Kentucky showed big resilience in the second half in win over Rick Pitino, St. John's

The Kentucky Wildcats faced another big test on Saturday, following up their win over Indiana in Rupp Arena a week earlier with a big matchup with Rick Pitino and St. John's in the CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta. So much was riding in this one, as not only was it Mark Pope vs. Rick Pitino, it was also the highly-anticipated debut of Jayden Quaintance. Thanks to a massive second half, much like last week against Indiana, the Wildcats pulled through for a huge win.

By watching, it was very clear once again this Kentucky team is a completely different one without their point guard Jaland Lowe on the floor. It all started with a scare when Lowe went out just seconds after checking in at the 16:11 mark of the first half, aggravating his shoulder. The offense looked rough when he was out, but the defense held St. John's to multiple scoring droughts in the first half. The offense really hurt Kentucky in the first half, committing 11 and allowing 16 points off. Kentucky took a 7-point deficit into the half, but then, it all changed when one player stepped back on the floor.

Kentucky was able to get Jaland Lowe back on the court with 17:07 left in the game, and immediately, the Wildcats go on a huge run, and their intensity on both ends were back. The Wildcats were down 43-38, until a Jayden Quaintance layup went on to spark a 14-0 run to give Kentucky their first lead since it was 12-10 in the game. The defense then held them to eight minutes without a field goal, and had terrific defense the entire second half, allowing just 1-8 from three and limiting the Johnnies points off turnovers. Kentucky fed off the energy that Lowe, and even Quaintance had in his minutes on the floor in his debut, gave them. Kentucky had a staggering 32 points from their bench in the second half, allowing none for St. John's.

It was a familiar site in Atlanta, as Kentucky struggled mightily on offense without Jaland Lowe, before he came back in during the second half and helped completely flip the game entirely. He and Quaitnance were came up big when the team needed it, Kentucky won their second game in a row where it was completely in the trenches. They shot just 4-16 from three, but yet, they found it in them to will themselves to win. Lowe finished with 13 points, Quaintance with 10 along with 8 rebounds in 17 minutes on the floor. Otega Oweh had a team-high 20 points. Kentucky scored 53 of their 78 points in the second half.

The Wildcats are now 8-4 on the season. Next up, Bellarmine on Tuesday night in Rupp Arena.