No. 7 Kentucky sinks struggling Vanderbilt

[January 30, 2019]  No. 7 Kentucky wasted little time in opening up a big lead and never let go, walloping Vanderbilt 87-52 at Nashville's Memorial Gymnasium on Tuesday evening.

Wildcats forward P.J. Washington scored 26 points (18 in the first half), outscoring Vanderbilt by himself in the period. The sophomore had 10 rebounds at half and a game-high 12 in all for Kentucky (17-3, 6-1 Southeastern Conference).

Washington was 9 of 15 from the field in 29 minutes. It was his fifth straight double-figure scoring effort and third game in a row with 20 or more.

Guards Tyler Herro (12 points) and Keldon Johnson (11) also scored in double figures for Kentucky, as did reserve forward Nick Richards, who scored 14 points and blocked four shots.

Vanderbilt (9-11, 0-7) never got closer than 28 in the second period. Kentucky's biggest lead was 38 with 9:11 remaining.

It was the Wildcats' sixth straight win over Vanderbilt and seventh in a row this season.

Guard Saben Lee (15) led Vanderbilt in scoring, with guard Aaron Nesmith adding 14 and forward Matt Ryan 12.

It was an efficient evening for Kentucky, which shot 55.6 percent from the field, 58.8 percent from 3 and 73.9 percent from the foul line.

The same couldn't be said of the Commodores, who had 20 turnovers to only 17 made field goals and hit only 50 percent from the charity stripe.

The Wildcats put it out of reach quickly even though not everyone was firing on all cylinders. A pair of starters -- forward Reid Travis (one point on the night) and Johnson -- failed to score in the first period.

Seven of the nine Wildcats to play in the first half scored. Johnson broke through when he rattled home a 3 to start the second half.

Kentucky took a 22-12 lead on a pair of EJ Montgomery free throws with 9:36 left in the first half.

Vanderbilt Commodores forward Yanni Wetzell (1) shoots against Kentucky Wildcats forward Reid Travis (22) during the first half at Memorial Gymnasium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

Vanderbilt's misery soon doubled. Nesmith's turnover led to Herro's fast-break dunk and a 34-14 UK lead with 3:57 left.

And it only got worse from there for Vanderbilt. The Commodores had 14 first-half turnovers to five field goals. Many turnovers were unforced; Kentucky had just five first-half steals, with Washington and Herro swiping two each.

Kentucky had 13 more shots than Vanderbilt in the first half, hitting 51.5 percent of them to the Commodores' 25 percent.

Vanderbilt has lost eight straight.

--Field Level Media

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