Dec. 8, 2001
Bowling Green, Ky. - Western Kentucky erased a 10-point second half deficit to beat Kentucky 84-79 Saturday night at Diddle Arena.
UK (3-4) jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead before Western (4-4) finally got on the board at the 18:33 mark on a layup by Camryn Whitaker (So., Cynthiana, Ky.). However, the Wildcats were able to hold on to the lead until the 13:44 mark when a layup by Tiffiany Diggins (Jr., Des Moines, Wash.) gave the Lady Toppers a 13-12 advantage. The score remained tight until a 12-5 UK run gave the Cats an eight-point lead, 32-24, on a jumper by SeSe Helm with 2:51 left in the half. WKU battled back, and pulled within two points at the half when Kristina Covington (Jr., Elizabethtown, Ky.) hit two free throws with 27 seconds left to make it a 37-35 game at intermission. Natalie Powers (Sr., Owensboro, Ky.) led all scorers with 12 points at the break. Helm and LaTonya McDole each had eight to pace Kentucky.
UK scored the first four points of the second half to jump back out to a six point advantage with 18:56 to play. Kentucky was able to build its lead back up to 10 points with a Keiko Tate jumper gave the Cats a 60-50 lead with 12:10 remaining. However, an 11-3 WKU run over the next 2:30 brought it back within four at 63-61 on a Diggins layup with 8:35 remaining. Western was unable to regain the lead, however, until a Whitaker jumper gave the Lady Toppers a 68-67 lead with 5:38 to play. That play sparked a 10-1 Lady Topper run that built the advantage to 76-68 on a layup by Leslie Logsdon (So., Munfordville, Ky.) with 4:01 left. WKU never saw its lead slip below four points from that point as the Lady Toppers hit free throws down the stretch to get an 84-79 win over Kentucky, and snap a three-game losing streak to the Wildcats.
Powers led for Lady Toppers in double figures with a game-high 24 points. Shala Reese (Jr., Easton, Texas) added 16, while Covington and Whitaker chipped in 14 and 13, respectively. Kentucky had five players in double digits, led by Helm's 18 points.
The Lady Toppers now take a week off for final exams before they take the court again next Sunday (Dec. 16) for a 2 p.m. (CST) tipoff against South Florida.
-- WKU --
