No. 14 Kentucky gets much-needed win over South Carolina

Field Level Media|published: Sat 8th February, 14:47 2025

Feb 8, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard Jamarii Thomas (6) goes to the basket against Kentucky Wildcats center Amari Williams (22) during the first half at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Otega Oweh scored 15 of his 17 points after halftime as 14th-ranked Kentucky took control late in the first half and pulled away for an 80-57 victory over visiting South Carolina Saturday afternoon in Lexington, Ky.

The Wildcats (16-7, 5-5 SEC) bounced back nicely from consecutive losses to Arkansas and No. 25 Ole Miss and won for just the second time in six games. South Carolina (10-13, 0-10) remained the lone winless team in SEC play.

Oweh made 5 of 7 shots in the second half when Kentucky outscored South Carolina 47-38. He shot 6-of-10 overall and helped the Wildcats earn their most lopsided win in conference play this season.

Reserve Brandon Garrison added a season-high 15 on 7-of-8 shooting as he and Oweh were a combined 13-of-18 from the floor. Koby Brea added 10 and a career-high six assists as Kentucky's bench totaled 39 points.

Amari Williams also scored 10 as the Wildcats shot 48.4 percent, hit 15 layups and led for the final 31:50.

The Wildcats got a boost as Lamont Butler returned from missing three games with a shoulder injury and scored eight points in 23 minutes. Second-leading scorer Jaxson Robinson played through a tweaked right hand and was held to six points in 20 minutes.

Collin Murray-Boyles collected 14 and eight rebounds but shot an inefficient 5-of-13. Jacobi Wright added 12 while Jamarii Thomas finished with 11 as the Gamecocks shot a dreadful 32.8 percent and missed 18 of 22 3-point tries.

After South Carolina inched within 21-18 on a jumper by Thomas with 4:55 remaining, Kentucky countered South Carolina's rally with a 12-1 run and opened a 33-19 lead by halftime when Williams converted a 3-point play and hit a layup on consecutive trips in the final minute.

The Gamecocks did not let the Wildcats pull away further in the opening minutes of the second as a dunk and layup by Pringle cut the deficit to 41-30 with 14:58 left. Garrison converted two dunks in a span of 55 seconds for a 47-34 lead with 11:56 left and then sank a 3 with 11:16 to go for a 50-37 lead.

Kentucky briefly let the lead slip under double digits, but Oweh hit a transition 3 with 9:50 left and got by Murray-Boyles for a dunk with 8:10 to go for a 55-41 edge. Butler then converted a 3-point play for a 61-41 lead with 7:16 remaining to start finishing it off.

--Field Level Media