Quick takeaways from Kentucky’s win over the Aggies

Kentucky+sophomore+guard+Rhyne+Howard+goes+up+for+a+shot+during+the+game+against+Texas+A%26amp%3BM+on+Thursday%2C+Jan.+16%2C+2020%2C+at+Memorial+Coliseum+in+Lexington%2C+Kentucky.+Kentucky+won+76-54.+Photo+by+Jordan+Prather+%7C+Staff

Kentucky sophomore guard Rhyne Howard goes up for a shot during the game against Texas A&M on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020, at Memorial Coliseum in Lexington, Kentucky. Kentucky won 76-54. Photo by Jordan Prather | Staff

No. 11 ranked UK women’s basketball team notched it’s fourth-straight win after a 76-54 victory over the No. 12 Texas A&M Aggies in Memorial Coliseum Thursday night. The win improves Kentucky’s record to 15-2 (4-1 SEC) and snaps a four-game losing streak to the Aggies, dating back to Jan. 8, 2017. Here’s three quick takeaways from the Cats’ win:

1. Howard on a hot streak

The sophomore guard recorded her seventh straight game with at least 20 points after she finished with 24 on 47 percent field goal shooting against the Aggies. Her full stat line included 24 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, two blocks, one steal and one turnover. Over the past seven games including the win over the Aggies, the back-to-back SEC Player of the Week is averaging nearly 30 points a game. 

2. Blair Green ties career high in points

Sophomore Green was Kentucky’s second leading scorer behind Howard, recording a career-tying 13 points in UK’s win. She’s totaled 13 twice before, the last being in Kentucky’s victory back in December over Winthrop. Green dropped three 3-pointers against the Aggies and added two rebounds and a steal. It was her third-straight game as a starter, taking the place of Kentucky forward KeKe McKinney, who has been listed day-to-day with migraine-like headaches. 

3. UK has big shooting night despite slow start

A slow start indeed– after the first quarter, the Cats were just 4-of-16 from the field and 1-for-9 from three-point range. The Aggies didn’t show their best game either, finishing 4-of-13 with zero three-point attempts after the first. But the Cats picked up in the second quarter despite Howard sitting the bench with two fouls for much of it. They shot 57 percent from the field and hit five threes, with Green burying two of those. Kentucky held a 33-21 lead at the half and never turned back. In the second half, they shot 55.6 percent from three and 59.3 percent from the field, outscoring the Aggies 43-23.