Kentucky fends off Liberty in Round of 64 behind Georgia Amoore's record-tying performance

According to the SEC Network, Amoore's 34 points are tied for the most in an NCAA Tournament game in program history. A'dia Mathies, who played at Kentucky from 2009-13, was in sole possession of the record since 2013.

Friday's performance comes after Amoore scored a career-high 43 points against No. 13 Oklahoma on Feb. 2. This tied Kentucky's single-game scoring record, previously accomplished by Jennifer O'Neill (2013) and Rhyne Howard (2020).

Amoore also hit her 400th career 3-pointer in Friday's game, adding another record to a phenomenal season. Amoore hit 12 of her 24 shot attempts and went 6-of-10 from deep, including a ridiculous 5-of-6 start from long-range. 

She had 23 of Kentucky's 44 first-half points as the Wildcats took a 10-point lead into the break. Although Kentucky led by as many as 17 early in the fourth quarter, Liberty stormed back in the final frame, going on an 11-0 run to cut the Kentucky lead to 72-68 with 2:26 remaining. 

The Flames hit a three with two seconds remaining to pressure the Wildcats in the dying seconds. Fortunately for Kentucky, it was able to dribble out the clock and advance to the second round, where it awaits the winner of the Kansas State-Fairfield 5-12 matchup on Sunday.

With two of its players, junior Teonni Key and sophomore Clara Strack, fouling out of the game and a 41-32 disadvantage on the glass, Friday's opening-round match got much closer than Kentucky would have liked.

Thankfully for the Wildcats, Amoore, named a second-team All-American earlier this week, was too much for Liberty to overcome. As the competition picks up, though, Kentucky will need a complete performance from the rest of its lineup if it takes full advantage of Amoore's heroics as the opponents get tougher.