Aaron Harrison scored a season-high 26 points and No. 1 Kentucky needed overtime to take down Ole Miss, 89-86, in the SEC opener.
Kentucky asserted itself as the most dangerous team in the nation during non- conference play, beating perennial powers Kansas, Texas, North Carolina and UCLA by a combined 97 points before edging in-state rival Louisville, 58-50, on Dec. 27.
But the Wildcats (14-0, 1-0 SEC) had a nine-day layoff since that win over the Cardinals and the rust showed as Ole Miss, which lost at home to Charleston Southern earlier this season, took the top-ranked Wildcats to the wire.
Aaron Harrison made five 3-pointers and 9-of-10 from the foul line while his brother Andrew posted 12 points and five assists. Willie Cauley-Stein provided his usual stellar defense, racking up four blocks and three steals on top of a game-high 12 rebounds.
Stefan Moody paced Ole Miss (9-5, 0-1) with 25 points, but missed most of overtime with a leg cramp. Jarvis Summers scored 23 points and Ladarius White added 15.
[SportsNetwork.com]
