Career night for PJ helps Kentucky basketball get back on track
By Drew Koch
PJ Washington had a career-high 22 points and the Kentucky basketball team defeated Mississippi State 78-65.
PJ Washington had a career-high 22 points and the Kentucky basketball team defeated Mississippi State 78-65. Kevin Knox chipped in 19 and the Wildcats put an end to their two-game losing streak.
First half
The Kentucky basketball team fell behind early to Mississippi State 6-11. Wenyen Gabriel got into early foul trouble, picking up his second foul with just over 14 minutes left in the half. Kevin Knox knocked down back-to-back three-point shots and narrowed the lead to 2. A few possessions later, Knox banked in his third three-pointer and the Cats tied the game at 18. The 6’9″ freshman from Tampa, Florida led all Kentucky scorers with 13 points in the first half.
Midway through the first half, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander put in two free throws and UK grabbed its first lead 22-20. A turnover by Mississippi State later in the half led to a fast-break layup for Gilgeous-Alexander and gave the Cats their biggest lead at 34-27. The Bulldogs closed the gap to 2, but a turnaround hook shot by PJ Washington bumped the Cats lead back to 4. Washington had 11 points in the first half. The Bulldgos’ Xavian Stapleton made jumper with under a minute left, cutting the Cats lead to 2 and the Cats would take that margin into the locker room. The Kentucky basketball team led Mississippi State at the half 38-36.
Second Half
Kentucky started small in second half with Gabriel getting the nod over Nick Richards. The Bulldogs started the half with back-to-back baskets causing John Calipari to burn a timeout early. A pretty pass from SGA to Gabriel for a corner-three put the Cats up 43-42. The teams went back and forth and at the midway point of the half there had been 10 ties and 8 lead changes. The Cats led at that point 53-52.
Kevin Knox put through his fourth three-point bucket and increased the Cats lead to 4. A Jarred Vanderbilt tip and a beautiful crossover by Hamidou Diallo ending with a layup capped a 13-2 UK run that saw the Cats go in front 62-54. The Bulldogs clawed back to within 5, but Gilgeous-Alexander made a shifty layup and grew Kentucky’s lead to 9 points. The Cats led at that point 68-59. Kentucky maintained the sizable margin for the remainder of the game.