The University of Kentucky women’s basketball team faced off against the No. 3/4 ranked team, Colorado, on Friday, Nov. 24 at the University of Virgin Islands Sports and Fitness Center. Unfortunately, the Wildcats were unable to secure a victory, losing the game with a final score of 96-53. This brings Kentucky’s overall record for the season to 2-4.
Kentucky struggled against top-ranked teams this season, as they now hold a 0-2 record against Associated Press Top 10 teams. The Wildcats, currently in their 50th season, have an all-time record of 896-592 (.602), putting them just four wins away from reaching the milestone of 900 victories.
Kyra Elzy, in her fourth season as head coach, now holds an overall record of 51-44 (.537). Colorado currently leads the all-time series against Kentucky with a record of 2-1. The Wildcats will look to bounce back from this loss when they face Cincinnati on Saturday, Nov. 25. The game will take place at 3:15 p.m. ET and will be streamed on ESPN+.
During the game against Colorado, Kentucky utilized the starting combination of Brooklynn Miles, Maddie Scherr, Saniah Tyler, Amiya Jenkins, and Ajae Petty, marking the first time this lineup has been used this season. The Wildcats have found success when employing this lineup in the past, holding a 2-1 record with it. In fact, Kentucky returned to the lineup they used in their first two wins of the season.
The game started off strong for Kentucky, as they took an early lead of 9-2. However, Colorado quickly rallied back, tying the game 9-9 and then again at 11-11. The Buffalos went on to go on an 11-0 run, giving them a 25-14 lead over the Wildcats at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw back-and-forth scoring, with Kentucky slowly chipping away at Colorado’s lead. Despite their efforts, the Wildcats trailed 45-34 at halftime after Colorado ended the half on an 8-0 run, including a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Colorado continued to dominate in the third quarter, going on a 12-0 run and stretching their lead to 57-35. Despite a valiant effort from Kentucky, they were unable to close the gap. Colorado held a commanding 73-48 lead at the end of the third quarter. The Buffalos maintained their dominance throughout the fourth quarter, holding the Wildcats to just five points and securing a final score of 96-53 in their favor.
Despite the loss, there were some standout performances from Kentucky players. Eniya Russell, a senior guard, led the team with a career-high tying 14 points. This marked the third game this season and the seventh game in her career where she scored at least 10 points. Maddie Scherr, a senior guard, also had a strong showing with 13 points. Ajae Petty, a senior forward, contributed 11 points and led the team with seven rebounds.
Kentucky will need to regroup and refocus as they look to bounce back in their upcoming game against Cincinnati.
