Cats Have Right Key to Start 10-1 Again

Kentucky players had a lot to like during Sunday's win. (UK Athletics Photo)

For the second straight season, Kenny Brooks has guided the Kentucky women’s team to a 10-1 start after Sunday’s 82-55 win over visiting Central Michigan.

A 12-0 run to open the third quarter broke the game open for No. 17 Kentucky, which had five players score in double figures led by Teonni Key’s 17 points, including 13 in the second half. She also added 11 rebounds for her second double-double this season.

Jordan Obi and Clara Strack both had 14 points for Kentucky while point guard Tonie Morgan had her second double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 assists. Asia Boone added 11 points and seven rebounds off the bench.

“At this juncture in a year, we can gauge where we are and we can get better each and every day. The kids understand that we’ve talked a lot about the energy depth and the attitude,” said Brooks.  “When I talk about that, it’s not like they have bad energy or attitude but they are great. They are doing exactly what we are trying to get them to do.

“But sometimes, if we want to get to where we want to get to, we have to come out with that mindset that we are going to be able to be dominant. But we also have to understand that we can dominate every possession, but I feel like tonight, there were times we were just a little bit like we were taller and longer.”

Brooks thought Central Michigan played hard against its fourth Power 4 opponent this season and noted that Central Michigan stayed in the game with highly ranked Notre Dame until halftime.

“I also watched them play Purdue, in which they beat them. They’ve got a good thing going there. We just understand where we were trying to go and need to get a little bit better. They understand that a win is a win and we are very happy to celebrate that and we will continue going on,” the Kentucky coach said.

Kentucky blocked eight shots and now has had at least eight blocks in seven of 11 games this season. The Cats entered the game leading the nation in blocks at 8.4 per game.

Led by Morgan, UK also had 25 assists and has now had 20 or more assists in four games. The Cats had eight turnovers and have had fewer than 10 turnovers in five games.

“Team chemistry was something that we worked on during the summer. Every game you learn something new about who they are as a player on and off the court, and that has helped us play smoothly as a team,” Key said.

Boone has had to learn to play point guard at Kentucky and become more than just a shooter.

“My first conversation with cCoach was that he was going to put me in a new position right off the bat, and that being point guard,” the Liberty transfer said. “He kept reminding me to embrace the change even when my confidence was low and that the more versatile I can be as a player the more minutes I can play.”

Boone was also glad for UK to finally be back playing in Memorial Coliseum.

“We’ve been traveling a lot, so we had to focus where our feet are. Coach always says the next game is always the most important game. So I just had to really focus on our next opponent,” she said.

Kentucky returns to action on Sunday, visiting Belmont in Nashville. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. ET and the game can be seen on ESPN Plus.