FINAL: Kellan Grady saves Kentucky in overtime against Mississippi State
Shaedon Sharpe didn’t make his Kentucky debut on Tuesday night, but he got a front-row seat to a heck of an overtime performance from Kellan Grady.
The No. 12 Wildcats (16-4, 6-2) fought off a furious second-half comeback from the Mississippi State Bulldogs (13-6, 4-3) to seal an 82-74 overtime victory inside of Rupp Arena.
Without star guard TyTy Washington due to a minor ankle injury, it was the man in the middle who stepped up for Kentucky. Oscar Tshiebwe dominated the Bulldogs, posting an incredible 21 points and 22 rebounds. Grady finished with 18 points, eight coming in overtime, while Sahvir Wheeler added 15 points and six assists.
Despite the 9:00 p.m. tipoff, Kentucky got off to a solid start. UK went ahead 15-9 after the first media timeout and eventually ballooned that lead to double-digits midway through the first half. Even though the offense wasn’t perfect (11 first-half turnovers), the ‘Cats still managed to shoot over 52 percent from the field as Tshiebwe nearly had a double-double at the break with nine points and 12 rebounds.
Heading into the locker room, Kentucky held a sizable 37-24 lead over MSU.
Out of the intermission, UK would push its lead to as many as 16 points before the first media timeout could hit. A 3-pointer from Grady had the ‘Cats in front 45-29, but Mississippi State would begin to make its run after that.
MSU made a couple of runs midway through the second half to cut Kentucky’s lead to single digits. Some untimely ankle injuries to Tshiebwe and Jacob Toppin would allow the Bulldogs to find an opening for a comeback. Luckily for UK, both players would not be out long and eventually returned to the court.
The contest truly got interesting once Mississippi State got within five around the six-minute mark. MSU would eventually tie the game up on multiple occasions but could never get over the hump. Keion Brooks Jr. hit a few big buckets down the stretch and UK knocked down its free throws to keep the Bulldogs at bay.
A pair of clutch free throws from MSU’s Iverson Molinar tied the game up at 72. Grady’s potential game-winning triple wouldn’t fall right before the buzzer as we headed to overtime.
The extra period was all Kellan Grady.
Kentucky’s Grandad poured in the first eight points for his squad, scoring a tough bucket at the rim before burying back-to-back 3-pointers that put UK up by six with 70 seconds to go. All the ‘Cats had to do from there was hit some free throws and the win was in the bag.
When the final buzzer sounded, Kentucky snuck away with the 82-74 win. In the process, head coach John Calipari won his 800th career game.
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