By Kevin Erpenbeck

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UK Hoops combined an early defensive presence and an advantage in the paint to defeat Lipscomb University 116-49 on Thursday at Memorial Coliseum.

All five UK starters scored 10 or more points. The Cats scored the second-most points in a game in program history and the most points for a UK team under head coach Matthew Mitchell.

The No. 7 Cats (5-0) stifled the Lady Bisons (0-4) defensively early on in the game, recording nine steals and forcing 16 turnovers in the first half. UK also held Lipscomb to a 30.8 field goal percentage in the first 20 minutes, taking a 57-29 advantage into halftime.

UK Hoops head coach Matthew Mitchell said he was proud of the way the team kept up the pressure on Lipscomb throughout the game.

“That’s just our goal,” Mitchell said. “We want to put 40 minutes of pressure on you, and not just defensive pressure, but also on the offensive push. All the misses and makes are hard to deal with as a team, and so our transition offense really is significant.”

The Cats also showed a significant advantage in the paint, recording 34 of their 57 first-half points in the painted area, while holding Lipscomb to just eight first-half points in the paint.

UK also left points on the free throw line,  missing seven shots from the line in the first half. They were also 22-of-47 from the field for a 46.8 field-goal percentage.

“We’re going to go back and fire the free throw coach,” Mitchell joked. “On a night like tonight, where we have over 20 assists again, and we shoot the ball 52 percent. There’s something out there we will find and focus on — free throws being one of them.”

The Cats improved their shooting in the second half, shooting 59 percent from the field, including five-of-nine from beyond the arc.

Eight players scored in the double digits for UK, including junior guard Bria Goss, who led the way with 18 points. Goss shot three-for-four from beyond the arc.

“We worked on our offense during the summer,” Goss said. “We improved on our offensive execution in the preseason and during the season and worked on offensive fundamentals in the gym after every practice. It’s showing up now.”

Senior guard Bernisha Pinkett added 15 points off the bench on a six-for-seven effort from the field.

Senior forward Samarie Walker also played a key factor in the Cats’ win with her double-double.

Walker finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds and added three steals to her stat line.

UK had 46 total points off the benc. Walker said that describes what kind of team the Cats have this year.

“It just says how talented this team is and also how deep our bench is,” she said. “You don’t see too many teams that can have that kind of an advantage too often.”