Wildcats hold off Bulldogs

NO. 1 KENTUCKY 69, GEORGIA 58

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Not long ago, Andrew Harrison hesitated to take the shots that are now falling for Kentucky’s sophomore point guard.

Karl-Anthony Towns’ main issue recently has been finishing off his promising starts.

Both players’ determination to progress resulted in huge efforts that kept the topranked Wildcats unbeaten.

Harrison scored a season-high 23 points and combined with Towns for key baskets down the stretch that helped Kentucky stop pesky Georgia 69-58 on Tuesday night.

Twice on the verge of running away from a Georgia squad playing its second consecutive game without leading scorer and rebounder Marcus Thornton (concussion), the Wildcats (22-0, 9-0 SEC) saw their margin dwindle near the end.

Harrison and Towns quickly asserted themselves to preserve the Wildcats’ lead.

Harrison’s layup with 3:58 remaining provided a 62-54 lead before baskets by Yante Maten and Nemanja Djurisic pulled the Bulldogs to 63-58 with 2:06 left. Towns’ short jumper with 1:33 left got the lead to seven, and Tyler Ulis and Harrison each added two free throws in the final minute for the Wildcats.

Towns finished with 15 points and a career-high 13 rebounds.

Those performances were big for both players beyond the outcome. For

the oft-scrutinized Harrison, it demonstrated a growing confidence in his game that resulted in 8-of-16 shooting, including 3 three-pointers, and seven of Kentucky’s 16 assists with just one turnover.

“I’ve been putting a lot of work in with my dad and the assistant coaches,” Harrison said. “It’s a blessing to play well.”

Added Kentucky Coach John Calipari, “We’re trying to get him to be more aggressive. There were a couple of plays early in the game I said, ‘quit pulling it out. If they throw it to you, attack, make plays and make plays for your teammates.’…

“I thought he played with good energy. Assist-to-turnover, he played well.”

Djurisic’s 17 points led Georgia (14-7, 5-4), which outrebounded Kentucky 3624. Maten added 13 points and nine rebounds for the Bulldogs, whose nine offensive boards helped them stay nearly even in the paint against the taller Wildcats.

But Georgia couldn’t get the rebounds it needed in the final minutes while Kentucky did. Willie Cauley-Stein came up with one leading to Harrison’s clinching foul shots, and Towns sealed the game with a block and rebound at the end.

“If we had made another shot or two late, it could have been interesting,” Georgia Coach Mark Fox said. “Kentucky’s got a great team and give them credit for making enough plays to win.”

Devin Booker had nine points and Ulis eight for Kentucky, which played its second consecutive game without freshman forward Trey Lyles because of an illness. While his absence hurt the Wildcats, Towns more than made up for it with two good halves after struggling to finish off strong starts.

“I’m just trying to put a lot of things together, and I see it’s working,” Towns said after shooting 6 of 11 from the field. “I’m making a lot of shots right now, and that’s a testament to hard work.”

Towns and Harrison combined to shoot 9 of 16 from the field for 23 first-half points, including 10 down the stretch to provide a 42-27 halftime lead just when the Bulldogs were making it competitive.

SEC MEN

MISSISSIPPI STATE 71, TENNESSEE 66

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Craig Sword scored 26 points as Mississippi State relied on sizzling three-point shooting to beat Tennessee and end its recent February misery.

Mississippi State (11-11, 4-5 SEC) shot 55.8 percent (19 of 34) overall and 72.7 percent (8 of 11) from three-point range to end a string of 16 consecutive February losses. The Bulldogs hadn’t won a February game since beating South Carolina 69-67 in overtime on Feb. 29, 2012.

Josh Richardson scored a career-high 30 points for Tennessee (13-8, 5-4).

VANDERBILT 67, FLORIDA 61

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — James Siakam scored 12 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked five shots as Vanderbilt snapped a seven-game conference skid by beating Florida.

The Commodores (12-10, 2-7) got their first victory since Jan. 6 by opening the game by scoring the first 15 points, and they never trailed. They held off Florida down the stretch, outrebounding them 42-26 and outshooting the Gators at the free-throw line where they hit 18 of 24 in the second half alone.

Riley LaChance scored 15 points for Vanderbilt, and Damian Jones added 13. Wade Baldwin IV added 11.

The Gators (12-10, 5-4) now have lost four of their last six. Michael Frazier II scored a game-high 21 points, and Eli Carter added 12.

TOP 25 MEN

NO. 5 WISCONSIN 92, INDIANA 78

MADISON, Wis. — Frank Kaminsky scored 23 points and No. 5 Wisconsin’s athletic frontcourt overwhelmed Indiana.

Kaminsky was 9 of 12 from the field for the Badgers (20-2, 8-1 Big Ten). Nigel Hayes added 16 points on 5-of-5 shooting.

Guard Bronson Koenig provided balance from the outside with 15 points, going 3 of 4 from three-point range.

NO. 9 LOUISVILLE 63, MIAMI 55

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Terry Rozier scored 22 points and No. 9-ranked Louisville (19-3, 7-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) overcame second-half shooting woes to beat the slumping Miami Hurricanes (14-8, 4-5).

Montrezl Harrell had 18 points and nine rebounds for the Cardinals, who earned their fourth consecutive victory. The Hurricanes lost their third game in a row and lost for the fifth time at home this season.

NO. 14 NORTHERN IOWA 61, INDIANA STATE 51

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — Seth Tuttle had 15 points and eight rebounds and Jeremy Morgan added 12 points as No. 14 Northern Iowa (21-2, 10-1 Missouri Valley) beat Indiana State (11-12, 7-4).

NO. 21 OKLAHOMA 71, NO. 15 WEST VIRGINIA 52

NORMAN, Okla. — Buddy Hield scored 21 points and No. 21 Oklahoma (15-7, 6-4 Big 12) defeated No. 15 West Virginia (18-4, 6-3).

Hield, the Big 12’s leading scorer, made 8 of 13 shots, including 5 of 7 three-pointers.

NO. 22 BUTLER 85, ST. JOHN’S 62

INDIANAPOLIS — Kellen Dunham had 21 points and seven rebounds to lead No. 22 Butler (17-6, 7-3 Big East) to a victory over St. John’s (14-8, 3-6).

Alex Barlow scored 15 points and Andrew Chrabascz added 14 for the Bulldogs, who have won four consecutive conference games.

Sir’Dominic Pointer had 19 points and six rebounds, and Rysheed Jordan scored 17 for the Red Storm, who have lost three of four.