Moreno's double-double powers No. 9 Kentucky to 107-59 rout of Valparaiso

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Malachi Moreno scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds to lead No. 9 Kentucky to a 107-59 win over Valparaiso on Friday night.

The freshman forward led six Wildcats in double figures as Otega Oweh had 15 and Mouhamed Dioubate and Collin Chandler had 14 points each.

The Wildcats (2-0) hit the century mark for the first time this season after scoring 100 or more points six times last year, including the first two games of the Mark Pope era.

Brandon Garrison and Denzel Aberdeen scored 12 points each for Kentucky.

Rakim Chaney led the Beacons (1-1) with 15 points.

The Wildcats dominated inside and scored 48 points in the post, while outrebounding the Beacons 50-34.

Kentucky shot 54% from the field, including 65% in the first half, when it made 22 of 34 shots from the field, including seven 3-pointers on 13 attempts. Kentucky made 11 3-pointers overall.

Kentucky point guard and Pittsburgh transfer Jaland Lowe made his debut and scored six points in 18 minutes off the bench. Lowe missed the season opener and exhibition games against No. 1 Purdue and Georgetown while nursing an injured shoulder.

The Wildcats were without sophomore forward Trent Noah, who was held out as a precaution after tweaking his ankle in a 77-51 win over Nicholls on Monday night.

Up next

Valparaiso hosts Nicholls on Wednesday night.

Kentucky is at No. 11 Louisville on Tuesday night.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball