Kentucky 78, Arkansas 63: Tournament MVP Willie Cauley-Stein had 15 points and 10 rebounds as the undefeated Wildcats overwhelmed the Razorbacks in the SEC championship game in Nashville, Tenn.
Andrew Harrison added 15 points, including a 3-of-3 3-point showing, for top-seeded Kentucky (34-0), which won its 28th SEC title and first since 2011. The Wildcats, who also received 11 points and six assists from Aaron Harrison and nine points and seven rebounds from Trey Lyles, shot 51 percent from the floor, including 7-of-12 from 3-point range, and finished with 16 assists and rebound (33-25) and free-throw (21-11) advantages.
Michael Qualls, who didn’t start for only the second time all season, scored 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting to pace second-seeded Arkansas (26-8), which suffered its third loss in its last 13 games – with two of them coming against Kentucky. Bobby Portis added 13 points, and Anton Beard had nine for the Razorbacks, who shot 44.4 percent from the field, but were 4-of-13 from 3-point range and finished with five assists and 12 turnovers.
Andrew Harrison hit a pair of early 3-pointers as Kentucky roared out to an 8-0 lead, but Arkansas clawed back and pulled even at 19 on a Qualls 3-pointer with 10:19 remaining before intermission. The Razorbacks, however, would only hit one of their final 13 field-goal attempts of the half as the Wildcats closed out the period with a 22-6 run to take a 41-25 advantage into the break.
Arkansas climbed back to within single digits after Qualls hit a free-throw line jumper to cut the Kentucky lead to 48-39 and still were within nine at 54-45 with 9:46 remaining. But that’s when the Wildcats put things away with an 11-2 run over the ensuing 3:30 to take a 65-47 lead, and the Razorbacks couldn't get any closer than the final score.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Kentucky owns a 28-10 record in SEC tourney championship games. … The Wildcats were a combined 70-of-85 from the free-throw stripe in their three SEC tourney games to finish with a 70-39 advantage at the line. … Arkansas fell to 1-11 all-time against No. 1-ranked teams, with its only win coming in 1984 versus North Carolina.
Arkansas | Kentucky | |
Michael Qualls 18 | Scoring | Willie Cauley-Stein 15 |
Rashad Madden 2 | Assists | Aaron Harrison 6 |
Rashad Madden 4 | Rebounds | Willie Cauley-Stein 10 |
Bobby Portis 6 | Free Throws Made | Willie Cauley-Stein 5 |
Anton Beard 1 | Steals | Dakari Johnson 1 |
Alandise Harris 1 | Blocks | Willie Cauley-Stein 2 |