Column: Scoring outburst not a surprise

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Replay the game’s live blog

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — What did you do over Christmas break?

Maybe you opened some interesting presents. Maybe you went to a New Year’s party. Maybe you watched a few football games.

Jodie Meeks finished his break on a high note by having the best-scoring game of any player in UK history.

“I just got a couple of inches of space and just kept shooting,” Meeks said. “They kept going in.”

They kept going in until Meeks sank 54 points shooting 15-22; the most points in a single game in UK basketball history. He broke the record held by Dan Issel who scored 53 points 39 years ago.

“To be in the same sentence as guys like Dan Issel and Kentucky legends like that, it means a lot,” Meeks said.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” UK head coach Billy Gillispie said.

While this was the most impressive performance of Meeks’ career, it wasn’t necessarily out of the blue. Meeks opened the season with 39 points in a loss to the Virginia Military Institute. He topped 30 points on four other occasions, and set a previous career high with 46 on Dec. 20 against Appalachian State.

“We knew he was going to knock down jump shots,” sophomore Patrick Patterson said. “I just didn’t know he was going to knock down that many.”

In a game that was UK’s best chance to make a statement in front of a national audience as to the quality of its team, the important victory was outshined by an unforgettable performance from the shooting guard from Norcross, Ga.

“I’m just happy to get out there and win,” Meeks said. “It’s my first win here, ever.”

While the importance of UK’s victory in front of a packed crowd at Thompson-Boling Arena will hold true long after the post-game high from Meeks’ performance wears off, the evening was all about Jodie.

“It’s fun to watch him,” former UK Athletic Director C. M. Newton said after the game. “I’m thrilled to be here to see it.”

Newton wasn’t the only pleased spectator. Meeks scored his record 54 points in front of his father and uncle.

In a game that Meeks or few fans will not soon forget, one image stuck out in the head of his coach after the victory.

With just a few minutes left in the game and Meeks well over 40 points, he took a bad shot and did something he rarely did. He missed.

The sharp shooter turned to the bench, looked at his coach, pointed at his chest and said, “My fault.”

“That’s the type of person he is,” Gillispie said.

When asked how memorable this game was to him, Gillispie had a stunning answer.

“Until he gets 60, it probably tops the list.”

After Tuesday night, you never know. Sixty might not be that far away.