ATHENS, Ga. - Kentucky center Sarah Elliott succeeded in pushing the right buttons that got Georgia freshman Tasha Humphrey inspired.
Humphrey scored a career-high 32 points, including No. 18 Georgia's last five points as the Lady Dogs overtook upset-minded Kentucky 68-64 Sunday in a Southeastern Conference game.
"I was discouraged by Tasha's play in the first half," said Georgia coach Andy Landers. "She was fading away. But she and Elliott went after each other for a few possessions and Tasha got challenged. What she couldn't do to get ready to play on her own, and what I couldn't affect as a coach after the game started, evidently Elliott was able to do."
"People know that when we are down I will be the go-to player," said Humphrey. "I have accepted that role, but I can't do it without my teammates. They did a great job. I can't pass the ball to myself."
Trying to beat Georgia (18-6, 7-3 SEC) for the second time this year, Kentucky (14-9, 3-5 SEC) led most of the second half and as late as 1:10 after Sara Potts' follow-up of a missed shot.
But Humphrey drew a foul on Georgia's next possession, hitting two free throws with 54.3 seconds left, putting the Lady Dogs ahead for good at 65-64.
"Humphrey is very good at drawing fouls, and the officials bought into it," complained Kentucky coach Mickie DeMoss. "Georgia went to her when they had to have a basket."
Not surprisingly, Landers had a different take on Humphrey's play.
"People are just getting rougher and rougher with Tasha," he said. Landers said he sent a tape to the conference office last week for officials to review.
After Humphrey's two free throws, Katie Frye of Georgia rebounded Samantha Mahoney's miss with 40 seconds to play, and Humphrey drove for a layup with 21.8 seconds left, putting Georgia up three.
Kentucky did not call a timeout, and Potts missed a 3-pointer with 11 seconds to go. Kentucky's Jennifer Humphrey missed a putback, and Georgia's Tasha Humphrey secured the rebound with 6.2 seconds, icing the game and drawing a foul. She hit the first free throw to account for the final margin.
Potts led Kentucky with 18 points. Mahoney added 11.
Georgia got 15 points from Sherill Baker.
The Lady Dogs shot poorly throughout the game, hitting 37 percent from the field and only 22 percent from the 3-point line. Kentucky also won the rebounding battle, 45-36.
"We didn't hit the jump shots, and we didn't hit the pull-ups," Landers said. "We didn't even hit layups. We missed a lot of easy shots."
Defense dominated the first half as neither team shot better than 36 percent from the field. Kentucky's 6-foot-6 freshman Sarah Elliott connected on a spin move with 6:39 to go in the half to give the Wildcats a 22-15 lead. But Georgia recaptured the lead when Alexis Kendrick's NBA-range 3-pointer beat the shot clock with 2:37 to go, lifting Georgia to a 26-24 lead. The teams traded baskets through the end of the half, when the Lady Dogs led 30-28.
Kentucky jumped ahead in the second half. Angela Phillips' first of three 3-pointers put the Wildcats ahead 42-34 with 14:53 to play. Then after Georgia tied the game at 50-50 with 8:10 to go, Phillips' third trey put Kentucky up 58-52 with 4:44 to go.
Georgia's Frye and Megan Darrah hit treys, answered each time by 2-point baskets by Kentucky. Tasha Humphrey's 3-point play was punctuated by Baker's slash to the basket that gave Georgia a 63-62 lead with 1:39 to play, setting up the comeback.
Potts moved into ninth on the Kentucky career scoring list, passing Kristi Cushenberry at 1,358. Potts now has 1,362 points.
Kendrick moved to No. 8 on the Georgia career assists list. She finished the game with 399, moving ahead of Coco Miller at 396.
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