The Chennedy Carter-Rhyne Howard duel was not to be. With Carter sidelined due to an ankle injury, the face-off between the No. 11 Kentucky Wildcats and the No. 12 Texas A&M Aggies (14-3) was the Rhyne Howard Show.
Howard notched a double-double as the 15-2 Wildcats downed the 14-3 Aggies, 76-54.
Howard finished with 24 points, highlighted by 16 in the second half, and a season-high 11 rebounds. She also added a team-high four assists. The performance marked the seventh-straight game in which she has tallied at least 20 points.
Thursday night’s effort also allowed her to claim the national leading-scorer crown.
Hoopin' and what not. #WeAreUK pic.twitter.com/RR7wC2V7QX
— Kentucky WBB (@KentuckyWBB) January 17, 2020
This superstar performance was complemented by some sharpshooting from the Howard’s Wildcat teammates. Kentucky drained 11 shots from deep, with Sabrina Haines hitting three of her five 3-point attempts on the way to 15 points.
In contrast, Texas A&M struggled to generate offense without its electric engine in Carter, the nation’s seventh-ranked scorer. Only three Aggies scored in the first half with the team shooting 25 percent from the field. Kayla Wells and Ciera Johnson attempted to establish a semblance of an offensive rhythm for A&M — each scored 18 points.
With the victory, Kentucky moves to 4-1 in conference play. Texas A&M is 3-2 in SEC action.
Next up
Kentucky travels to Baton Rouge on Sunday to take on LSU (2 p.m. ET, SEC Network). Texas A&M faces Florida in College Station on Sunday (4 p.m ET, SEC Network).