Postgame Notes from Kentucky's 80-71 win over Miles College

What does Kentucky’s 80-71 exhibition victory over Miles College mean for the program as it looks ahead to Duke in the Champions Classic? Check out the official game notes and statistics, courtesy of UK Athletics.

ATTENDANCE: 17,814

Final Score: No. 10/11 Kentucky 80, Miles College 71

Team Records and Series Notes

UK improved to 140-12 all-time in exhibition games.
- It was the first time the two schools have ever met – in the regular season or exhibitions.
Kentucky has won its last 19 exhibition games dating back to Nov. 2, 2014, vs. Pikeville. The last loss was Aug. 17, 2014, vs. the Dominican Republic in the final game of the 2014 Big Blue Bahamas exhibition tour.
The exhibition season has now concluded for the Wildcats. UK will open the 2021-22 regular season in grand fashion next week. The Wildcats will face No. 9/9 Duke on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden in New York as a part of the Champions Classic.

Team Notes

Kentucky shot 49.2% (31 of 63) from the floor. Miles made 49.1% (27 of 55) of its attempts.
- UK shot 51.5% in its two exhibition games.
Both teams filled it up from behind the arc. Kentucky was 11 of 19 (57.9%) from long range, including 5 of 8 in the second half. Miles College was on a tear in the first half, going 11 of 15 from behind the arc, but the Wildcats clamped down in the second half and limited the Golden Bears to just 4 of 15 after halftime. Miles finished at 50.0% (15 of 30).
- Kentucky made 45.8% of its attempts from 3-point range in the exhibition season.
The Wildcats doubled up the Golden Bears in the paint, outscoring Miles College 36-18.
UK forced 18 turnovers and turned them into 26 points.
Eleven Wildcats saw action in the game with four scoring in double figures.

Player Notes

Sahvir Wheeler tied for the game high in points with 15 on 6-of-9 shooting to go along with a team-high-tying six assists
- Wheeler was key in the second-half turnaround with eight points early out of the halftime locker room and four assists in the second stanza.
- The transfer from Georgia averaged 12.5 points and 6.0 assists in the two exhibition games.
TyTy Washington Jr. also had 15 points and six assists to match Wheeler in points and assists production.
- He made all three of his 3-point attempts in tonight’s game.
- He made all six of his attempts over the first two exhibition games.
Kellen Grady scored 11 of his 13 points in the first half to keep Kentucky close when Miles torched the Cats from long range in the first half.
- He was 3 for 3 from behind the arc.
Jacob Toppin, making his first appearance of the preseason due to a shoulder injury, scored 12 points and grabbed four rebounds.
Oscar Tshiebwe grabbed 12 rebounds in 23 minutes.
- The Wildcats were plus-18 with Tshiebwe on the floor, a team best.

Coach Calipari

UK is 37-1 in exhibition play under John Calipari.
Calipari enters the season with a 784-233 all-time regular-season record and a 339-23 mark at Kentucky.

In the First Half

Kentucky started Sahvir Wheeler, TyTy Washington Jr., Kellan Grady, Keion Brooks Jr. and Oscar Tshiebwe for the second straight exhibition game.
Tshiebwe won the opening tip and tapped it right to Washington for a transition layup in the opening seconds.
Miles College, an NCAA Division II school from Alabama, was not intimidated. The Golden Bears made their first five jumpers, three of which were 3-pointers, for an early 13-4 lead, forcing the Wildcats to call timeout at the 17:31 mark.
Daimion Collins, Bryce Hopkins and Lance Ware were Kentucky’s first subs at the 16:02 mark.
Washington steadied Kentucky despite an early 16-7 deficit. The freshman scored eight of the Wildcats’ first 10 points, including two 3-pointers.
Jacob Toppin made his exhibition season debut at the 13:08 mark and immediately got in the scoring column with a two-hand slam off a feed from Hopkins.
Just when it looked like Kentucky had slowed down Miles with a 9-1 run to get within 17-16 with 11:48 left in the half, the Golden Bears answered with a quick eight straight points with two deep 3-pointers from Roger Davis.
The Golden Bears made their first six 3-pointers.
Kentucky answered Miles’ 8-0 run with a 7-0 spurt, including five straight points from Grady.
Miles continued to punch back. An 8-0 run with two more 3-pointers gave the Golden Bears their first double-digit lead of the game, 36-26, with 5:28 until halftime.
Just as Kentucky got within a point at 38-37 with 2:07 left in the half, Miles College closed on an 8-2 run to take a 46-39 lead into the locker room.
Grady showed why he was a 2,000-point scorer in his four seasons at Davidson College with 11 first-half points. He went 4 of 5 from the floor with three 3-pointers.
Washington pitched in with eight points – all coming early in the half – and Wheeler added seven points, three rebounds and two assists.
Although UK made 6 of 11 from the 3-point line in the first half, Miles was even better with 11 treys on 15 attempts.

In the Second Half

Kentucky started the second half with the same starting five.
UK asserted itself after halftime. The Wildcats opened the half on an 8-0 run and took the lead 47-46, the Wildcats’ first since 2-0 just two seconds into the game.
By the first media timeout, Kentucky’s run was 14-2 and its lead was 53-48. Wheeler was spectacular out of halftime with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting by the first break.
- The run would grow all the way to 22-2 for a 61-48 lead with 10:59 left.
- The Wildcats held Miles without a point for 6:11 of play until Anthony Fairley broke the cold snap with a second-chance bucket at the 10:31 mark. At that point UK had turned a halftime deficit into a double-digit lead.
Miles College would not go away. The Golden Bears cut the Wildcats’ lead back to 66-59 with 5:08 left.
The Wildcats finally slammed the door shut with a 3 from Washington and a spectacular alley-oop dunk to Toppin off a feed from Wheeler to go up 71-59 heading into the final timeout.
Kentucky took its largest lead of the game at 78-62 with 1:47 left after a Hopkins jumper before Miles College cut the deficit late in the game.
UK outscored Miles College 41-25 after halftime.
Dontaie Allen led the Wildcats with nine points in the second half, all coming off 3-pointers.
Kentucky limited the Golden Bears to 4 of 15 from behind the arc in the second half.