National Basketball Association
Kentucky 69, Missouri 53
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 29, 2015
Where: Mizzou Arena, Columbia, Missouri
Officials:
# Lee Cassell, # Darron George, # Doug Sirmons
Attendance:
13034
By SportsDirect Inc.
No. 1 Kentucky 69, Missouri 53: Andrew Harrison scored 15 points and Aaron Harrison added 11 as the visiting Wildcats completed a regular-season sweep of the Tigers.
Devin Booker had nine points and fellow reserve Dakari Johnson contributed eight points and seven rebounds for Kentucky (20-0, 7-0 SEC), which struggled at times en route to its fourth road victory after handing Missouri its worst loss since 1998 in a 86-37 rout in Lexington on Jan. 13. The Wildcats improved to 8-0 against the Tigers and remained one of the country’s two undefeated teams, along with Virginia.
Wes Clark poured in a career-high 19 points while Johnathan Williams III chipped in with 10 for Missouri (7-13, 1-6), which has dropped six straight for the first time since Jan. 21-Feb. 7, 2006. The Tigers were hindered by a 27-13 disadvantage at the foul line but shot 41.9 percent, becoming only the fourth team this season to shoot that well against the best field-goal percentage defense in the country.
Missouri scored 12 paint points against the nation’s top shot-blocking team and shot 45.5 percent in the first half, but Kentucky used an 8-0 run near the end of the opening stanza on its way to 34-25 halftime advantage. The Wildcats, who held a 26-point lead at intermission in the first meeting, went nearly five minutes without a field goal to begin the second half until Aaron Harrison hit a jumper after the Tigers closed within six twice – each time on a jumper from Clark.
Andrew Harrison answered Clark’s second jumper with 14½ minutes left with one of his own to begin a stretch in which he scored eight straight Kentucky points. The Wildcats began to pull away from there, getting a 3-pointer from Aaron Harrison and a three-point play by Johnson while holding Missouri without a field goal for seven minutes to stretch the margin to 56-36 with 8½ minutes remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The victory allowed Kentucky coach John Calipari to post his 21st consecutive 20-win season. … The 20-0 start is the Wildcats’ best under Calipari and third-best in school history. Kentucky began the 1965-66 campaign with 23 straight wins and 1953-54 with 25 consecutive victories. … The Tigers have dropped seven straight against ranked opponents, including four this season.
Top Game Performances
Kentucky |
|
Missouri |
Andrew Harrison 15 |
Scoring |
Wes Clark 19 |
Andrew Harrison 3 |
Assists |
Wes Clark 4 |
Dakari Johnson 7 |
Rebounds |
Johnathan Williams III 5 |
Andrew Harrison 9 |
Free Throws Made |
Keith Shamburger 3 |
Aaron Harrison 3 |
Steals |
Keith Shamburger 4 |
Karl-Anthony Towns 1 |
Blocks |
Deuce Bello 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Kentucky
|
69 |
45.5 |
2-7 |
27-37 |
8 |
30 |
1 |
7 |
14 |
Missouri
|
53 |
41.9 |
4-16 |
13-20 |
11 |
23 |
3 |
10 |
15 |