Kentucky womens basketball suffered its seventh loss in conference play to the Auburn Tigers 71-68 in Memorial Coliseum for the team’s first game back in Lexington in almost two weeks.

With the loss, the Cats move to 9-11 overall and 1-7 in the SEC.

Kentucky has been going through a rough patch this month, only winning one game out of the seven its played thus far.

The Cats started the month off in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where they were defeated 71-50 by the Razorbacks. That first loss would spark a very tough losing streak for the Wildcats.

While it is clear that Kentucky has struggled against its conference opponents, a certain Wildcat has reached season highs in light of the team’s season lows.

In tonight’s matchup with Auburn, junior Maddie Scherr scored sixteen points while posting three assists and eight rebounds, making this her fifth straight game scoring at least fifteen points.

“Maddie has really stepped up,” head coach Kyra Elzy said after the loss to Auburn. “I love her heart, her competitiveness, her spirit, and her basketball IQ. She is playing to win and that is the mentality that we want and need.”

The Oregan Ducks transfer has put up double digits for the Cats in every game since Kentucky’s matchup against Georgia on Jan. 5.

During Kentucky’s 95-66 loss to No.1 South Carolina, Scherr set a new career record, racking up 25 points against one of the best defensive teams in the nation.

Since losing to Arkansas, Kentucky has dropped six of their last seven games, with its only win coming over the Florida Gators on Jan. 15. Kentucky defeated the Gators 81-75 as Scherr dropped eighteen points while going 8-8 from the free throw line.

Against Auburn, it seemed that Scherr touched the ball at least once every offensive drive. She brought a dominate energy to the court – keeping up the pace, calling plays, and arguably leading the Wildcat offense.

Scherr was second on the team in scoring on Thursday behind Robyn Benton’s 19 points. Scherr went 6-11 from the floor and 1-3 from behind the 3-point arc.

It is clear that Scherr is bringing her best game to the court in order to do her part in helping tthe Cats get out of the mid-season slump they are experiencing.

Next up, Missouri will be rolling into the Bluegrass State on a five game losing streak and Kentucky hopes to take advantage of that.

Scherr and the Wildcats will look to get back in the win column when they play the Tigers (14-7, 3-5) in Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, Jan. 29, at 3 p.m. EST. The game can be watched on the SEC Network.