In addition to his hot shooting, Miller was active on the boards and just missed out on a double-double with nine rebounds and added three blocks. Miller scored six of Kentucky’s first 11 points en route to a 16-point outing in the first half that set the tone for the remainder of the game.
“After I hit a couple I was feeling it little bit, so I was just letting it go,” he said. “When you’re playing like that, you get into the zone and knock down shots. It always feels good to play well.”
South Carolina struggled against Miller in the first meeting between the two teams in the Cats’ 67-58 victory over the Gamecocks on Jan. 22. Like the previous contest between the two teams, Miller, who scored 18 points at Columbia, took advantage of the opportunity, even when the Gamecocks started paying more attention to Miller late in the first half.
“They were leaving him open and sometimes he was hitting shots with a guy in his face,” Kentucky guard Brandon Knight said.
Kentucky coach John Calipari admitted that Miller “was good,” but didn’t like a two-minute stretch that resembled past outings by Miller. Miller said the bad habits returned briefly when “something happened” on the defensive end at one point in the second half.
“I wanted to choke him, because he had played so well, so aggressive (and) so strong,” the Kentucky coach said. “Why would you go for two minutes and revert?”
Calipari talked to Miller about the two-minute reversion following the contest, a coach-player exchange that didn’t surprise Miller.
“I kind of expect that from him,” Miller said with a smile. “It’s nothing different.”
As a team, Miller said the Cats played “pretty well” on both ends of the court.
“We all got looks that we wanted, especially against the zone,” he said. “We handled their press pretty well and we did a great job defensively, especially at the beginning of the game.”
Miller said the team’s defense was a “big part” of the reason the Cats jumped on the Gamecocks in the early stages of the contest.
“We did a great job of making it tough, making it difficult on them and not letting them feel comfortable,” he said. “We did a great job of that.”
Knight said Miller’s touch helped set the tone for the decisive blowout.
“It makes us a lot better,” he said. “When you have a consistent outside shooter, it lifts the team up.”
And it was Miller who lifted the Cats to a regular-season sweep of the Gamecocks.
Next game: Wednesday, 8 p.m., at Arkansas.
SOUTH CAROLINA (13-12) — Cooke 5-10 2-2 12, Harris 3-6 0-0 6, Muldrow 2-6 1-2 6, Richardson 2-6 0-0 6, Ellington 1-11 4-6 7, Smith 3-6 1-1 8, Galloway 4-15 1-3 10, Slawson 2-4 0-0 4. Totals 22-64 9-14 59.
KENTUCKY (19-7) — Jones 6-13 6-7 19, Harrellson 3-6 0-0 6, Miller 6-10 4-4 22, Knight 4-9 4-8 12, Lamb 5-11 5-6 18, Poole Jr. 0-0 0-0 0, Hood 0-1 0-0 0, Polson 0-0 0-0 0, Vargas 0-0 2-2 2, Liggins 5-8 0-0 11. Totals 29-58 21-27 90.
Halftime—Kentucky 50-21. 3-Point Goals—South Carolina 6-23 (Richardson 2-5, Muldrow 1-2, Smith 1-2, Galloway 1-3, Ellington 1-9, Slawson 0-1, Cooke 0-1), Kentucky 11-20 (Miller 6-8, Lamb 3-5, Liggins 1-2, Jones 1-2, Knight 0-3). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—South Carolina 34 (Cooke 8), Kentucky 42 (Jones 12). Assists—South Carolina 10 (Ellington 5), Kentucky 15 (Knight 9). Total Fouls—South Carolina 20, Kentucky 13. A—24,338.
