LEXINGTON, Ky. – Davion Mintz and Brandon Boston Jr. both set career records with six points each and Kentucky beat South Carolina 92-64 on Saturday at the end of the regular season.
Mintz finished with 20 points and seven assists, with five of his 3s in the first five minutes of the second half, including three in a row to propel the Wildcats (9-15, 8-9 of the Southeast Conference) to a 19 point advantage, 55 – 36. Boston scored 21 points. Olivier Sarr added 15 points and Isaiah Jackson 13 points with 10 rebounds in his second double in his career.
Kentucky, which ended its first SEC losing record since 1989, will open the conference tournament on Thursday. It is the first time that Kentucky has not had a double goodbye since the tournament was expanded in 2013. The Wildcats would need an incredible run at the NCAA conference and tournaments to avoid their first overall loss record since 3-13 in 1926- 27.
Kentucky overcame the Gamecocks 16-6 in the final nine minutes of the first half, with Sarr scoring six points during the race. Boston had a trio of 3 points and 12 points at halftime and Sarr 11. Kentucky scored nine points on the turn and did not give up on his way to a 36-28 lead at halftime.
The 28-point win was the Wildcats’ biggest margin of victory since the 36-point win over Morehead State at the start of the season.
Keyshawn Bryant scored 16 points and Jayyn McCreary 14 points for the Gamecocks (6-14, 4-12), who haven’t won at the Rupp Arena since 2009. Gunner AJ Lawson (18.1 ppg), scored six points on 2 of – 10 shooting. The third best scorer, Jermaine Cousinard, missed the game due to a rib injury sustained during practice.
This game was scheduled to be the SEC’s opening for both teams on December 29, but was postponed because of the problems with COVID-19 in South Carolina.