LEXINGTON, Ky. - An ice-cold first half on the offensive end for the Nicholls State University men's basketball team proved too much to overcome as the Colonels fell, 77-51, at No. 9 Kentucky on Tuesday night inside Rupp Arena.

Nicholls made 3 of 25 from the field before halftime but trailed just 28-15 at the intermission. Although the Colonels (0-1) found their offense in the second half with 36 points, Kentucky (1-0) doubled its field-goal percentage with a 61-percent clip in the final 20 minutes to cruise to the victory.

Jalin Rice led the Colonels in scoring, netting all 13 of his points in the second half on 5 of 5 from the field including two shots behind the arc. Trae English added eight points and four assists, and Sincere Malone also finished with eight points.

Nicholls shot 30 percent for the game which included 4 of 24 from three-point range. Jaylen Searles scored the first points on a putback three minutes in but the Colonels would not make another field goal until the 6:29 mark on a Zee Hamoda three-ball. However, the defense kept them in the game as UK shot 32 percent and 2 of 16 from long range.

But in the second half, the Wildcats quickly pushed the deficit to 22 after Otega Oweh canned a three-pointer with 16:33 remaining. UK then saw its largest lead at 72-40 with five minutes to go. 

Oweh totaled 13 points for Kentucky while Collin Chandler finished with a game-high 15.

The Colonels were plus-two in turnovers but the Wildcats dominated in rebounding with a 51-30 advantage. Grant Sanders had a team-high six off the bench for Nicholls and added four points on a pair of dunks.

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Nicholls will continue its seven-game road swing to start the season at Eastern Illinois on Friday, Nov. 7. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.