No. 14 Kentucky snaps 2-game skid with an 80-57 win over South Carolina

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Otega Oweh scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half and No. 14 Kentucky snapped a two-game skid with an 80-57 win over South Carolina on Saturday.

Brandon Garrison came off the bench and scored 15 points for Kentucky (16-7, 5-5 in the Southeastern Conference), which won at home after losses to No. 4 Alabama (Jan. 18) and Arkansas (Feb. 1).

Collin Murray-Boyles scored 14 points for South Carolina (10-13, 0-10), which dropped its 10th straight game and remained winless in conference play.

Takeaways

South Carolina: The Gamecocks struggled offensively and went through a seven-minute stretch over both halves without a field goal. They made three free throws during that stretch and were 4 for 22 from 3-point range.

Kentucky’s Jaxson Robinson (2) shoots ahead of South Carolina’s Morris Ugusuk, left, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Lexington, Ky., Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/James Crisp)

Kentucky: The Wildcats welcomed back Lamont Butler, who had been out with a shoulder injury since Jan. 25. He scored eight points and provided a needed defensive lift after Kentucky had given up an average of 93.5 points in consecutive games. Starting guard Jaxson Robinson played after injuring his wrist in practice on Friday and being listed as questionable.

Key moment

South Carolina had cut the Kentucky lead to nine at 50-41 on Murray-Boyles’ layup with 10:30 left. But, Oweh hit a 3-pointer and converted a steal into a dunk to start a 15-0 run and push the lead to 20 points.

Key stat

After starting the game by shooting 1 for 9 and missing a several layups, Kentucky shot 12 for 23 the rest of the half. The Wildcats outscored the Gamecocks 12-1 over the last four minutes for a 33-19 lead.