By Joshua Huff

[email protected]

Georgia’s hopes of defeating UK on Tuesday were dimmed when its leading scorer, senior forward Marcus Thornton, was held out of the game due to lingering concussion symptoms.

That was before the game even started.

The Bulldogs had hoped that last week’s SEC Player of the Week, sophomore guard J.J. Frazier, would be able to replicate the 37 points he scored against Mississippi State on Jan. 24. To Georgia head coach Mark Fox’s dismay, Frazier was nonexistent during the first half of the Bulldog’s 69-58 loss to UK in Rupp Arena.

“Kentucky’s got a terrific team,” Fox said. “And you’ve got to play two halves to have a chance to win. Give them credit, they forced us out of our comfort zone in the first half and we played from behind all night.”

UK used a dominant first-half performance from freshman forward Karl-Anthony Towns and sophomore guard Andrew Harrison. Towns scored 11 points in the half while Harrison had 12, shooting 5-for-9 from the field and 2-for-3 from the three.

Harrison’s solid performance carried over into the second half as he finished with 23 points and seven assists.

“He was very productive, obviously,” Fox said of Harrison. “They’re such a balanced team. I think Kentucky’s players can’t be expected to have huge nights every night … tonight was his turn.”

Harrison began his second-half scoring by draining yet another three. Freshman guard Tyler Ulis added his second three of the night as UK opened a 50-33 lead early in the second; a lead that Georgia was not able to overcome.

However, the Bulldogs fought back, using a 7-0 run to cut the Cats’ lead to 50-40 with just five minutes elapsed in the second. Georgia used a three from Frazier and a layup by senior forward Nemanja Djurisic to cut into the deficit.

The key for Georgia in the second half was the focus on rebounding as UK struggled on the defensive boards.

“They outrebounded us by double digits,” said UK head coach John Calipari. “Trey Lyles being out (illness) … hurts us. Really hurts us in the backcourt. (He) gives us one more strong, physical player.”

The second half turned into a game of cold spells. After UK went cold early in the half, Georgia was in its own shooting slump. But with less than 10 minutes in the game, UK went on a four-minute scoring drought that Georgia used to close the gap to seven points. UK recovered though, thanks to outstanding performances from Harrison and Towns.

Towns capped off the win with a double-double (15 points and 13 rebounds) while the rest of the Cats struggled from the field. Freshman Devin Booker, usually a sharp-eyed shooter, was just 1-for-6 from the three and Aaron Harrison was 0-for-4 from the field.

“For all these guys you have to fight,” Calipari said. “You have to fight for time … you have to go fight for your minutes. This isn’t communism. (If) the other guy is playing better, he’s playing.”