‘A football game breaks out’ in Nashville, but No. 14 Kentucky women thrive on the chaos
Most of Big Blue Nation might not have expected such a physical game out of Kentucky women’s basketball’s 77-61 victory over Arizona State on Tuesday, but Kenny Brooks was “pleased with the physicality of the game.”
“I’ve been saying it for so long,” Brooks said. “It’s our responsibility as coaches to put a product out there that people really enjoy. And we’re trying to do our part, but sometimes you’re in a basketball game and a football game breaks out. So we’ve just gotta put our imaginary helmets on and start playing.”
The victory not only extended the No. 14 Wildcats’ undefeated streak, now standing at 6-0, but also gave them a bit of confidence during their first road trip of the season, a Thanksgiving week journey to Nashville for the Music City Classic.
“It’s all a precursor to what we’ll see (going forward),” Brooks said. “And we knew this. We know we’re gonna have to handle it.”
Ahead of the Power Four matchup, Brooks wasn’t sure if his team would come out “rested or rusty.” Arizona State’s (3-3) roster is long and well-prepared, but the undefeated Wildcats struggled out of the gate to find their footing. Kentucky escaped the first quarter with a 15-14 lead, but shot just 35.3% (6-of-17) from the field; only leading scorer Clara Strack had more than three points after the first 10 minutes, with seven.
“We had been off for eight days,” Brooks said. “We kind of rested some kids, kind of worked some other kids out. And I didn’t know what to expect. We got out to a little bit of a slow start. Just didn’t really have a rhythm.”
That “rhythm” arrived in the second quarter, when the Wildcats shot 71.4% (10-of-14). Strack and Teonni Key pushed their point totals to double figures as Kentucky outscored Arizona State 27-9. The idea that the game may have, at times, looked a bit more like a football game than a basketball game didn’t stop at its unyielding physicality — it revealed itself in UK’s full-team effort, as well.
While it’s true that Kentucky — due to serious offseason injuries to projected contributors Jordan Obi and Dominika Paurová — lacks ideal depth (take Tuesday’s stat of just four bench points, for example), it’s also true that the Wildcats’ starting five continues to show up in big moments.
“We had some tremendous, tremendous individual performances,” Brooks said. “Teonni Key, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a kid stuff the stat sheet like she did. ...That was just unbelievable. And she played really good defense. More importantly, she played within our scheme and helped us out so much. I was very pleased. Clara Strack was awesome. Georgia (Amoore) was phenomenal. ... But everyone stepped up. Amelia Hassett was really good.”
Key finished with 16 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, six blocks and three steals, while Strack added 24 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and three blocks. Amoore finished with 20 points, nine assists and three steals, and Hassett tacked on eight points, nine rebounds and two assists.
Notably, Amoore recorded her 700th assist in the victory.
“I’ve been fortunate to see all of them,” Brooks said. “And watching her growth and what she’s doing for this program right now is just unbelievable.”
The “iron five” also received some help from reserve point guard Cassidy Rowe, who dished two assists in 30 minutes on the floor.
“Cassidy Rowe was phenomenal,” Brooks said. “Didn’t score a point, but really affected the game for us. And we’re gonna need her production like that. I was very proud of her.”
Big Blue Nation also showed up at tournament host site Trevecca Nazarene, filling the Division II gym with cheers and chants and Kentucky blue. Brooks said he not only noticed all the blue — which he called “awesome” — but noted that he’d hoped fans would show up for the team in Nashville after the program’s initial plans to play in the Bahamas fell through.
“It kind of fell through with the scheduling part of it,” Brooks said. “And the next thing we said, when we had the opportunity to come to Nashville, we felt like we could get some fans here. And I didn’t know how many were here, and then, when I looked out, they were kind of loud. I almost was like, ‘Well, they’re here, and they’re there and here they are again. It’s great. Our kids felt it, it’s really good. And we’re trying to build this.
“You know, we don’t expect to come out here and Big Blue Nation is just gonna jump on board automatically. We want to build it so they really fall in love with the group.”
The Wildcats will face No. 19 Illinois (6-0), their second ranked game of the year after Nov. 16’s home win over then-No. 18 Louisville, on Wednesday night in their final matchup of the Music City Classic. The Illini, which won the WBIT championship last season, return several veteran contributors,
“It’s gonna be extremely tough,” Brooks said. “They’re a very veteran basketball team ... they won that (WBIT) championship last year, gained some extremely valuable experience during that. I mean, we know it’s going to be tough. We know it. They have two senior guards, (they’re) very, very experienced on the inside. So it’s going to be a really good challenge for us. You’ll get to see two ranked teams going at it, and the physicality is going to be tough. We’re looking forward to it.”
Wednesday
No. 14 Kentucky vs. No. 19 Illinois
What: Music City Classic
When: 8 p.m. EST
Where: Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee
TV: BALLERtv (subscription required)
Radio: WLAP-AM 630
Records: Kentucky 6-0, Illinois 6-0
Series: Illinois leads 4-2
Last meeting: Illinois won 77-71 on Nov. 27, 2014, at the Paradise Jam tournament in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands
