Kentucky takes down Mississippi State; picks up first SEC win

LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) — The Kentucky Wildcats defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 92–68 on Saturday night at Rupp Arena, earning their first SEC win of the season.

The game got off to a rough start for Kentucky when point guard Jaland Lowe left the game just three minutes in after re-injuring his shoulder. He did not return.

The on-court product also struggled early, as the Wildcats found themselves down by 11 points with just over 12 minutes remaining in the first half. After falling behind 26–15, Kentucky responded with a 14–2 run to take the lead and carried a 44–39 advantage into halftime.

In the second half, Kentucky was able to match every punch the Bulldogs threw. The Wildcats maintained a lead ranging from five to 12 points throughout most of the half before pulling away late.

The win marked Kentucky’s 21st victory in the last 22 meetings against Mississippi State, with the lone loss coming in the 2021 SEC Tournament.

Four Wildcats scored in double figures. Otega Oweh led all scorers with 22 points, followed by Malachi Moreno with 17, Denzel Aberdeen with 16, and Kam Williams with 14. Moreno also led the team with eight rebounds and six assists.

Kentucky recorded 11 steals in the game, led by Oweh with five and Moreno with four.

Josh Hubbard led Mississippi State in scoring with 20 points.

With the win, Kentucky improves to 10–6 overall and 1–2 in SEC play, while Mississippi State falls to 10–6 (1–2 SEC).

The Wildcats will hit the road next to take on the LSU Tigers Wednesday night in Baton Rouge. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. on the SEC Network.