Game Notes: Kentucky 69, Yale 59

Game Notes: Kentucky 69, Yale 59

Team Records and Series Notes

 Kentucky is now 7-2 on the season and has won four in a row. Yale is 8-3.

 Kentucky leads the series, 2-0, with both games played in Lexington.

 Next for UK: the Wildcats take on final exams this week, returning to the court Saturday against UCLA in the CBS Sports Classic. The game will be played as the second half of the doubleheader and tip off approximately 5:15 p.m. in Madison Square Garden in New York City. 

Team Notes

 Kentucky limited Yale to 59 points.

o UK is 208-9 (95.9%) under Calipari when keeping the opponent to 63 points or less, including 6-0 this season.

 Kentucky shot 50% from the field, 29 of 58, the third time this season the Wildcats have made at least half their shots. 

 Kentucky led by as many as 15 points. UK is 316-13 (96.0%) under Calipari when leading by as many as 10 points at any time in the contest. 

Player Notes  

 Oscar Tshiebwe collected his fifth double-double of the season with 28 points and 12 rebounds.

o He scored 22 of his 28 points in the second half. Early in that half, he scored 12 straight UK points to turn a 35-33 deficit into a 45-40 lead.

o 28 points is only two shy of his career high of 30. 

o He also had two assists, two steals and two blocked shots.

 Antonio Reeves finished with 10 points, his sixth straight double figure game.

o He has made at least one 3-pointer in each game this season.

 Sahvir Wheeler tallied 10 points, four rebounds and an assist.

 Jacob Toppin had a game-high four assists to go along with four points, five rebounds and a game-high +/- of +14.

Coach John Calipari

 Calipari is 2-0 vs. Yale.

 Calipari has an 817-243 all-time on-court record and a 372-103 mark in his 14 th season at UK.

 UK is 305-58 (84.0%) against unranked competition under Calipari.  Rupp Arena

 UK extended its home win streak to 25 games, dating back to the 2020-21 season, and (as this was written) is the longest active home win streak in the Southeastern Conference and the third-longest in the nation.

 Kentucky is 639-77 (89.2%) in the 47-year history of Rupp Arena.

 Kentucky is 212-17 (92.6%) in Rupp Arena under Calipari.

In the First Half

 Kentucky started the combination of Sahvir Wheeler, Cason Wallace, Antonio Reeves, Jacob Toppin and Oscar Tshiebwe for the fourth straight game. UK is 4-0 with this lineup.

 CJ Fredrick, Daimion Collins, and Chris Livingston were UK’s first substitutes at the 14:37 mark.

 Tied at six, UK got consecutive threes from Wallace (twice) and Reeves to put the Cats up 15-6.

 UK stretched the lead to 25-13 at 10:46 but the Cats went cold, missing 12 of their next 13 shots, and the Bulldogs cut it to 28-25.

 The Kentucky defense held Yale to just one basket over the last five and a half minutes and the Wildcats went to halftime ahead 33-27.

 Wallace had eight points, Livingston seven, Reeves six and Tshiebwe six with eight boards to lead the Wildcat effort.

In the Second Half

 Kentucky opened the second stanza with the starting lineup.

 Yale quickly tied the game with a pair of 3-pointers, prompting a UK timeout with 18:34 left.

 The Bulldogs added another basket, completing a 10-0 run dating back to the first half, and notching their first lead of the game at 35-33.

 Tshiebwe responded with all 12 points on an 12-5 run as the Wildcats regained the lead, 45-40.

 A 6-0 spurt pushed the score to 57-47 and an 8-0 chunk gave UK its largest lead at 67- 52.

 Tshiebwe scored 22 of his game-high 28 points in the second half.

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