Georgia beats No. 6 Kentucky 82-69 for 1st win over a top-10 team in 5 years

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Freshman forward Asa Newell scored 12 of his 17 points after halftime and Georgia led the entire second half in beating No. 6 Kentucky 82-69 on Tuesday night for its first win over a top-10 team in five years.

Blue Cain added 15 points and Silas Demary Jr. had 14 for Georgia (13-2, 1-1 Southeastern Conference).

Lamont Butler led Kentucky (12-3, 1-1) with 20.

Foul trouble hurt the Wildcats. Amari Williams went to the bench with four fouls early in the second half. Andrew Carr and Ansley Almonor picked up their fourth fouls later in the game.

Otega Oweh scored 12 points for Kentucky while shooting only 3 of 13 from the field.

Georgia beats No. 6 Kentucky 82-69 for 1st win over a top-10 team in 5 years | iNFOnews.ca — Georgia center Somto Cyril (6) reacts after scoring during an NCAA college basketball game against Kentucky, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Athens, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

Takeaways

Kentucky: After topping 100 points five times and averaging 90.2 points per game, the Wildcats trailed 47-34 at halftime.

Georgia: The Bulldogs’ previous win over a top-10 team was a 65-62 victory over No. 9 Memphis on Jan. 4, 2020.

Key moment

Newell sank a 3-pointer from the top of the arc as the Bulldogs pushed their lead back to double digits at 64-54. The Wildcats had pulled to 55-50, but Newell’s 3 helped Georgia regain momentum. Following a turnover by Butler less than three minutes later, Demary sank another 3 for a 69-57 advantage.

Key stat

Georgia outscored Kentucky 29-15 at the free-throw line. Georgia had 38 free-throw attempts to Kentucky’s 19, overcoming the Wildcats’ 36-26 advantage in points in the paint.

Up next

With the SEC putting nine teams in the AP Top 25, the Bulldogs’ difficult stretch of games against ranked conference opponents continues with a home game against No. 17 Oklahoma on Saturday. Kentucky visits No. 14 Mississippi State on Saturday.