< Previous18 @KentuckyMBB From Press Row First True Road Test Saturday’s matchup at Notre Dame will mark Kentucky’s first true road game of the season. The Wildcats opened the 2021-22 year at Madison Square Garden in a neu- tral-site environment vs. Duke and then en- joyed a seven-game winning streak with sev- en consecutive games at home. But now the Wildcats will face their first test in hostile territory when they visit the Fighting Irish. It will mark UK’s first game at Notre Dame since losing 64-50 on Nov. 29, 2012. The teams have alternated wins over the last six matchups with the Fighting Irish win- ning last year’s game in Rupp Arena. In that game, Notre Dame stormed out to a 24-point first-half lead. The Wildcats came all the way back and nearly stole the game on a last-sec- ond jumper, but lost 64-63. The two schools used to meet frequently, playing every year from the 1957-58 season to 1982-83, and then again nine more times from 1987-88 to 1996-97. UK owns the all- time series advantage 43-20, but the Wild- cats are only 6-9 at Notre Dame. Notre Dame is led by Dane Goodwin, who is averaging 14.3 points per game. Wes- ley Blake is averaging 12.9 points and Paul Atkinson Jr. is adding 11.1 points a game. Nate Laszewski, who burned UK for 21 points and nine boards last season, is still on the roster, as is Prentiss Hubb, who scored 18 in Rupp Arena. Goodwin scored nine in last season’s matchup. The game vs. Notre Dame marks the be- ginning of a tough stretch for the Wildcats. After a seven-game homestand, UK plays at Notre Dame on Saturday, in the CBS Sports Classic against Ohio State in Las Vegas on Dec. 18, and then hosts archrival Louisville on Dec. 22. The Southeastern Conference opener is Dec. 29 vs. Missouri. Kentucky Slips Past Southern Oscar Tshiebwe wasn’t fazed by being a foul away from having to leave the game, because he was playing smarter. ‘’I wanted my head to stay in the game,’’ said Tshiebwe, who finished with four fouls and sat for several minutes in the first half. ‘’Coming back, I was kind of with the mentality of win the game and be careful. Coach told me that if you see you cannot get it, don’t reach, just go back.’’ Tshiebwe scored 18 of his 23 points af- ter halftime despite that foul trouble, TyTy Washington Jr. added 14 points and both Wildcats keyed small runs to help No. 10/12 Kentucky top Southern 76-64 on Tuesday night for its seventh consecutive victory. Jayden Saddler had 18 points, Brion Whitley added 14 points and Tyrone Lyons 12 for Southern, which dropped its second consecutive game. Playing for the first time in eight days, the Wildcats (7-1) went back and forth with the determined Jag- uars (3-6) for much of the first half before taking the lead for good at 29-26 on Kellan Grady’s 3-pointer. It sparked an 8-0 run to put Kentucky up 38-34 at the break. Tshiebwe sat for the final nine minutes of the first half with two fouls, but came back on the floor in the second half to lend six points and four rebounds to Kentucky’s 13-5 run for a 51-39 cushion. The Wildcats needed it, as South- ern closed to 57-51 before Tshiebwe and Washington combined for nine points to make it 66-53. Kentucky stayed ahead just enough the rest of the way to close out the team’s closest victory this season after a run of blowouts. Tshiebwe made his final seven shots to finish 9 of 11 from the field and grabbed 11 rebounds for his na- tion-leading seventh double-double. Grady and Davion Mintz each added nine points as the Wildcats shot 49% and won the con- test on the boards 41-25 and the paint 23- 11. There were also some blemishes for Kentucky, which committed 15 turnovers that led to 21 Southern points. The Wild- cats were also outscored 13-8 on the break, speaking volumes to the Jaguars’ intensity. ‘’Thank goodness we won, because they played harder than us,’’ Kentucky coach John Calipari said. ‘’(Southern coach) Sean (Woods) did a better job of coaching this team. ... They never stop playing no matter what the score was, just like today.’’ The game kicked off the five-game Uni- ty Series matching Kentucky against South- western Athletic Conference schools to raise awareness and funds for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. It also marked another homecoming for Woods, who is Kentucky’s career leader in assists per game and No. 5 in steals per game and a key member of the 1992 ‘’Un- forgettables’’ squad that fell to Duke 104- 103 in overtime in the epic 1992 NCAA tournament game decided by Christian La- ettner’s last-second jumper. Woods brought his third program back to Rupp Arena, but Southern came up just short. ‘Big O’ Making Big Impression on the Boards When Oscar Tshiebwe told everyone be- fore the season that his goal was to average 20 rebounds per game, it was understand- able for everyone to chuckle and chalk it up to a little hyperbole. “We all laughed,” teammate Davion Mintz said. “Like, c’mon man. Twenty rebounds?” Nobody -- most notably opponents -- is laughing now. In his first two games, “Big O,” as his teammates call him, snatched 20 rebounds vs. both No. 9/9 Duke and in the home-open- ing win against Robert Morris. “Now, it’s normal,” Mintz said. “We’re ex- pecting him to get 20.” That might be a little unreasonable con- sidering the attention the opposition is pay- ing him now, but Tshiebwe’s 15.4 rebounds per game leads the country. Bob Burrow’s single-season record of 17.7 rebounds per game set during the 1954-55 season is something to watch as the season progresses. The last player in Division I to av- erage at least 16.0 rebounds for a season was Monti Davis form Tennessee State in 1978-79 with 16.2. Only two players under John Calipari have averaged double-figure rebounds for a season: Anthony Davis (2012) and Julius Randle (2014) both hauled in 10.4 per game.167 W Main Street, Lexington | @LockboxLex | LockboxLex.com LEXINGTONLocated at GLOW BIG BLUE Just blocks from Rupp Arena, we’re the perfect destination for your pre-game dinner or post-game drinks. Make a night of it and enjoy free valet parking with the 21c Game Day Package.20 @KentuckyMBB Florida Lexington, Ky. 4 p.m. Saturday February 12 Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. 9 p.m. Tuesday February 15 Alabama Lexington, Ky. 1 p.m. Saturday February 19 LSU Lexington, Ky. 9 p.m. Wednesday February 23 Arkansas Fayetteville, Ark. 2 p.m. Saturday February 26 Ole Miss Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Tuesday March 1 Florida Gainesville, Fla. 2 p.m. Saturday March 5 SEC Tournament Tampa, Fla. TBA Wed.-Sun. March 9-13 NCAA Tournament Final Four® New Orleans | TBA March- April TBA LSU Baton Rouge, La. 7 p.m. Tuesday January 4 Vanderbilt Nashville, Tenn. 7 p.m. Tuesday January 11 Texas A&M College Station, Texas 8:30 p.m. Wednesday January 19 Auburn Auburn, Ala. 1 or 1:30 p.m. Saturday January 22 Mississippi State Lexington, Ky. 9 p.m. Tuesday January 25 Kansas Lawrence, Kan. | SEC/Big 12 Challenge | 6 p.m. Saturday January 29 Vanderbilt Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Wednesday February 2 Alabama Tuscaloosa, Ala. 8 p.m. Saturday February 5 South Carolina Columbia, S.C. 7 p.m. Tuesday February 8 Georgia Lexington, Ky. 6 p.m. Saturday January 8 Duke New York L, 71-79 Tuesday November 9 Robert Morris Lexington, Ky. W, 100-60 Friday November 12 Mount St. Mary's Lexington, Ky. W, 80-55 Tuesday November 16 Ohio Lexington, Ky. W, 77-59 Friday November 19 North Florida Lexington, Ky. W, 86-52 Friday November 26 Central Michigan