Kentucky basketball opened SEC play on Saturday, and immediately faced a tough test against an undefeated Florida Gators team. It was the 11th ranked Wildcats who walked out with the victory, though. They rode an offensive explosion to a 106-100 win.
Florida jumped out to an early lead, but as has been the pattern, Kentucky went on a 13-0 to get ahead. They led 52-42 at halftime.
In the second half, it was the Gators who made a run. They closed the gap to a single point a few times, and then to within two with four minutes to play. A Lamont Butler three pointer extended the lead, though, and Florida couldn’t get close again.
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The Wildcats were paced by Koby Brea, who had 23 points and made 7-of-9 from three-point range. He was one of six who score in double figures for Kentucky. Butler was fantastic once again, adding 19 points and 8 assists. Amari Williams had 15 points and 8 rebounds.
Overall, it was a great team effort, and a big win for Mark Pope and the Wildcats team. Kentucky made nearly 60% of their shots overall and hit almost 50% of their three-pointers.
Up next for the Cats is the Georgia Bulldogs. That game will be on Tuesday and will be Kentucky’s first conference road game of the season.