LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Isaiah Briscoe scored 18 points, Jamal Murray added 16 and No. 1 Kentucky overcame a sluggish first half to pull away from Illinois State 75-63 on Monday night.
Outhustled on both ends by the athletic Redbirds through 20 minutes while adjusting to playing without injured starting point guard Tyler Ulis (elbow), the Wildcats (7-0) emerged from halftime more physical and used that energy to gain some breathing room.
Outrebounded 20-12 in the first half, Kentucky beat Illinois State (3-5) 27-17 on the boards and held the Redbirds to 29 percent shooting in the second half.
Marcus Lee added 13 points and 12 rebounds for his second double-double in five games while Alex Poythress had 11 points for Kentucky, which shot 43 percent.
DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell scored 22 points for the Redbirds.
Women:
No. 1 UConn 79,
Chattanooga 31
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. -- Moriah Jefferson scored 15 points and didn't miss a shot Monday night as No. 1 Connecticut breezed past Chattanooga 79-31 for its 41st consecutive victory.
The Huskies' winning streak is the third-longest in school history. The three-time defending national champions have beaten each of their first four opponents by at least 40 points and haven't lost since falling 88-86 at Stanford on Nov. 17, 2014.
Jefferson made all five of her shots and four free throws. Breanna Stewart and Gabby Williams each added 14 points for the Huskies (4-0).
Jasmine Joyner and Keiana Gilbert each scored eight for Chattanooga, which ended a 17-game home winning streak.
The Huskies scheduled the home-and-home series with Chattanooga due to the long friendship between Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma and Chattanooga coach Jim Foster, both Hall of Famers. Chattanooga visits Connecticut next season.
Sports on 12/01/2015