Kentucky, LSU stay on rolls at SEC tournament

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Posted 7:22AM on Saturday, March 15, 2003

NEW ORLEANS - To the surprise of no one, Kentucky remained on a roll at the Southeastern Conference tournament. Then there's LSU, a late entry among the nation's hottest teams. No. 2 Kentucky rolled to its 21st straight victory, shrugging off an early nine-point deficit and going on to beat Vanderbilt 81-63 in the quarterfinals Friday. LSU pulled off the biggest surprise of the day, knocking off seventh-ranked Florida 65-61. The Gators have yet to win the tournament in 38 tries, a dubious streak that remains intact for another year. Kentucky has won the tournament 23 times - more than all the other schools combined. The way the Wildcats are playing, a 24th title seems a mere formality. ``I would be surprised if they don't win,'' said Tennessee's Ron Slay, the SEC player of the year. ``They went undefeated in the regular season. All they've got to do is win three games here. That shouldn't be too hard a task.'' On Saturday, it's LSU vs. Mississippi State and Kentucky vs. Auburn in the semifinals. Mississippi State beat Mississippi 73-64 in a quarterfinal game matching state rivals. Auburn strengthened its NCAA tournament credentials with a 66-53 victory over Tennessee. LSU, which was on the bubble a few weeks ago, is an NCAA lock after winning seven in a row. Now, it's just a matter of how far they go in this tournament and the next. ``We've gone from the NIT to being a seed in the NCAA,'' coach John Brady boasted. KENTUCKY 81, VANDERBILT 63 Keith Bogans had 16 points, leading four players in double figures. Seven others scored as Kentucky (27-3) cleared its bench and still shot 53 percent from the field. The Wildcats beat Vanderbilt (11-18) three times this season by an average of nearly 31 points. ``They're as good defensively as any team I can remember,'' Commodores coach Kevin Stallings said. After falling behind 17-8, Kentucky reeled off nine straight points to tie it up. The Wildcats finally took their first lead, 28-26, when Jules Camara stole the ball near halfcourt and cruised in for a dunk with 3:58 remaining in the half. Camara's basket was part of a 14-2 run that closed the half for the Wildcats, who led 36-28 at the break. They scored 12 of the first 14 points in the second half, too. Mario Moore scored 18 points to pace Vandy, which needed a late spurt just to reach 35 percent shooting. Kentucky point guard Gerald Fitch didn't start for the first time this year. Coach Tubby Smith said he was disciplining the player for ``a little incident,'' but neither would discuss what happened. Cliff Hawkins started in Fitch's place and doled out a season-high nine assists. LSU 65, FLORIDA 61 Jaime Lloreda scored 21 points and hit a key free throw with 15 seconds remaining to lead the Tigers. LSU (21-9) has beaten three top-10 teams this year. The Tigers also upset No. 1 Arizona 66-65 in December, followed by a victory over then-No. 7 Mississippi State in January. ``We're capable of winning big games right now,'' LSU forward Collis Temple III said. ``We feel it, we believe it.'' Lloreda, who had 15 rebounds and four blocked shots, pulled down the ball with 15 seconds remaining and was fouled hard by Matt Walsh. With the Tigers up 64-61, Lloreda made the second of two free throws, and LSU held off the Gators' final flurry. Lloreda was only 5-for-11 from the free-throw line. Florida (24-7) has lost three in a row, a blow to its hopes for a high seed in the NCAAs. Ronald Dupree led LSU with 24 points. Matt Bonner paced the Gators with 15. MISS. STATE 73, OLE MIS 64 The Bulldogs began their quest to repeat as tournament champion with a typical performance. Taking advantage of its height and bulk, Mississippi State (20-8) made a bunch of layups and dunks while forcing Ole Miss to run its offense on the outside. ``We've come here for one reason, to try and defend our SEC championship,'' coach Rick Stansbury said. The Bulldogs looked every bit like the team that ranked second in the SEC in points allowed at 60.6 per game. Mississippi State shot 59 percent from the field, largely due to 34 points in the lane. On the other hand, Ole Miss connected on just 38.3 percent, managing a measly 16 points in the paint. Mario Austin, who announced earlier in the week he will return for his senior season, led State with 19 points. Justin Reed scored 22 points and Derrick Allen grabbed 15 rebounds to lead Ole Miss, which needed a victory to qualify for the postseason. The Rebels (14-15) will be staying home for the first time since 1996. AUBURN 66, TENNESSEE 53 The Tigers won a game that had the look of a play-in for the NCAA tournament. Coach Cliff Ellis of Auburn (20-10) felt his team needed one more victory to claim its first NCAA bid since 2000. Now, he expects to hear from the selection committee on Sunday. ``What else do we have to us to do?'' Ellis said. ``It would be a sham if we weren't in.'' Tennessee (17-11) has to hope its 9-7 record in the conference will offset a No. 51 ranking in the RPI and the lack of quality non-conference wins. ``I told the guys I was disappointed, but we had a good season,'' coach Buzz Peterson said. ``I think we deserve an NCAA bid.'' Marco Killingsworth led Auburn with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Ron Slay scored 16 points for Tennessee but fouled out with 5:07 remaining. Slay didn't have much help. Tennessee played without Jon Higgins, ruled academically ineligible for the postseason.