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Knight, Kentucky edge Vanderbilt

Mar 2, 2011 - 6:00 AM Lexington, KY (Sports Network) - Brandon Knight finished with 17 points and six rebounds as No. 20 Kentucky edged No. 21 Vanderbilt, 68-66 at Rupp Arena.

Terrence Jones posted 15 points and nine boards for the Wildcats (21-8, 9-6 SEC), who have won four of five.

"We needed the win. We really fought and you could tell everybody needed this win," Jones said.

Festus Ezeli struck for game-highs of 22 points and 13 rebounds but it wasn't enough for the Commodores (21-8, 9-6), who have lost two of three. John Jenkins added 16 in a losing cause.

Jones hit two from the line with 18 seconds left to make it 66-63 for Kentucky, then a driving layup from Lance Goulbourne cut the deficit to 66-65 with less than nine ticks on the clock.

Knight answered with two free throws of his own with 8.2 seconds left for a 68-65 game in favor of the Wildcats, and though Brad Tinsley went to the line with 6.7 remaining, he only made the first of two shots for a two-point game.

A last ditch attempt from the Commodores never reached the net, deflecting off hands in the lane then out of bounds as time expired.

"We're very disappointed to have lost. We've turned into a pretty tough, battle-tested road team. I really, really liked how we competed and how we fought," Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings said.

Kentucky used a 20-8 run late in the first half to turn a three-point edge into a 36-21 edge with 3:48 left before the break. The Wildcats eventually led 40-29 at intermission.

Knight's layup gave the home team a 55-42 lead with 12:49 to go, but Vandy responded with an 18-4 clip to go up 60-59 on a Goulbourne layup with 4:25 remaining in regulation.

Darius Miller and Jeffery Taylor exchanged buckets to keep Vanderbilt up 62-61, then Knight connected on two free throws to give Kentucky a one-point edge.

Game Notes

Kentucky avenged an 81-77 loss in Nashville on February 12, and leads the all- time series 134-44...Vandy turned in a slight 36-34 edge on the glass but committed 12 turnovers to nine for the Wildcats.