LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentucky Coach John Calipari took to heart in his young Wildcats absorbing Illinois State’s best shots before getting off the deck to inflict some aggression of their own.
He expected some struggles with point guard Tyler Ulis sidelined by injury but was glad the top-ranked Wildcats eventually figured things out.
Isaiah Briscoe scored 18 points, Jamal Murray added 16 and No. 1 Kentucky overcame a sluggish first half to pull away from Illinois State 75-63 on Monday night.
Outhustled on both ends of the court by the athletic Redbirds through the first 20 minutes while adjusting to Ulis’ absence because of a right elbow injury, the Wildcats (7-0) emerged from halftime more physical and used that energy to gain some breathing room. The effort wasn’t always smooth or consistent, just effective when Kentucky needed it most.
The Wildcats ended up learning what life was like without Ulis and hope they won’t have to do it much longer.
“It was a big difference,” Briscoe said of playing with Ulis. “We missed him out there. He’s our leader.”
It took a collective effort between Briscoe, Murray and Charles Matthews to fill the void, ending with a combined six assists and 12 turnovers. Only three of the turnovers came after halftime, and that helped Kentucky become more assertive.
Outrebounded 20-12 in the first half, Kentucky beat Illinois State (3-5) 27-17 on the boards and held the Redbirds to 29 percent shooting in the second half.
Marcus Lee had something to do with that, adding 13 points and 12 rebounds. Alex Poythress had 11 points for Kentucky, which shot 43 percent.
DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell scored 22 points for the Redbirds, while Roland Griffin and Mikyle McIntosh both had 14 points.
Calipari insisted Ulis’ injury wasn’t serious but announced before the game via Twitter that the 5-foot-9 sophomore would sit out to ensure he’s 100 percent, especially with the big matchup coming at Pauley Pavilion. His concerns about how the Wildcats would respond without their floor general were well-founded in a sluggish start resulting in a 31-31 halftime tie.
Fortunately for Kentucky, the second half was slightly better as it cut down the turnovers and took control in the paint (38-36) and remained unbeaten even on an off night.
NO. 15 OREGON 78,
FRESNO STATE 73
EUGENE, Ore. — Dillon Brooks had 21 points and 10 rebounds and No. 15 Oregon staved off a late rally by Fresno State.
Chris Boucher and Elgin Cook added 14 points each for the Ducks (6-0), who led 70-52 with 6:35 to play before Marvelle Harris scored 13 points in a 16-2 run by the Bulldogs (5-1) that cut the deficit to four.
A driving layup by Brooks put Oregon up 74-68 with 1:20 left, and the Ducks held on by making four of six free throws in the final 45 seconds.
Harris, who didn’t score until the 12:04 mark of the second half, led Fresno State with 18 points, while Paul Watson added 11 and Torren Jones had 10 points and 11 rebounds.
SEC MEN
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 70, LSU 58
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Canyon Barry had 19 points and College of Charleston used a big first-half charge to hand LSU its third consecutive loss.
Barry scored 12 of his points in the opening half as Charleston (4-2) pulled in front 41-17 on Payton Hulsey’s foul shots to start the second half.
LSU sliced things to 63-56 on Jalyn Patterson’s three-pointer with 1:08 to play, but that was as close as the Tigers could get.
Ben Simmons led LSU (3-3) with 15 points and 18 rebounds.
SOUTH CAROLINA 76,
WESTERN CAROLINA 53
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Mindaugas Kacinas had 20 points and 11 rebounds and Michael Carrera scored 16 to lead South Carolina to a victory over Western Carolina.
Sindarius Thornwell scored 10 points and Christ Silva added nine points and 11 rebounds for South Carolina (7-0), which is off to its the best start since 2003-2004.
Rhett Harrelson scored 14 points and Mike Brown had 10 for Western Carolina (2-4).
Sports on 12/01/2015