Herro finds rhythm in Kentucky victory

NO. 16 KENTUCKY 71, LOUISVILLE 58

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Tyler Herro better get used to being the center of attention after a career performance that also showed how No. 16 Kentucky has progressed since its season-opening blowout loss to Duke.

The freshman guard had a career-high 24 points, Keldon Johnson added 15 and the Wildcats beat Louisville 71-58 on Saturday in this fierce Bluegrass rivalry.

A close game for 10 minutes quickly swung toward the Wildcats (10-2) behind an 11-0 run for a 31-17 lead. The spurt typified their success on both ends. They kept the Cardinals (9-4) from passing and driving inside and grabbed offensive rebounds leading to second and third chances.

Herro thrived the most, making his first three attempts on the way to finishing 10 of 13 from the field with four 3-pointers. That surpassed his previous best of 18 achieved twice, most recently on Dec. 1 against UNC Greensboro.

“I felt like I was in a rhythm since warmups,” said Herro, who has averaged 16.7 points over his past six games. “But I feel like my shot’s going to work all the time.”

Johnson was just 5 of 13 but helped Kentucky keep a double-digit lead for much of the final 30 minutes. The Wildcats won their third in a row overall and 10th of 12 in the Bluegrass rivalry.

Christen Cunningham had a season-high 20 points and Jordan Nwora 17 for Louisville, which shot just 36 percent in having its three-game winning streak stopped. Hoping to win its second game over a ranked school since beating then-No. 9 Michigan State last month, the Cardinals didn’t get closer than 50-41 with 9:39 remaining.

Playing their first true road game in perhaps the most hostile environment they’ve faced, the Wildcats played at their tempo and were poised throughout. Besides creating good offensive looks, they edged the Cardinals 34-33 on the boards and forced them into shots they didn’t want. Ashton Hagans had 11 points for the Wildcats, who shot 51 percent.

In other Top 25/SEC men’s games Saturday, Grant Williams scored 25 points and went 10 of 11 from the floor to lead a strong shooting performance for No. 3 Tennessee in a 96-53 blowout of Tennessee Tech. … Udoka Azubuike scored 23 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in his return from an ankle injury, and No. 5 Kansas cruised to an 87-63 victory over Eastern Michigan. … Caleb Martin scored a career-high 33 points, Jordan Caroline added 17, and No. 6 Nevada beat Utah 86-71. … Cassius Winston matched a career-high with 6 three-pointers and scored 24 points, leading No. 8 Michigan State to an 88-60 victory over Northern Illinois. … Bryce Brown scored 18 points and made 5 three-pointers, and No. 12 Auburn raced to a victory over North Florida 95-49. … C.J. Jackson scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half and Kaleb Wesson added 17 points as No. 13 Ohio State beat High Point 82-64. … Cameron Johnson scored 17 points, Luke Maye had 11 points and 14 rebounds, and No. 14 North Carolina beat Davidson 82-60. … Dalano Banton nearly had a triple-double and Western Kentucky rode the freshman to an 83-76 victory over No. 15 Wisconsin. … Richmond Aririguzoh sank two free throws with 24.8 seconds remaining and Princeton held on to stun No. 17 Arizona State 67-66. … Aric Holman scored a career-high 28 points and Quinndary Weatherspoon had 27, leading No. 19 Mississippi State past BYU 103-81. … Corey Davis Jr. scored 19 points, DeJon Jarreau had 13 and No. 22 Houston beat NJIT 80-59 to remain undefeated. … Saben Lee scored a season-high 23 points, Joe Toye added a career-high 18 points and Vanderbilt beat Tennessee State 95-76. … Missouri completed a perfect December, beating Morehead State 75-61 for its sixth consecutive victory. … Terence Davis scored 20 points as Mississippi placed five players in double figures to defeat Florida Gulf Coast 87-57. … Texas Southern knocked off its third Power 5 conference team on the road with an 8873 victory over Texas A&M. … Florida scored the first 21 points, delivering one of the most complete stretches of basketball in Coach Mike White’s four seasons, and handled Butler 77-43.