Jennings leads No. 18 Kentucky women past Vanderbilt 71-55

Feb 14, 2016, 06:37 pm

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Alexis Jennings scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead No. 18 Kentucky to a 71-55 win over Vanderbilt on Sunday.

Janee Thompson added 15 points and Evelyn Akhator 10 for the Wildcats (17-6, 6-6 SEC), who led 14-12 after one quarter and used a 12-2 run to close the second quarter to take a 28-19 halftime lead. Thompson hit two 3-pointers in the run.

Vanderbilt got within seven in the third quarter before Kentucky pushed the lead back to 14 and was within eight with 3:02 to play before the Wildcats put the game away. Kentucky shot 55 percent (16 of 29) in the second half and made 6 of 8 free throws to close it out.

Christa Reed had 17 points for the Commodores (15-10, 4-8), who had 24 turnovers that the Wildcats, who had 10 giveaways, turned into 24 points. Vanderbilt, which has lost five straight, was outscored 40-24 inside.