Lexington, Kentucky - The Wildcats toughened up late in the game to outlast the Bobcats for three wins in a row on Friday night.

The Wildcats beat the Bobcats 77-59 to stretch their winning streak to three games, as the Bobcats had their own three-game trend broken.

The game was surprisingly tough for the 13th-ranked Wildcats, who were behind for nearly 13 minutes in the first half.

With only a handful of minutes to go before halftime, both squads exchanged the lead several times before Kentucky sneaked into the break only up by two.

The game stayed close in the second half until the Wildcats finally began to pull away with 10 minutes to go.

Ohio found themselves desperately trying to keep up as time continued to tick away, but Kentucky made all the in-game adjustments to stay ahead.

The key to the Wildcats’ success was their ability to control the game on the boards as Kentucky dominated Ohio 53-17 in rebounds.

Kentucky’s junior forward Keion Brooks Jr. (21) stepped up to lead his team’s runaway victory on Friday night.

Brooks is the Wildcats’ third-leading scorer this season with 13.5 points per game.

Against Ohio, he was instrumental in Kentucky’s second-half turnaround by scoring eight of his team’s first 10 points coming out of halftime.

Brooks finished the game nine-for-18 shooting, with 22 points and eight rebounds.

After losing to another college basketball powerhouse in Duke to open the season, Kentucky bounced back well to win these past three games.

Up next are unranked teams that they’re definitely expected to beat before their next big matchup against Ohio State, currently ranked 19th in the nation, in mid-December.

Look for them to be one of the contenders for the national championship when tournament time rolls around in March.

On Monday night, the Wildcats host the Albany Great Danes, while the Bobcats welcome the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers.