Vicky Graff Photo
In the last two games graduate senior Emma King has played a combined 74 minutes, scored 23 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, dished out five assists, and blocked four shots.
She has set career highs for minutes played, single-game scoring, single-game rebounding, and blocks. She also went 8-for-8 at the foul line Sunday.
In those two games, UK has beaten Boston College and Tennessee Tech after losing five of its first seven games.
However, the best part for King is that she’s doing it while playing center and/or power forward instead of on the wing like she did when she was a prolific scorer at Lincoln County High School or did her first four years at UK.
“(Coach Kyra) Elzy keeps talking about next man up and that’s kind of the mentality we have to have. I’m just ready to fill whatever role they ask me and if it’s the four, last game it was the five, so be it. I’m just ready to step into it and embrace the challenge,” said King.
She’s been ready to do that for four years. She’s started a few games and played in a lot of games but never has had the playing time like she’s had the last two games when UK was short-handed due to injuries and suspension.
King just wants to win and likes the way her team has responded.
“One thing I feel like I just love about this team is I feel like when one person is playing hard, like we just kind of feed off of that and so it was so fun to see people fly around like [Ajae] Petty got mad at me because I was trying to go get the board,” King said. “But like I’m glad that Petty is mad at me because that means we are both crashing the boards and we’re both just being scrappy and trying to get it and that’s really like what we feed off of that’s what our offense feeds off of just being able to push the ball.
“It’s just really fun being able to play, especially when all five of us on the floor at the same time are on that same wavelength and we are just playing for each other.”
Elzy said as a fifth-year senior, King knows what the coach expects and wants.
“She’s able to settle us in on the court. She understands the offense, she understands the defense but more importantly, she’s producing right now — 14 points today and seven rebounds,” Elzy said after Sunday’s 73-67 win.
‘So that’s what a fifth-year senior needs to be able to do for you but super proud of her. She’s always put in the work so it’s good to see her hard work pay off.”
King had to battle Tech’s leading scorer, Maaliya Owens who had 30 points and five rebounds. Owens is a former Scott County star whom King had played against before.
“I’ve played with her, I’ve played against her for years. She’s a great player and she has just always hunted shots and that’s something she never quits moving and that was something we talked about going into this game,” King said. “You have to be ready to guard her because even if she doesn’t have the ball, she’s looking to get the ball.
“She’s gonna wear down any defender that guards her and she did a great job today. She stepped up big today and she hit shots for them.”
But King “stepped up big” again for Kentucky, too, and got UK another badly needed win.
