Patrick Patterson agonized for a month over the one blemish on No. 2 Kentucky's otherwise perfect season - a loss to South Carolina on a night when he had just five points, his worst outing by far."It was just pitiful on my part," he said. "No energy, no offensive presence, no defensive presence. I was extremely frustrated."
Determined not to repeat it in Thursday night's rematch with the Gamecocks, Patterson responded with a season-high 23 points - many of them in the clutch - and Kentucky coasted to an 82-61 victory.
The Wildcats (27-1, 12-1) need just one more victory or a Vanderbilt loss to clinch at least a share of their 44th Southeastern Conference championship. Vanderbilt beat Georgia 96-94 in overtime Thursday, delaying the Kentucky celebration for at least another game.
Like its last meeting with Kentucky a month ago, South Carolina (14-13, 5-8) proved a pesky opponent at times. However, Kentucky had too much offensive firepower, going on a late 13-0 run that turned what was then a 10-point lead into a blowout.
Defensively, Kentucky gave up 26 points to the SEC's leading scorer, Devan Downey, but little else.
"When you have Patrick playing the way he's playing, it takes the heat off everyone else," coach John Calipari said. "I'm so proud of him and what he's doing. We need him to be this."
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