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NCAA Tournament Recap (New Mexico St-Kentucky)
Posted: Sat March 13, 1999 at 12:56 a.m EST NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) -- Heshimu Evans picked up right where he left off in the NCAA Tournament. The sparkplug in Kentucky's championship game win over Utah last year in San Antonio, Evans scored nine of his 15 points in a 21-0 second-half run as the third-seeded Wildcats stormed past New Mexico State, 82-60, in the first round of the South Region. The 6-6 senior was a vital role player off the bench in Kentucky's run to its seventh NCAA Tournament title in 1998, making two huge 3-pointers in the second half and shutting down Utah guard Andre Miller on the defensive end. "I thought Heshimu came out in the second half and really gave us a lot of energy on defense," said Wildcats guard Wayne Turner of Evans. "He ran the floor well and started finding his offense." This time around, he dominated a stretch of 2:11 midway through the second half as the Wildcats (26-8) improved to 18-1 in the NCAA Tournament since 1996, when they won their sixth title. Kentucky has reached the title game the last three years, losing to Arizona in overtime in 1997. The win put the Wildcats opposite sixth-seeded Kansas in the second round Sunday in a matchup of two of the more powerful college basketball programs of the decade. The teams met in the Great Eight Classic at Chicago on December 1, when Kentucky ripped the Jayhawks, 63-45. Kentucky has been a different team since the month of March started. The Wildcats laid waste to the Southeastern Conference tournament, defeating fellow NCAA Tournament participants Mississippi, Auburn and Arkansas in preparation for its title defense. The excitement of the victory was tempered when the team learned John Stewart, a high school senior from Lawrenceville, Indiana who was part of Kentucky's 1999 recruiting class, passed away tonight after collapsing during a game. "This puts perspective on coaching and playing sports," admitted Smith with a blank expression. "It makes you realize how valuable a life is. He is a great young man and has a great family. He was so looking forward to being a part of the Kentucky family. We felt a real emptiness when we went on the court. I talked to his parents and they know how much we think of John." "It puts a lot of things in perspective," Wildcats senior Scott Padgett added, "how really meaningless the game of basketball is when it comes to losing a friend or a family member." Charles Gosa scored 18 points and Eric Channing added 15 for New Mexico State (23-10), which was in the field of 64 for the first time since 1994. Lou Henson, who coached the Aggies to the Final Four in 1970, was unable to pull out a first-round upset this time around. "In the second half, we got beaten down," said Henson. "We don't have a lot of depth and experience, and that hurt us. You need more than we have to go against Kentucky." New Mexico State played the Wildcats on even terms the first 20 minutes, scoring the final four points of the half to forge a 34-34 deadlock. A 3-pointer by Brad Bestor gave the Aggies a 37-36 lead with 18:43 to play before Kentucky went on one of its patented runs. Turner got things going with a lay-in before Padgett and Channing traded 3-pointers. Then, Ryan Hogan and Channing exchanged long-range bombs before a 3-pointer by Padgett triggered a 21-0 tear. Evans hit two free throws before Jamaal Magloire had a blocked shot and layup to give Kentucky a 51-43 lead with 13:40 to go. Desmond Allison drained a 3-pointer and Magloire had a lay-in before Evans had a steal and layup and a 3-pointer of his own to extend the advantage to 61-43. He had another steal that led to a lay-in by Turner, and capped the run with a layup that gave Kentucky a 65-43 lead with 8:52 left. "We just pushed the ball up the court every time we could," said Turner. "When our bench comes in and gives us good minutes like they did tonight, it really gives us a left." The Wildcats shot a blistering 61.2 percent (30-of-49) from the field and 8-of-14 from 3-point range. Padgett had 11 points and Hogan 10 off the bench as the reserves outscored New Mexico State's bench, 29-0. New Mexico State shot 39 percent (23-of-59) from the field and only 9-of-30 from beyond the arc. The Aggies were outrebounded 33-26 and attempted only eight free throws.© 2000 Sportsticker Enterprises, LP
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