LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Jamal Murray scored 24 points, Tyler Ulis added 14 and No. 22 Kentucky held Georgia to a season-low 22 percent shooting to coast to an 82-48 victory Tuesday night.
Picking up where he left off after a career-best 35 points on Saturday against Florida, Murray made 8 of 14 from the field including 6 of 10 from 3-point range. His accuracy helped spur the Wildcats (18-6, 8-3 Southeastern Conference) to 52 percent shooting and a surprisingly easy win over a Bulldogs team that entered as the nation's No. 6 team and SEC leader in field goal defense.
Georgia (13-9, 6-5) just couldn't make shots as its two-game winning streak ended. The Bulldogs closed the first half on a 0-for-17 drought and weren't much better in the second half as they trailed by 37 points in the final minutes.
Yante Maten's 16 points led the Bulldogs.
Derek Willis made three 3-pointers for 11 points for Kentucky, which won its second straight since blowing a 21-point lead in a loss at Tennessee. The Wildcats were more dominant than Saturday's bounce-back rout of Florida, even though they were outrebounded 36-34. They did gain a 24-20 edge on the defensive glass.
Kentucky won despite playing its second straight game without forward Alex Poythress, whom coach John Calipari said afterward would miss two weeks with a right knee injury. He wasn't specific about the type of injury.
The Wildcats still went on to top Georgia 28-14 in the paint and 22-11 in bench points.
Most importantly, Kentucky kept Georgia's lineup with four double-digit scorers from getting started.
The Wildcats sandwiched a hot start and finish around a 5 1/2-minute drought to lead 42-24, closing the first half on a 16-4 run over 3:47. Even with the lull, Kentucky was 17 of 30 (57 percent) with Murray and Willis combining to make five of its 10 3-point attempts.
Georgia on the other hand struggled after a 5-of-8 start from the field, missing its final 17 attempts of the half to finish at 20 percent and managing just four free throws over the final 7 1/2 minutes. In fact, the Bulldogs' 13 free throws were two points more than they got from the field.
Kentucky's defense caused some of Georgia's frustration but much of the damage was self-inflicted as the Bulldogs simply couldn't hit a shot. Not even 10 offensive rebounds could help as they were outscored 20-6 in the paint.
TIP-INS
Georgia: The Bulldogs had held eight of 10 SEC opponents below their season field goal average before Tuesday.
Kentucky: Ulis followed his career-best 11 assists against Florida with eight against the Bulldogs. ... Skal Labissiere had seven rebounds and six points before fouling out but drew a cheer when he tied up Maten grabbing an offensive rebound and both players fell backward to the court.
UP NEXT
Georgia: Visits Mississippi State on Saturday.
Kentucky: Visits South Carolina on Saturday.
