Monday

Game 10: Wiltjer sparks Kentucky past Lipscomb 88-50





















Kyle Wiltjer hit a shooting slump recently, and when he tried to rely on long-range shots to buoy his game, his total performance faded and his minutes dropped for Kentucky.

So the sophomore decided to work on it in two ways: Take more shots in the gym and focus more on rebounding than anything else during games.

It seems to have paid off Saturday. Wiltjer had his first career double-double, finishing with 23 points and a career-high 12 rebounds in Kentucky's 88-50 win over Lipscomb.

Wiltjer came off the bench for the first time this season - point guard Ryan Harrow took his spot in the starting five - but logged 24 minutes and was the key to Kentucky's offense. He finished 8 of 12 from the field and 7 of 9 from 3-point range.

''I don't care whether he made shots; he got 12 rebounds,'' Kentucky coach John Calipari said. ''We had to go in there and mix it up a little bit.''

Excluding a 7-of-11 3-point performance against Lafayette on Nov. 16, Wiltjer has shot 10 of 38 from deep this season. He was hot Saturday, though, making his first three 3-point attempts in the first half and equaling his highest scoring game of the season.

''Being a shooter, you just try not to think about previous games,'' Wiltjer said. ''Just go in the game and be confident, just have the same approach every game.''

Lipscomb (4-5) kept its deficit within single digits much of the first half until the Wildcats scored six straight points to close the half with a 43-29 lead.

But Kentucky (7-3) broke the game open in the second half by outscoring the Bisons 22-3 over a five-minute stretch. Wiltjer had six points in that stretch, and Harrow had four.

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