The timing could not have been much better for Kentucky to roll into Nashville on Tuesday.

Coming off back-to-back home losses last week which had the Wildcats searching for answers and their passionate fans reaching for the panic button, No. 17 Kentucky bounced back with a much-needed 109-77 romp over Vanderbilt at Memorial Gym.

Kentucky (16-6, 6-4, SEC) placed six players in double-figure scoring, led by senior guard Antonio Reeves with 24 points and freshman guard Rob Dillingham with 20 points to go along with nine assists. The duo combined to knock down 10 of 14 shots from beyond the 3-point arc on a night when the Cats hit 15 of 26.

UK finished with 22 assists on 41 buckets despite playing without starting point guard DJ Wagner and starting center/forward Tre Mitchel due to injuries.

"We shared the ball," Kentucky head coach John Calipari said. "We got a couple of guys playing the way they have to play for us and them to be successful -- when you drive, try to get somebody a shot, and then when they're playing, they drive and try to get you a shot instead of 'I'm going to create my own shot.' Robert can do that. But we don't have like five Roberts."

Freshman forward Justin Edwards had his best performance of the season with 17 points, his first double-figure outing since scoring 13 on Dec. 21 against Louisville. The Cats also got a career-high 13 points from freshman swingman Jordan Burks, 12 from freshman center Aaron Bradshaw, and 11 from freshman center Zvonimir Ivisic as the bench combined to give UK 56 of the 109 points.

"I was really proud of both of them," Calipari said of Edwards and Burks. "Jordan, especially, because he really hasn't had a chance.

"Z was really good," Calipari added in regard to Ivisic, who also had seven rebounds and two assists. "If that's who he is, we could have a real difference-maker."

Kentucky shot 55% from the field, 58% from 3-point range, and 100% (12 of 12) at the free-throw line. Even more pleasing to their coaches, the Cats held Vandy to 36% from the field and crushed the Commodores on the glass 50-28.

"We needed this after those two devastating losses," Bradshaw said. "We had to come out here and play our game... We looked soft (against Florida and Tennessee). I'm gonna say it. We looked a little soft, so we had to tighten that up as a team."

Vanderbilt (6-16, 1-8 SEC) was coming off a solid win over Missouri but could not duplicate that effort against UK. Evan Taylor led the Dores with 20 points, hitting five of his team's 11 3-pointers.

After failing to lead for a single second in their loss to Tennessee on Saturday, Kentucky never trailed against Vanderbilt, holding the lead for all but the opening 19 seconds.

"If we become, let's just say 8-10% better defensively, and we start playing a little more physical and diving on the floor, now, the way we score, it's a different deal," Calipari said. "Look, I've said it. I'm not trading this team for any team. I believe in them. I told them that."

*****

In this "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK victory...

KEY MOMENT:

Midway through the first half, Kentucky used a 15-4 run to turn a 10-point game into a blowout. The spurt featured a pair of 3-pointers by Antonio Reeves and one by Reed Sheppard, as well as buckets from three other players to underscore the balanced team effort on a high-scoring night.

GAME BALL:

Rob Dillingham, Kentucky -- The freshman guard backed up his 35-point game against Tennessee with another great individual effort against Vandy. He scored 20 points on an efficient 7-of-12 night from the field, and sank four of his five shots from beyond the arc. He also had a team-high nine assists and only one turnover.

BY THE NUMBERS:

1st - Time in Kentucky program history that the Cats have won three straight games at Vanderbilt by 12 or more points.

4th - 100-point scoring night of the season for the Wildcats.

12th - Game of the season with 20-plus points for UK's Antonio Reeves.

12 of 12 - Most free throws made by UK without a miss in a road game since since Jan. 28th, 1989, at Ole Miss (13)

26-14 - Kentucky's advantage in second-chance points.

156-49 - The Wildcats' lead in the all-time series with the Commodores, including a 63-29 mark in Nashville. Calipari moved to 26-6 versus Vanderbilt after losing the previous two matchups.

QUOTABLE:

"I just told them (after the game) I'm going to play everybody in the first half, and then there will be seven or eight play in the second half who are doing it. That will probably be going forward." -- UK head coach John Calipari on his rotation plan moving forward with so many players performing well on Tuesday.

UP NEXT:

Kentucky returns to action on Saturday in a made-for-TV mid-season matchup with Gonzaga at Rupp Arena. It's the second game of a five-year series with Mark Few's Bulldogs, who are 16-6 with a matchup looming against Portland on Wednesday night before heading to Lexington. UK and Gonzaga will tip off at 4 p.m. ET on CBS.