Kentucky Rallies to Beat LSU 71-66 in The Bryce Hopkins Game

The Wildcats appeared dead in the water, hapless against the LSU pressure defense without TyTy Washington and Sahvir Wheeler available. To rally for revenge against the Bayou Bengals, Kentucky received a lift from a surprising hero, Bryce Hopkins.

Trailing by eight early in the second half, the freshman forward played like a man possessed. Hopkins came off the bench to score nine of UK’s next 11 points, including an ‘and one’ to retake the lead for the Wildcats. He had not scored a point in a game since Jan. 25. Wednesday night at Rupp Arena he had 13 points and four rebounds in 16 minutes to propel Kentucky to a 71-66 victory over LSU.

Ladies and gentlemen … @BryceHopkins 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/SoR4iTnZbd

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) February 24, 2022

Another UK Opponent Starts Hot

Unlike Alabama, LSU is a bad three-point shooting team. They entered tonight’s game ranked 232nd in three-point shooting percentage (32.6%). Like Alabama, LSU could do no wrong when shooting at Rupp’s rims. The Tigers knocked down five of their first seven three-point attempts.

Xavier Pinson and Darius Days were performing well offensively, but LSU’s defense is what really gave Kentucky fits. The physical pressure put UK’s limited ball-handlers in a bind. In the first half Kentucky scored zero points in transition, had just one assist on eight made field goals and trailed by as many as 11. Thankfully, the hacking defense sent UK to the free throw line enough to keep the Cats in the game.

Headband Oscar

Oscar Tshiebwe debuted a new look Wednesday night at Rupp. The Big O wore a white headband, adding to his already stellar superpowers. He kept the boat afloat in the first half, then applied pressure on LSU’s interior for the second 20 minutes. He had 17 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Tshiebwe is now in fifth place on Kentucky’s single-season rebounding record charts. His 427 boards are the most by a Wildcat since Bob Burrow in 1955.

Strong Second Half Defense from Kentucky

To no surprise, LSU’s hot start cooled off in the second half. The Kentucky defense deserves some credit for stifling the Tigers’ attack. LSU made only four field goals in the first 13 minutes of the second half. They were held to just 34.5% shooting from the field and the Cats kept the Tigers off the glass, recording five offensive rebounds for seven second chance points.

While LSU was locked up, Kellan Grady, Davion Mintz and Co. were building on a lead. The Cats made a late 16-5 run to put the game out of reach, despite LSU’s late, desperate press that pushed the game within two possessions. With the win Kentucky improves to 23-5, 12-3 in SEC play.

Kentucky vs. LSU Box Score