< Previous48 @KentuckyMBB 2020-21 Southeastern Conference First-Year Academ- ic Honor Roll member ... Appeared in 24 of 25 games with two starts … Originally slated to redshirt in 2020-21, became a key play- er off the bench for the Wildcats, impacting the game in key spurts in the scoring column and on the boards … Averaged 5.1 points and 3.7 rebounds on the season … Four games in double-figure scoring … Made a greater impact as the season progressed, averaging 7.7 points and 4.4 rebounds in 23.0 minutes over the final seven regular-season games … Came up with a career-high three steals in addition to five boards at Ole Miss … Scored 11 points in 21 minutes in the home loss to Florida … Recorded a career-high 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting in 23 minutes at Vander- bilt … Totaled five points and a season-high seven rebounds in the home victory vs. Au- burn … Solid game vs. Arkansas with nine points and six rebounds … Provided a spark in the loss at Auburn with 10 points and six rebounds … Six rebounds to go along with five points in the home loss to Alabama … Posted six points and six boards in the home win vs. Vanderbilt … Went for 10 points and six rebounds in the narrow loss at rival Louis- ville … Posted six points and three rebounds vs. No. 7/5 Kansas. 2019-20 (at Rhode Island) Freshman: Appeared in all 30 games, mak- ing three starts ... Immediate contributor for a Rhode Island team that went 21-9 on the season and finished 13-5 in the Atlantic 10 ... Averaged 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game ... Scored in double figures five times ... Showed an ability to stretch the floor with 13 3-pointers. HIGH SCHOOL Averaged 15.6 points and 8.8 rebounds per game for Woodstock Academy his senior sea- son ... Unranked prospect who received his first offer six months before signing a national letter of intent ... Was an All-Section honoree ... Also played football and volleyball ... Hon- or-roll student. PERSONAL Born May 8 in Brooklyn, New York … Par- ents are Roni and Obadiah Toppin … Has a brother, Obi, who was the consensus Na- tional Player of the Year in 2020 for Dayton and plays for the New York Knicks ... Major is communication ... Chose Kentucky over Ore- gon and Iowa State. JACOB TOPPIN 6-9 n 200 n Jr. n Brooklyn, N.Y. #0 n F Follow JACOB on Social Media n @jtoppin0 on Twitter n @jtoppin_0 on Instagram n @jtopppin_21 on TikTok n @jtopppin_21 on SnapChat n jtoppin9 on Twitch Click Here for More Information on JacobTRANSFORM KENTUCKY’S APPROACH TO ADDICTION & CORRECTIONS IT’S TIME FOR CHANGE! JOIN US TO AN INITIATIVE POWERED BY JOIN US TODAY AT KENTUCKYCOMEBACK.COM50 @KentuckyMBB 2020-21 Transferred to Kentucky midseason … Ineligi- ble to play the rest of the season due to NCAA transfer rules but practiced with the team be- ginning in February … Appeared in 10 games at West Virginia and averaged 8.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game … Recorded a pair of double-doubles … Registered 12 points and 15 boards against Northeastern in his final game at West Virginia … Recorded 14 points and nine rebounds vs. top-ranked Gonzaga. 2019-20 (at West Virginia) Averaged 11.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game in 31 starts as a freshman … Named to the All-Big 12 Conference Second Team … Unanimous Big 12 All-Freshman Team selection and also made the Big 12 All-New- comer Team … Selected to the NABC Dis- trict 8 First Team and the USBWA District II Team … Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team … Also earned Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll and the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll team honors … Led the Mountaineers in scoring and rebounding … Team-high 19 games in double-digit scoring and team-best 10 double-doubles … First in the Big 12 in offensive rebounds per game with 4.1 and second in overall rebounding … Registered 13 double-figure efforts on the boards … Led the nation in offensive rebounding percent- age at 19.0% … Earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week three times … Had a double-dou- ble with 16 points and 12 rebounds in a win over No. 4 Baylor to end the regular season. HIGH SCHOOL A McDonald’s All American … Posted a