NASHVILLE, Tenn.-Tyler Herro scored 20 points and the fourth-ranked Kentucky Wildcats started their quest for a fifth straight Southeastern Conference Tournament title by beating Alabama 73-55 Friday night in the quarterfinals.
With a heavy contingent of Big Blue Nation on hand, the Wildcats (27-5) improved to 17-2 all-time at this tournament against Alabama, and they got a measure of revenge for opening SEC play with a 77-75 road loss to the Crimson Tide back on Jan. 5. Kentucky will play either No. 8 Tennessee or Mississippi State in the semifinals Saturday.
Alabama (18-15) needed to beat Kentucky again to burnish its resume for the NCAA Tournament after going 8-10 in conference play during the regular season. Beating Mississippi in the second round likely won't be enough for the Tide. Coach Avery Johnson is 6-0 against everybody not named Kentucky in this tournament but has yet to beat the Wildcats, who've ended the Tide's run each of his four seasons.
P.J. Washington, Kentucky's lone representative on the AP All-SEC team, finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds. He also had four blocks. Immanuel Quickley added 12 points.
Kentucky held Alabama to a season-low 30.4 percent shooting. Kira Lewis Jr. came in averaging a team-high 13.9 points a game and finished with three points. Tevin Mack scored 22 in helping Alabama upset Kentucky in January. This time, the junior missed all seven shots and was held scoreless.
That left opportunity for Alex Reese, a sophomore who came in averaging just 5.5 points a game, and he only played seven minutes for Alabama in the second round. Reese led Alabama with 15 points.
Alabama, trying to get back to the semifinals for a third straight year, led twice in the opening minutes with Herbert Jones' jumper putting the Tide up 6-4. Washington hit a 3, then Herro added a pair of free throws to start Kentucky on a 17-2 run that Richards capped with a dunk and a pair of free throws midway through the half.
The Tide got within 33-27 on a 3-pointer by Dazon Ingram with 2:24 left, but they couldn't get any closer as Kentucky scored the next six. The Wildcats led 39-29 at halftime.
Kentucky just kept padding the lead, struggling to push the margin past 15. Herro finally gave the Wildcats their biggest lead with a 3 with 48 seconds left for the final margin.
UP NEXT
Alabama: Likely NIT bound.
Kentucky: A sixth straight semifinal today.
Florida 76, No. 9 LSU 73
NASHVILLE, Tenn.-The Florida Gators finally figured out how to avoid overtime against LSU.
For that, they could soon be receiving a very nice reward.
Andrew Nembhard hit a 3-pointer with a second left, and Florida rallied from 13 down in the second half Friday to upset the ninth-ranked Tigers 76-73 in the Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinals.
The win likely took the Gators (19-14) off the bubble and secured them a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
And troubled LSU (26-6) now has a long weekend to wait and see how the loss will impact its seeding come Selection Sunday.
With the game tied at 73, freshman Keyontae Johnson had the ball when he saw LSU forward Naz Reid sliding into position to take a charge. Johnson passed to Nembhard, who was open at the top of the key for the winner.
"I just had confidence in him," Johnson said. "I'm glad he hit it."
After a chaotic week that included the banishment of their coach, the SEC regular-season champs tried to make one last play to salvage their opening game at the SEC Tournament. Will Reese threw the ball deep to Reid, but he couldn't catch it, and the buzzer sounded.
That prevented the third overtime this season between these teams, and sent the Tigers home, where they'll attempt to get ready for next week despite all the uncertainty surrounding the program.
Coach Will Wade remained suspended for Friday's game in the wake of a report that he'd been caught on a wiretap talking with a person convicted of funneling money to the families of basketball recruits.
Guard Javonte Smart was back in the lineup after missing one game as a result of the report. The school said he was reinstated after cooperating with a "joint inquiry" with the school and the NCAA.
Smart scored 13 points, but it wasn't enough. And LSU clearly could've used Wade, who remains out because he has not agreed to speak with school officials.
Interim head coach Tony Benford hurt the Tigers by picking up a technical that led to a six-point play for Florida for a 66-63 lead with 3:45 left. Benford also went to a 1-3-1 defense in the final seconds that gave the Gators more room to operate for the winning shot.Trailing by 13, Florida clawed back into the game by hitting eight straight shots and 10 of 11. Jalen Hudson made a pair of free throws with 6:05 left to give Florida its first lead of the game at 58-57, setting up a frantic finish.
Reid, who finished with 26 points and 14 rebounds, hit two 3-pointers in the final minute to tie it at 70, and again at 73 with 13.2 seconds left. Then Johnson found Nembhard for the winning 3.
UP NEXT
Florida: Semifinal vs. Auburn today.
LSU: Hoping for a No. 2 seed in the NCAA bracket.
No. 22 Auburn 73, S. Carolina 64
NASHVILLE, Tenn.-Auburn's Jared Harper didn't attempt a single free throw in the first half. South Carolina couldn't keep him off the foul line the rest of the game.
Harper scored 19 of his 27 points after halftime as the 22nd-ranked Tigers pulled away down the stretch to beat South Carolina 73-64 in a Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinal Friday.
"In the postseason, I think these tournament games come down to guard play," said Harper, a 5-foot-11 junior. "I kind of put pressure on myself on being able to perform for my team. My team is going to go as I go. I'm a leader for this team, so if I want to win, I have to make game-winning plays and just lead my team."
The fifth-seeded TIgers (24-9) carry a six-game winning streak into today's semifinal against No. 8 seed Florida (19-14). The Gators eliminated the top seed in this tournament Friday with a 76-73 quarterfinal upset of No. 9 LSU.
Auburn went 13 of 34 from 3-point range Friday and broke the SEC record for 3-point baskets in a single season by increasing its total to 368. That surpasses the record that had been held by Arkansas, which made 361 during its drive to an NCAA Tournament runner-up finish in 1995.
"Auburn basketball probably doesn't have many records in the history of the SEC," Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said, "but we've got one now."
Bryce Brown had 19 points and Samir Doughty added 10 for Auburn. Chris Silva led South Carolina with 27 points and 11 rebounds, while Felipe Haase and Tre Campbell each added 12 points.
Harper was 12 of 14 from the line in the second half. He scored as many points from the foul line in the second half as South Carolina's team did for the entire game. Harper had six assists and six rebounds to go along with his 27 points.
UP NEXT
Auburn plays Florida in an SEC semifinal Saturday.
South Carolina waits to learn whether it gets an NIT invitation.