Kentucky didn’t have any trouble in their first exhibition game of the season as they beat Northwood 93-61 in front of 20,073 fans in Rupp Arena.
Archie Goodwin led 5 Wildcats in double figures with 22 points on 7-12 shooting, 1-2 from the free throw line, and 7-8 from the free throw line.
Nerlens Noel was much improved from the Blue/White game, scoring 17 points and 11 rebounds and blocking 4 shots.
Ryan Harrow had 15 points, Kyle Wiltjer 12, Alex Poythress 11, Willie Cauley-Stein 8 point and 9 rebounds, Julius Mays with 6, and Jon Hood finished with 2 points.
Postgame interviews are coming up and I will give observations later on about the game.
Northwood at Kentucky
Men’s Basketball Post-Game Notes
Rupp Arena, Lexington, Ky., November 1, 2012
Attendance: 20,073
FINAL SCORE: Kentucky 93, Northwood 61
Team Records and Series Notes
This was the first of Kentucky’s two exhibition games.
This was Kentucky’s first matchup against Northwood, the 2012 NAIA Division II runner-up.
Kentucky has won its last 19 exhibition games.
The Wildcats complete preseason play Mon. Nov. 5 at home against Transylvania. The game is at 8 p.m. and will be televised live on Fox Sports South.
Kentucky also played Transylvania last year, defeating the Pioneers 97-53 on Nov. 2, 2011.
UK opens the regular season Fri. Nov. 9 against Maryland in the Barclays Center Classic in Brooklyn, N.Y. The game is at 8:30 p.m. and will be televised by ESPN.
First-Half Facts
Kentucky started with the lineup of Ryan Harrow, Archie Goodwin, Alex Poythress, Kyle Wiltjer and Nerlens Noel.
Northwood scored on the first possession on a jumper by Ra’Shad James.
Kentucky went ahead for good, 12-11, on a tip-in by Willie Cauley-Stein at the 12:15 mark.
Leading 14-13, UK went on a 9-0 run for a 23-13 advantage and the Seahawks got no closer than seven points after that.
Kentucky led 40-25 at halftime when Julius Mays sank a three-pointer in the closing seconds. Goodwin led all scorers in the opening stanza with 14 points.
Second-Half Story
UK stretched the lead to 25 points at 65-40 before Northwood got a 7-0 run to make it 65-47.
The Seahawks got no closer as UK countered with a 12-1 spurt for a 77-48 advantage.
UK stretched the lead to as many as 35 points on two occasions before settling for the 32-point triumph.
Team Notes
Kentucky had a good shooting night in its first exhibition, canning 61.4 percent from the field, including 66.7 percent (6 of 9) on three-pointers.
All five starters tallied double-figure scoring.
Kentucky won the rebounding 42-30 and points in the paint, 48-22.
Individual Notes
Archie Goodwin paced the Wildcats with 22 points.
Nerlens Noel collected a double-double with 17 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Ryan Harrow (15), Kyle Wiltjer (12) and Alex Poythress (11) also landed in double figures.