dou- ble-double in that game with 12 points and 10 rebounds in 18 minutes … Also named to the Nike Hoop Summit World Team … Ranked a five-star recruit and a top-25 senior … Led Kennedy Catholic High School to a 27-3 record and a 6A state title as a senior … Averaged 23.2 points per game his senior sea- son … Tallied 1,480 career points … Named the Gatorade Pennsylvania Boys Basketball Player of the Year … USA Today Pennsylvania All-State First Team selection. PERSONAL Born Nov. 27 in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo … Parents are Mbuyi and Kaya Rosalie Tshiebwe … Has five sib- lings with three brothers, Bevi, Denphin and Debaba, and two sisters, Cenina and Maggie … Major is communication ... Chose Ken- tucky over North Carolina State, Miami and Illinois … Nickname is “Big O” … Has a 7-foot-5 wingspan … Chose Kentucky over NC State, Miami (Fla.) and Illinois and origi- nally considered UK out of high school. 6-9 n 255 n Jr. n Lubumbashi, Congo #34 n F OSCAR TSHIEBWE Follow OSCAR on Social Media n @Oscartshiebwe34 on Twitter n @oscar_tshiebwe on Instagram Click Here for More Information on Oscar52 @KentuckyMBB 2020-21 Key reserve for the Wildcats who added phys- icality and quality rebounding … Appeared in 21 games and made three starts … Scored 41 points, hauled in 63 rebounds, totaled 11 blocks, corralled six steals and dished out eight assists … Led the team in rebounds in two games and in blocks twice … Also paced the team in steals once … Produced a pair of double-figure rebounding efforts … Grabbed four rebounds in the Southeastern Conference Tournament game against Missis- sippi State … Played 29 minutes and record- ed a career-high eight points, 10 rebounds and a career-high three blocks at No. 18/17 Missouri … Totaled seven points and a pair of rebounds in the win over LSU … Scored four points, had four rebounds and logged a block, a steal and an assist in the loss at Auburn … Notched four points, a career-high 13 rebounds and a career-best four assists in the double-overtime win at Mississippi State … Posted four points, four rebounds and a blocked shot at Louisville … Breakout game came against No. 22/21 North Carolina with four points, seven rebounds and two steals in 21 minutes of action … Scored his first ca- reer point with a free throw against Georgia Tech … Had five rebounds, two blocks and a steal in his collegiate debut against More- head State. HIGH SCHOOL Led high school team to a 29-1 record his se- nior season ... Averaged 11.8 points, 7.9 re- bounds, 1.3 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks for a team that won its final 25 games ... Squad claimed the South Jersey, Group 2 champion- ship and the No. 1 spot in the final NJ.com Top 50 rankings ... Named the NJ.com Player of the Year and was a NJ.com All-State First Team selection ... Averaged 11.4 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game during the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League in 2019 ... Also performed well at the Peach Jam finals in 2019, averaging 14.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game ... Selected to the Allen Iverson Roundball Classic ... Four-star prospect ranked as high as No. 36 in the class by Rivals. PERSONAL Born Feb. 8 in Edgewater Park, New Jersey ... Parents are Monique Ripka and Stephen Ware ... Has two siblings, Shataya and Stefon ... Major is undeclared/exploratory studies in agriculture ... Chose Kentucky over Mich- igan, Ohio State, Providence and Miami ... Lists his parents as his life’s greatest influenc- es ... Chose No. 55 because it is unique ... Favorite show on Netflix is All-American ... Listens to Drake before games. LANCE WARE 6-9 n 225 n So. n Camden, N.J. #55 n F Follow LANCE on Social Media n @lanceware12 on Twitter n @lance.ware on Instagram Click Here for More Information on Lance@UKSportsNetwork 53 HIGH SCHOOL Named the MaxPreps Arizona Player of the Year ... Averaged 24.0 points, 7.0 assists and 6.0 rebounds per game for Compass Prep, which finished 30-2 during his senior season ... Connected on 48% of his shots, including 41% from 3-point range and 88% from the free-throw line ... Suited up for Team Loyal- ty at the 2021 Iverson Roundball Classic in Memphis ... Won the 3-point