Kevin Knox and the Kentucky basketball rally from 17 down to beat WVU
By Drew Koch
Kevin Knox scored 34 points and the Kentucky basketball team overcame a 17-point deficit to shock West Virginia 83-76.
Kevin Knox scored 34 points and the Kentucky basketball team rallied from 17 points down to defeat the West Virginia Mountaineers 83-76. This was the signature win that the Kentucky basketball team needed. Up until today, Kentucky’s best win was against the Louisville Cardinals back in December. The Wildcats made 8-of-18 (44%) from beyond the arc, including 5 from Knox. Hamidou Diallo was the only other Wildcat in double figures with 13.
Kentucky had been off to a shaky start in conference play. The Cats are 5-3 in the SEC and had lost 2 of their last 4 games. The Wildcats’ toughness has been questioned all season, specifically by their head coach. John Calipari had been calling for his team to get tough. They answered the bell against West Virginia.
West Virginia led by 15 at halftime and by 17 at one point during the first half. The Mountaineers’ senior guard Jevon Carter had 18 points in the first half. The Cats came storming back in the second half and knotted the game at 56. Diallo grabbed a West Virginia missed three-pointer and the UK freshman delivered a perfect outlet to Knox who slammed the ball home giving Kentucky the lead midway through the second half.
The game was neck and neck down the stretch with the Mountaineers tying the game late on a James Bolden three-point bucket. On the ensuing possession Knox answered with a three-pointer of his own and the Cats went on top 77-74. The next Mountaineers possession ended with no points and a putback dunk by Nick Richards sealed the game. Kentucky would convert their free throws down the stretch and prevailed on the road in Morgantown 83-76.