Kentucky Grits Out Win Over Ole Miss, Extends Streak to Five
It wasn’t the prettiest game Kentucky's played this season, but it was the kind of win that builds character-and keeps the win streak alive. The Wildcats fought through a foul-heavy, grind-it-out battle to beat Ole Miss 72-63 at Rupp Arena on Saturday, handing the Rebels their second straight loss and pushing Kentucky’s SEC record to 5-2.
The game also marked the return of former Kentucky guard and state Mr. Basketball Travis Perry, who transferred to Ole Miss after his freshman year.
The homecoming wasn’t a warm one. Perry was met with boos nearly every time he touched the ball and struggled to find any rhythm, going scoreless with two rebounds and a steal.
He missed all three of his attempts from deep, a surprising stat considering he had knocked down 10 threes in his previous three games, including five earlier in the week against Auburn.
For Kentucky, the win was significant beyond the scoreboard. It was their fifth straight victory and improved them to a perfect 8-0 this season-and 16-0 under head coach Mark Pope-when they hold opponents under 66 points. Defense has been the calling card during this stretch, and Saturday was no different.
The Wildcats came out of the gate slowly but managed to take a 29-23 lead into halftime-their first halftime advantage in SEC play this season and their first at the break in over a month. For Pope, that six-point cushion felt like a milestone.
“I actually thought the first half was incredible,” Pope said. “What, has it been a month since we had a lead at the end of the half?
I thought it was amazing. I will take that every time.”
Kentucky built a 10-point lead in the first half, but Ole Miss clawed back late, pulling within three in the final minute. That’s when Collin Chandler stepped up and delivered the dagger-a deep three that pushed the lead back to six with under a minute to play. Kentucky then iced the game at the free-throw line, hitting six straight in the final 34 seconds to seal the win.
Chandler finished with 12 points and was one of three Wildcats in double figures. While he’s quickly becoming a go-to option in crunch time, Chandler made it clear he’s not chasing the spotlight.
“I’m not obviously seeking out [the spotlight], because I think that’s when a lot of things go wrong,” he said. “But the game tells you what to do, and that’s what I thought the game told me to do.”
The star of the night, though, was Otega Oweh. The junior guard poured in 23 points-18 of them coming in the second half-and continued his streak of scoring in double figures in every game this season. He was aggressive attacking the rim, drawing contact and converting at the line, finishing 10-of-13 on free throws, including two clutch ones with 24 seconds left.
Freshman Jasper Johnson also gave the Wildcats a big lift off the bench. He scored 11 points, knocking down a pair of threes and sparking an 8-0 run in the first half with eight quick points. His energy and shot-making were key in helping Kentucky build its early lead.
The game was anything but clean. A total of 44 fouls were called, and at times, the action felt disjointed.
Kentucky shot 38 free throws, converting 28, while Ole Miss went 14-of-21 from the stripe. The Wildcats also had to overcome some cold shooting nights-Chandler and Denzel Aberdeen combined to go just 6-of-17 from the field, and big man Malachi Moreno didn’t record a single field goal.
Still, Kentucky found a way to win. And that’s exactly what Pope wanted to see from his group.
“It’s going to be a mucky-muck game and it’s not really about fixing and making it beautiful,” Pope said. “It’s about, ‘Can you keep your mentality focused even through the frustration?’ I think our guys did a good job doing that.”
It wasn’t a masterpiece, but it was a win that showed this team can grind when it has to-and that’s something every contender needs in its back pocket come March.