shooting con- test at the event and scored a game-high 22 points ... Named to the All-Tournament Team at GEICO Nationals ... Registered 22 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in the quarter- finals and had 15 points and five assists in a loss to No. 1 Montverde Academy in the semifinals ... Five-star prospect ... Ranked as high as the No. 14 overall player by Ri- vals and ESPN and second at his position by ESPN ... Tabbed the No. 19 overall player by 247Sports. PERSONAL Born Nov. 15 in Phoenix ... Parents are Felicia Caldwell and Tyrone Washington Sr. ... Has two siblings, Tatyana and Tyrique ... Major is community and leadership development ... Lists his parents as his life’s greatest influ- ences ... Chose No. 3 because it was Allen Iverson’s number ... Favorite show on Net- flix is On My Block ... Says a prayer before games ... Lists Devin Booker as his favorite former UK player ... Favorite meal is shrimp alfredo ... Dunked for the first time at age 16 in physical education class ... Off-the-court talents include rapping ... Learned that win- ning takes sacrifices when watching “The Last Dance.” TYTY WASHINGTON JR. 6-3 n 197 n Fr. n Phoenix #3 n F Follow TYTY on Social Media n @tytywashington3 on Twitter n @tytywashington3 on Instagram Click Here for More Information on TyTy54 @KentuckyMBB 2020-21 Joined the team as a walk-on … Made one appearance, logging two minutes in Ken- tucky’s dominating regular-season finale vic- tory over South Carolina. HIGH SCHOOL Appeared in all 26 games for Kingsway Re- gional during his senior season … Averaged 8.7 points per game … Notched 11 dou- ble-figure scoring efforts and knocked down multiple 3-pointers in 12 games … Scored a season-high 19 points on six made 3s with four assists against Woodstown … Also post- ed 16 points, five rebounds and four assists at Clearview and recorded 15 points, six boards and five dimes vs. Cumberland ... Dished out four or more assists in 14 games … Produced three or more steals in 10 games … Helped advance Kingsway to the 2020 New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association Group 4 Championship field of 64. PERSONAL Born Feb. 3 in Camden, New Jersey … Moth- er is Syreeta Brittingham … Stepfather is Dajuan Wagner, former Memphis star who played for John Calipari … Has two siblings, Dayonni and Dajuan Jr. … Major is finance … Off the court talent includes juggling … Lists his parents as the two people who have influenced him the most … When he’s not playing basketball he’s watching it … Listens to NBA YoungBoy, Polo G and Lil Durk pre- game … Chicken is his favorite food … Lists Kemba Walker as his favorite NBA player and Tyler Ulis as his favorite former UK player. KAREEM WATKINS 5-8 n 170 n So. n Camden, N.J. #25 n G Follow KAREEM on Social Media n @stink_cvp on Instagram Click Here for More Information on Kareem@UKSportsNetwork 55 2020-21 (at Georgia) Sophomore: An All-Southeastern Conference Second Team selection by both the coaches and the Associated Press ... Started all 26 games ... Averaged 14.0 points, 7.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game ... Led the team in points, assists and steals per game (1.7) ... Set Georgia’s single-season assists record with 193 assists ... It bettered the previous mark of 169 set by Pertha Robinson in 1995 ... Led the league in assists per game and assist-to-turnover ratio ... He ranked fifth na- tionally in assists per game ... Became just the fourth player in the 2000s to lead the league in both assists per game and assist-to-turn- over ratio ... Recorded 22 double-figure scor- ing games ... Posted the program’s first-ever triple double with 14 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds against LSU ... Tallied eight dou- ble-doubles ... Dished out an SEC Tourna- ment record 13 assists against Missouri. 2019-20 (at Georgia) Freshman: Appeared in all 31 games as a freshman at Georgia ... Made 17 starts ... Set Georgia’s freshman assist record with 139 dimes, topping the old mark of 133 set by Lit- terial Green in 1989 ... Averaged 9.0 points, 4.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game ... 