Mathies, No. 17 Kentucky hold off S Miss 88-71

Published Nov. 19, 2011 5:22 p.m. ET

foxsports

A'dia Mathies scored 20 points to lead No. 17 Kentucky to an 88-71 victory over Southern Mississippi on Saturday.

Southern Miss (1-2) stayed close well into the second half, when the Wildcats (4-0) put the game out of reach with a 15-2 run.

Tanecka Carey had 22 points and 11 turnovers for the Lady Eagles.

The Wildcats were playing their third game in five days and came out fast, scoring the game's first 12 points before going cold. They shot 29.4 percent in the first half and failed to take advantage of 19 Southern Miss turnovers.

The Lady Eagles took a 20-19 lead on a Carey's three-point play 9:13 before the half and stayed in front for almost nine minutes. Maegan Conwright's 3-pointer put the Wildcats back in front and they took a 37-33 lead into the break.