Gators await
Up next for the Cats is a meeting with Florida in Gainesville on Monday. The Gators have struggled — having lost their first five games in conference play — but are coming off one of their best performances this season in a 73-66 overtime victory at LSU.
Two Gators contributed double-doubles in the victory over the Tigers. Lavender Briggs, a 6-foot-1 sophomore guard, led the charge with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Kiara Smith, a 5-foot-10 senior guard, had 19 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.
Briggs, who was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team last season, scored six points in overtime to seal the win. With Florida leading by one, she nailed a three-pointer out of a timeout with 48 seconds to go. Briggs went 3-for-4 beyond the arc in the win.
“We just made plays; game-winning plays on the road in a game that we really wanted to win,” Florida Coach Cam Newbauer said. “I just love the resilience and the strength that we played with.”
Briggs enters Monday’s matchup as the fourth-leading scorer in the SEC with an average of 19.7 points per game. Kentucky’s Rhyne Howard is fifth in the league at 19.0 points. Smith averages 2.3 steals per game, good for fifth in the league. Patterson leads the nation in steals, averaging 3.4.
Florida leads the SEC in three-point defense, holding opponents to 24 percent from the perimeter. LSU hit one of nine three-point shots in Thursday’s loss to the Gators. In their win over Tennessee, the Wildcats went 10-for-20 from three-point range, with Patterson and Massengill each hitting three of five shots from the perimeter.
Monday
No. 20 Kentucky at Florida
When: 7 p.m.
TV: SEC Network
Radio: WLAP-AM 630
Records: UK 14-5 (7-4 SEC); Florida 10-8 (3-7 SEC)
Series: UK leads 32-26
Last meeting: Florida won 70-65 on Feb. 2, 2020, in Memorial Coliseum
