RECAP: Kentucky WBB overthrows South Carolina 64-62 to win SEC Championship
After four days of making history, stunning fans and upsetting opponents, Kentucky Women’s Basketball has done it. The ‘Cats are the SEC Tournament champions for the first time since 1982.
On Sunday afternoon, the No. 7 seed Wildcats (19-11, 8-8) completed their run in a 64-62 triumph over the No. 1 seed South Carolina Gamecocks (29-2, 15-1) in the SEC Tournament title game. The contest was Kentucky’s first appearance in the SEC finals since 2014.
The win avenges UK’s two losses to South Carolina earlier this season. Moreover, the victory is Kentucky’s 10th in a row. Over the past three days, Kentucky defeated the one-, two- and three-seed of the conference tournament to claim the crown.
From start to finish Dre’Una Edwards was Kentucky’s hero, recording 27 points and nine rebounds. The redshirt junior shot 11-21 from the field and 3-5 from beyond the arc, including the game-winner.
Of course, it takes a team effort to beat the No. 1 team in the nation. As a squad, Kentucky was 24-57 (42%) from the field and 6-14 (47%) from 3-point land. Moreover, the Wildcats dished out an impressive 16 assists.
Here’s how Kentucky shocked South Carolina one afternoon in Nashville, TN.
Tight battle early
Kentucky lost the first quarter, but they had not lost a step from their previous games. The ‘Cats shot 8-17 from the field and 1-2 from beyond the arc in the first period. Specifically, Edwards had an excellent period.
The 6-foot-2 forward exploded for eight points in the frame on 4-5 shooting. Nevertheless, South Carolina matched Edwards step-for-step. All-American Aliyah Boston couldn’t be stopped, recording nine points in the quarter. South Carolina guard Zia Cooke added eight points of her own.
After the contest, head coach Kyra Elzy discussed how her team deals with adversity.
“Our team has been in tough situations all year long, and it’s good to see it pay off,” Elzy said during the postgame press conference.
Despite Boston and Cooke’s breakout first period, the ‘Cats only trailed 21-18 as they went into the second quarter.
Slow second period for Kentucky WBB
Kentucky’s second quarter was hard to watch. The team recorded just three points in the period, Kentucky’s lowest-scoring quarter of the season. In those 10 minutes, the ‘Cats were a poor 1-11 from the field and 0-4 from downtown.
The team desperately missed Rhyne Howard’s production as the All-American only had four points by halftime. Luckily for UK, they weren’t the only team struggling on offense.
In the second period, South Carolina scored a mere nine points. Worse, the team couldn’t take care of the ball, choking away seven possessions in the frame. Kentucky didn’t capitalize on the Gamecocks’ miscues and only scored three points off South Carolina’s first-half turnovers.
For as bad as Kentucky played, they remained in striking range. Going into halftime, Kentucky trailed South Carolina 30-21.
Gamecocks beat Kentucky on the boards
The ‘Cats refused to quietly go away. Rhyne Howard came to life, dropping 10 points in the third quarter alone. A 5-0 Jsolo azmine Massengill run supplemented Howard’s stream of scoring.
Yet, South Carolina continued to build their lead. In the frame, the Gamecocks outscored Kentucky 25-22. Rebounds were the electric powering South Carolina’s basketball machine.
South Carolina grabbed nearly three times as many boards as Kentucky in the third frame. After the game, Edwards told the media how she kept a positive attitude.
“I just kept telling my team it ain’t over, it ain’t over. We kept propping each other up and they kept propping me up,” Edwards said. “I had to do it for my team.”
Despite Edwards’ optimism, South Carolina strolled into the final 10 minutes of the game with a 55-43 lead.
Preparation meets opportunity
Nonetheless, like many times in the past month, Kentucky defied the odds. The team rattled off seven unanswered points to start the fourth aquarter, cutting into South Carolina’s lead. Suddenly, an SEC championship wasn’t a distant dream, it was within reach.
The Gamecocks retaliated, desperately trying to avoid losing their superiority. However, the ‘Cats were relentless. Kentucky went on another 8-0 run to get within one point of South Carolina’s lead in the closing minute. Moreover, the ‘Cats had the ball.
As expected, Rhyne Howard made the move for Kentucky. Yet, she failed. After catching it in the paint, Howard was swarmed by Gamecocks and lost control of the rock. With 18 seconds remaining in the contest, South Carolina had possession, the lead and expectations of cutting down the nets.
Then, a miracle happened. Kentucky fouled South Carolina’s Cooke, sending her to the line for two free throws. Cooke, a 71% free throw shooter, missed both attempts. After securing the rebound, Kentucky called a timeout.
They had their second chance, and they weren’t going to waste it. With 11 seconds left in the contest, Kentucky inbounded the ball. After desperately searching for an avenue to the rim, Massengill found an open Edwards at the top of the key. As you know, Edwards called game.
Following the victory, Howard did her best to describe the moment.
“You know in the movies when they take the game-winner and everyone is like — that was me. I was like — and it went in, I don’t even know what I saw. Everybody was just jumping around. They didn’t even — I don’t know why they didn’t throw the ball in because we were not set, but it was one of those moments, like picture-perfect,” Howard said.
Despite their best efforts, South Carolina had four seconds to get up a low-quality shot. They missed. Kentucky Women’s Basketball won the SEC Tournament.
Behind the confetti, dance celebrations and endless tears, the ‘Cats put together a masterclass. The team committed just 10 turnovers and only allowed South Carolina to score five points from their miscues. Additionally, Kentucky recorded six rejections compared to the Gamecocks’ five. By the way, South Carolina has the most blocked shots in the nation.
As expected, Kentucky’s historic victory was powered by individual performances. Following Edwards’ lead, Howard added 18 points and four rebounds. Massengill stuffed the stat sheet, dropping seven points, six assists and three rebounds.
For fans around the nation, Kentucky’s four-day run in the SEC Tournament was a miracle. To the team, it was a direct result of hard work and bottomless persistence. On Feb. 10, Kentucky was 9-11 and 2-8 in conference play. Today, they are champions.
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