Kentucky Wildcats highlights, box score, MVP win over South Carolina basketball

With Saturday’s final horn, coach John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats can finally close the book in a terrible regular season, beating South Carolina 92-64 in a makeup game at Rupp Arena.

The Wildcats, 9-15 (8-9 at the SEC) now have a new life as they head into next week’s SEC Tournament as a No. 9 classified, with a clash on Thursday against the state of Mississippi or Missouri at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The winner plays against Alabama on Friday.

In an encore performance from last week’s Senior Day, Davion Mintz continued to set the nets on fire with 20 points, which included three-point shots on June 11. The 6-3 graduation transfer made 21 points last Saturday against Florida.

The Wildcats finished 13/27 (48.1%) behind the hoop, with BJ Boston also having a great day, ending with a high team of 21 points in 7/13 shots. Olivier Sarr added 15 points, while Isaiah Jackson added 13 points and 10 rebounds.

The Kentucky route was the biggest margin of victory this season and provided an opportunity for freshman Cam’Ron Fletcher to return to action along with Riley Welch, who played the final two minutes with teammates Brennan Canada, Kareem Watkins and Zan Payne, who scored on the post with less than a minute to go before his first career basket.

Points box

Game MVP

South Carolina’s zone 2-3 failed to contain Mintz and Boston on Saturday, as the pair combined 41 points and 12 three-pointers to take home co-MVP honors in the win.

Both kicked the ball with confidence and Mintz continued his role as the team’s offensive leader, despite assuming the role of point guard in place of Devin Askew, who was replaced in favor of Jacob Toppin. Boston, which had a season of ups and downs, warms up early, scoring eight of Kentucky’s first 12 points to give the Wildcats a 36-28 lead at halftime.

Mintz and Boston need to hit in the postseason to make room for Jackson, Jacob Toppin and Sarr to loosen up and score around the basket. After seeing some zone defense in recent games, Kentucky should revert to a fast-paced tournament style, assuming Jackson and Starr can stay out of trouble.

The Wildcats have won four of the last five SEC Tournaments and placed first in the 2020 event, which was canceled due to COVID-19. Kentucky needs four consecutive wins to claim the title and advance to this year’s NCAA Tournament.

Highlights

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