Kentucky book-ended a turbulent regular season with its two most-dominant performances of the season.

The Wildcats, who opened their campaign with a 36-point win over Morehead State on Nov. 25, closed out the schedule with a 92-64 blowout of South Carolina on Saturday at Rupp Arena.

Those marked the only 20-plus victories of the season for what has been a struggling UK squad.

Grad transfer guard Davion Mintz and freshman wing BJ Boston combined to knock down a dozen 3-pointers in the blowout on a day when Kentucky went 13-of-27 from the arc. Boston scored a team-high 21 points and Mintz added 20.

Olivier Sarr followed with 15 points, and Isaiah Jackson added a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds to round out a much-needed feel-good win for the Cats, one that may send them into the SEC Tournament with some renewed confidence.

"It's a good send-off for us," UK coach John Calipari said.

"It means everything right before we leave for a trip like this," Mintz said. "... Just going in with good momentum, that's important to us."

Kentucky (9-15, 8-9 SEC) will enter the SEC Tourney as the No. 8 seed against No. 9 seed Mississippi State on Thursday at Noon ET. The winner will play regular-season league champ Alabama on Friday at Noon ET.

The Cats shot 49.3% from the field and dished out 17 assists. They finished with 17 turnovers, but many of those came down the stretch as Calipari emptied his bench and gave significant playing time to reserves and walk-ons.

"I thought guys played better," Calipari said. "I'm liking that we played better against zone."

South Carolina (6-14, 4-12 SEC) which has been hit hard by Covid-19 testing this season, kept it close at the half (36-28) despite playing without starting guard Jermaine Couisnard. It spiraled out of control early in the second half, however, as UK's Mintz reeled off five 3-pointers to make it 55-36 at the 14:51 mark.

"I heard Cal saying 'Easy,' but I was like, 'No, I gotta take this,'" a grinning Mintz said of the heat check on the fifth trey.

“Obviously, the second half was embarrassing," South Carolina coach Frank Martin said. "The resolve, the lack of fight was disappointing. The bottom line is our guards combined to shoot three for 31 from the field. When we were not able to score, we lost our fight defensively. If you don’t have fight when you play teams in the SEC, they will score. They will jump up and make a whole bunch of threes. It’s not what they do but it’s what they did today, and that created the separation in the game.”

The Gamecocks, who shot 38.2% from the field, were led by Keyshawn Bryant with 16 points and Jalyn McCreary with 14.

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RAPID RECAP:

Kentucky held South Carolina to just four points over the final eight minutes of the first half to take a 36-28 lead into the locker room. BJ Boston had 12 of his team-high 21 points in the opening period. The Wildcats' Davion Mintz found the hot hand early in the second half, knocking down five 3-pointers in the first 5:09 to put UK up 55-36. The Gamecocks never recovered. Kentucky led by as many as 33 points down the stretch.

GAME BALL:

Davion Mintz, Kentucky -- Big Blue Nation may be clamoring even more for the grad transfer guard to return for his additional year of NCAA eligibility after his impressive performance today. In addition to a 20-point effort, he also had five rebounds, seven assists, and only two turnovers in leading UK with a +33 mark. His stretch of five 3-pointers in about five minutes was reminiscent of Tayshaun Prince's classic flurry of treys against North Carolina in 2001.

KEY STAT:

The Cats shot 48.1% from the 3-point line, making 13 of 27 attempts. The Gamecocks were just 2-for-17, giving Kentucky a +33 advantage from the arc. Davion Mintz and BJ Boston knocked down six apiece, marking the first time UK teammates had accomplished that since Jamal Mashburn and Travis Ford against Indiana in 1993.

QUOTABLE:

"It's never too late. I got faith... We'll see next week." -- UK guard Davion Mintz on the Cats' postseason hopes.

UP NEXT:

Kentucky heads to Nashville for the SEC Tournament. The Cats will play on Thursday at Noon ET as the No. 8 seed against No. 9 seed Mississippi State. If the Cats win their first game in Nashville, they will play SEC regular-season champion Alabama on Friday at Noon.