Kentucky women’s basketball (5-1) returned to the win column with a 26-point victory over Dayton in its second and final game of the Bahar Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo championship in Nassau.

The Wildcats struggled early offensively but were able to maintain a slim lead over Dayton thanks to nine first quarter points from guard Robyn Benton, who finished with a team high of 15 points.  

UK’s halfcourt offense was largely ineffective in a competitive first half as it was without Blair Green and Jada Walker for majority of the second quarter after both picked up their second foul.

“We definitely have to work on it. We must be aggressive but have to learn to be disciplined,” Kentucky head coach Kyra Elzy said regarding players in foul trouble. “We have to adjust to how they’re calling it.”

Kentucky, in turn, ramped things up defensively as its full court press forced Dayton to record multiple turnovers that became Wildcat points on the other end, giving Kentucky a 12-point lead heading into the break.  

Kentucky continued its recent trend of strong third quarters as a 7-2 run to begin the quarter blew the game open in favor of the Cats.  

Dayton ultimately coughed up the ball 28 times, leading to 29 transition points for Kentucky, who outscored the Flyers in all four quarters and tallied their lowest points-allowed total thus far this season.  

“We talk about taking 2-3 charges a game. We talk about forced turnovers. Those are very important to us, and we’ve reached those goals,” Elzy said about the team’s defensive habits. 

The Wildcats depart from the Bahamas on Friday, Nov. 25, before hosting UNC Greensboro on Dec. 4 inside Memorial Coliseum for Trivia Night and National Sock Day.  

“We have a break to rest and recover, but also to get back to practice after this tournament,” Elzy said. “It gives us a real opportunity to go work on some of the details that we need to execute better both offensively and defensively.” 

Tipoff against UNCG is scheduled for 1 p.m. EST on Sunday, Dec. 4, with the game scheduled to air live on the SEC Network+.