LEXINGTON, Ky. — In the midst of Kentucky’s deep and dark December, John Calipari advised fans not to expect blowout victories.
Tuesday night proved that even Vanderbilt’s deeper and darker recent and more sweeping history would not be an exception.
Vandy had lost 34 of its 37 most recent Southeastern Conference games. That was a winning percentage of 8.1.
Vanderbilt had an even worse winning percentage (5%) against Kentucky in Rupp Arena: 2-40. The Commodores lost their first 28 games against UK in the arena before breaking through with back-to-back victories in 2006 and 2007.
Then came Tuesday night.
Davion Mintz’s corner 3 with 47.9 seconds left gave Kentucky a 77-74 victory.
It wasn’t secured until Ken Pomeroy’s rating of UK as the unluckiest team in Division I came to mind. Vanderbilt got two 3-point chances to tie it. But Trey Thomas missed from the right corner. Then Maxwell Evans shot a 3 that bounced twice off the rim before falling to the fall.
Kentucky, which came into the game ranked 287th in free-throw accuracy, made 26 of 32. The Cats made 12 straight free throws down the stretch in improving to 3-6 overall and 2-0 in the SEC.
Vanderbilt fell to 4-4 overall and 0-2 in the SEC.
Olivier Sarr, who made 14 of 17 free throws, loomed large. He scored a season-high 24 points before fouling out with 1:03 remaining.
Dontaie Allen added 14, while Devon Askew and Mintz each scored 11.
Kentucky trailed 40-33 at halftime. This should have been familiar for the Big Blue Nation, if not a UK roster full of newcomers. In its eight-game winning streak against Vandy, Kentucky had to rally from double-digit deficits five times.
Kentucky never led in the final 9:29 of the half, and led by no more than six points in the first 11 minutes.
Allen got the additional playing time Calipari hinted at. He entered the game at the 17:00 mark to cheers.
Although coming off a 23-point night at Mississippi State that included seven 3-pointers, Allen was relatively quiet in the first half. His first shot came more than four minutes after entering the game. He missed his three 3-point shots in a four-point half.
Brandon Boston, the team’s leading scorer, also scored four points. His two baskets (in seven shots) came inside the final two minutes. His steal of a Scotty Pippen Jr. pass and fast-break layup with 17.7 seconds left set the halftime score.
Kentucky’s poor shooting returned. The Cats made only 11 of 29 shots (1 of 7 on 3s).
But on the plus side, Kentucky did not commit a turnover. UK came into the game averaging 16.1 turnovers.
Vandy made 8 of 17 3-point shots. Jordan Wright’s corner 3— one of three corner 3s the Commodores had in the half — gave Kentucky’s its largest first-half deficit (40-31) with 1:10 left.
The beginning of the second half was a carbon copy of the first. Askew picked up a foul, which brought Allen into the game.
This time Allen shot and hit a 3 within the first minute.
A flagrant foul on Lance Ware contributed to a five-point trip down court that put Vandy ahead 45-40.
Jacob Toppin’s put-back of a missed free throw put Kentucky ahead 50-49 with 13:24 left. It was Kentucky’s first lead since the 9:29 mark of the first half, which was a footnote in another possession-by-possession test of nerves.
