Kentucky 72, Arkansas 57

3/1/2007 4:29 PM

By CHARLES ODUM
AP Sports Writer

DULUTH, Ga. (AP) -Jennifer Humphrey led a balanced attack with 21 points and Kentucky opened the second half with a 15-2 run to beat Arkansas 72-57 on Thursday in the first round of the SEC tournament.

Humphrey added 19 rebounds and eight assists, finishing two assists away from a triple-double.

Kentucky (18-12), hoping to improve its NCAA tournament chances with a strong showing in the Southeastern Conference tournament, will play Georgia Friday in a quarterfinal game. Georgia, the No. 2 seed, beat Kentucky 82-72 in overtime on Feb. 15 in Lexington, Ky.

Kentucky beat Arkansas 87-60 on Feb. 18 as Carly Ormerod set a career high with 23 points.

Ormerod scored only five points in the tournament rematch, but 6-foot-6 center Sarah Elliott had 17 points and Jenny Pfeiffer had 11 to join Humphrey in double figures.

Arkansas (18-13) closed the season with 10 straight losses. The Lady Razorbacks were 3-11 in SEC regular-season games.

Dominique Washington led Arkansas with 18 points. Lauren Ervin had 12 points and 11 rebounds. Brittney Vaughn added 11 points.

Humphrey, a 6-foot-3 senior forward who averages 8.7 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, had 12 points and 10 rebounds in the first half. She finished one rebound shy of matching her career high of 20 against Auburn on Jan. 21.

Pfeiffer sank two 3-pointers as the Wildcats overcame a slow start to lead 35-28 at halftime.

Kentucky's big lead of the half was 11 points at 35-24, following a 9-0 run.

Samantha Mahoney scored 6 points in the 15-2 run to open the second half, giving Kentucky a 50-30 lead. The Wildcats' big lead was 22 points.