11 double-figure scoring games ... Ranked 87th nationally in assists per game and also sixth among freshmen ... Fourth in the SEC in as- sists per game ... Earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors on Dec. 23 ... Sunk a halfcourt buzzer-beater in the SEC Tournament, which was the No. 1 moment on ESPN SportsCen- ter’s Top 10 plays ... Scored 19 points in the season opener against Western Carolina, equaling the third-most points ever scored by a freshman in program history ... It trailed only Dominique Wilkins (26) and Anthony Edwards (24). HIGH SCHOOL Two-time state champion at Houston Chris- tian High School in Houston ... All-time steals and assists leader ... School record holder for points in a game (47), assists (18) and 3s (10) ... Was a four-star recruit ... Ranked the No. 78 player by ESPN, No. 88 by Rivals and No. 93 by 247Sports in his signing class. PERSONAL Born Jan. 17 in New York ... Pursuing a de- gree in communication ... Parents are Teddy and Jacqueline Wheeler … Has five siblings, Sage, Montana, Lincoln, Lola and Liv ... Chose his jersey number because it was the first number he received in any sport ... Favor- ite movies are The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises ... Chose Kentucky over Kansas, Oklahoma State and LSU. SAHVIR WHEELER 5-9 n 180 n Jr. n Houston #2 n G Follow SAHVIR on Social Media n @sahvir on Twitter n @sahvir on Instagram Click Here for More Information on Sahvir56 @KentuckyMBB T he Kentucky women’s basketball team will get lots of attention this season, much of which will be focused on All-Amer- ican, and National Player of the Year can- didate, Rhyne Howard. And rightfully so. However, for the Cats to accomplish the goals of the team, it will take more than just Howard. There’s no denying Howard’s greatness. Through three seasons at UK, she has scored 1.655 points. Just six players in Kentucky women’s basketball history have scored more. And that list is a who’s who of UK women’s basketball history (Valerie Still, A’dia Mathies, Victoria Dunlap, Leslie Nich- ols, Makayla Epps and Maci Morris). Howard should pass all of those play- ers except Still by the end of the season. Howard also has a chance to become the school’s leader in three-point shots made. She’s currently third, behind Sara Potts and Morris. But if the Cats are to compete for an SEC championship and are to earn their first Fi- nal Four appearance, it will need to be a team effort. Even Howard knows this is the case, and she’s ready to be the team leader. “I feel super prepared,” Howard said about leading the Cats. “With this team, it’s not hard to lead them because they are so willing to work hard.” The Cats do return several key pieces, all of whom should be able to lighten Howard’s load this season. Dre’una Edwards was third on last year’s team in scoring (9.7 points per game) and second in rebounding (6.1). Edwards showed the ability to play with her back to the basket as well as facing the hoop last season. Robyn Benton, who had seven dou- ble-figure scoring games last season, is also back for the Cats. She averaged 6.6 points per game last year. Point guard Jazmine Massengill is back to run the offense for UK this season. She had 62 assists in just 19 games last season, while averaging 5.1 points per outing. All of these players will be expected to contribute this season. Howard is confident in their abilities to do so. “I’m a very unselfish player, so I’m going to find them,” Howard said. “I know they can knock the shots down.” One player not returning is Blair Green, who was poised for a strong season before a season-ending injury in late October will cause her to miss the entire 2021-22 season. After a tough year of dealing with COVID-19 and all of the necessary restric- tions last season, Howard thinks the team is in a better state of mind for the 2021-22 campaign. “It definitely feels a little bit more re- laxed,” Howard said. “I think everyone is more comfortable. We all get along so well, there’s nothing to worry about.” While Howard may garner most of the attention on this year’s Kentucky team, the fate of the Cats will likely be determined by the other players on the floor. Howard and her teammates are confident that they are prepared to meet that challenge. UK Women’s Basketball Looking for Team Effort in 2021-22 By Tim Letcher UK AthleticsNext >