NASHVILLE – The Kentucky Wildcats are on a revenge tour at the Southeastern Conference women’s basketball tournament.
Now they have a chance to add top-ranked, top-seeded South Carolina to the list.
Senior star Rhyne Howard scored 24 points, grabbed nine rebounds and handed out seven assists, and Kentucky never trailed Saturday night while beating 18th-ranked, third-seeded Tennessee 83-74 in the SEC semifinals at Bridgestone Arena, a day after upsetting sixth-ranked, second-seeded LSU in the quarterfinals.
The seventh-seeded Wildcats (18-11) reached the tournament title game for the first time since 2014 and the sixth time in program history. They did it by beating the Lady Volunteers (23-8) in the semifinals for the first time in three tries, and now Kentucky will play South Carolina at 2 p.m. Eastern on Sunday with a shot at the championship.
“We all know what this means,” senior guard Robyn Benton said. “We know what we’re playing for. We’re playing to win.”