Lexington, Ky. W, 85-57 Monday November 29 Notre Dame South Bend, Ind. 5:15 p.m. Saturday December 11 Southern Lexington, Ky. W, 76-64 Tuesday December 7 Ohio State Las Vegas | CBS Sports Classic | 5:15 p.m. Saturday December 18 Louisville Lexington, Ky. 6 p.m. Wednesday December 22 Missouri Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Wednesday December 29 High Point Lexington, Ky. Noon Friday December 31 UAlbany Lexington, Ky. W, 86-61 Monday November 22 Home Neutral Away 2021-22 Basketball Schedule Tennessee Lexington, Ky. Noon or 1 p.m. Saturday January 15We’re your Shield. We’re your Shelter. ShelterInsurance.com • 1-800-SHELTER WE ARE PROUD TO SUPPORT THE KENTUCKYKENTUCKY WILDCATS!WILDCATS! KENTUCKYKENTUCKY WILDCATS!WILDCATS! ® BEAVER DAM Robbie Parham BEREA Chad Tate BENTON Michelle Clark BOWLING GREEN Nancy Hickey BUTLER Jason Laytart CAMPBELLSVILLE Joseph Hamilton CARLISLE Bill Clark CYNTHIANA David Yeiser DANVILLE Troy Wheeler ELIZABETHTOWN Jamie Martin Alice Slaubaugh EMINENCE Fred Downey EVANSVILLE, IN Rick Koberstein FAIRDALE Jamie Norsworthy FLEMINGSBURG Cole Clark FLORENCE Rocky Bryan Will Gilliland FRANKLIN Brian Knapp FRANKFORT BJ Hurst Audrey Marshall GEORGETOWN Steve Black Spencer Kilpatrick HARDINSBURG Sandra Bruington HARRODSBURG Jamie Dunn HENDERSON Lesley Liley HODGENVILLE Teddy Sandford HOPKINSVILLE Scott Leuckel LAGRANGE Paula Kaeser LANCASTER Cindy Lanham LAWRENCEBURG Ashley Bailey Larry Moore LEITCHFIELD Donna Vanmeter LEXINGTON Tony Arnold Linda Fugate Dawan Hart Willie Morrison Maddie Stiles Terry Wolfe Gene Young LIBERTY Kevin Atwood LIVERMORE Katie Gunterman LONDON Jeffery Anderson LOUISVILLE Larissa Spears MADISONVILLE Kelly Madison MAYFIELD Steve Jones MOREHEAD Caleb Staggs MOUNT STER- LING Elizabeth Shelley MURRAY Doug Henry NICHOLASVILLE Marc Miller Russ Owens OWENSBORO Karen Keller Bob Smith Nick Warren PADUCAH Toby Boone RICHMOND Ashley Kovaleski Evan Worrell SHELBYVILLE Jessica Cole SLAUGHTERS Sam Westfall SOMERSET Jason Weatherford SPRINGFIELD Sue Blair STANFORD Sean Slusher VERSAILLES Janice Frasier WINCHESTER Kay Brandenburg Olin Woolum22 @KentuckyMBB 2021-22 Kentucky Wildcats Statistics TOTAL 3-POINT F-THROW SCORING REBOUNDS No. Player GP-S Min. Avg. FG-FGA Pct 3FG-FGA Pct FT-FTA Pct Pts Avg. Off Def Total Avg. PF A TO Stl Blk. 34 Tshiebwe, Oscar 8-8 215 26.9 50-76 .658 0-0 .000 22-31 .710 122 15.3 52 71 123 15.4 21 10 13 10 15 03 Washington Jr. , TyTy 8-8 253 31.6 47-99 .475 11-28 .393 13-16 .813 118 14.8 8 31 39 4.9 11 25 14 9 3 12 Brooks Jr., Keion 7-7 169 24.1 33-71 .465 3-12 .250 13-18 .722 82 11.7 10 22 32 4.6 6 1 13 3 6 02 Wheeler, Sahvir 8-8 257 32.1 35-81 .432 4-16 .250 12-13 .923 86 10.8 8 15 23 2.9 21 67 27 12 1 31 Grady, Kellan 8-8 215 26.9 27-59 .458 16-38 .421 4-5 .800 74 9.3 1 8 9 1.1 2 9 3 10 0 10 Mintz, Davion 5-0 101 20.2 12-31 .387 7-18 .389 8-12 .667 39 7.8 7 13 20 4.0 5 7 5 1 0 04 Collins, Daimion 8-1 116 14.5 20-30 .667 0-3 .000 7-9 .778 47 5.9 12 14 26 3.3 19 3 8 4 12 11 Allen, Dontaie 7-0 79 11.3 13-38 .342 6-27 .222 4-4 1.000 36 5.1 3 14 17 2.4 4 6 3 2 2 00 Toppin, Jacob 4-0 68 17.0 7-16 .438 0-0 .000 2-4 .500 16 4.0 4 11 15 3.8 5 4 5 1 5 23 Hopkins, Bryce 8-0 82 10.3 11-25 .440 3-9 .333 3-4 .750 28 3.5 8 11 19 2.4 4 4 6 1 2 55 Ware, Lance 5-0 27 5.4 3-5 .600 0-0 .000 1-4 .250 7 1.4 1 3 4 0.8 5 0 3 0 2 20 Payne, Zan 5-0 6 1.2 1-4 .250 0-2 .000 2-2 1.000 4 0.8 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 14 Canada, Brennan 5-0 6 1.2 1-1 1.000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 2 0.4 1 0 1 0.2 0 1 0 0 0 25 Watkins, Kareem 5-0 6 1.2 0-1 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0.0 1 2 3 0.6 2 1 2 1 0 Total 8 1600 200.0 260-537 .484 50-153 .327 91-122 .746 661 82.63 134 233 367 45.9 105 138 103 55 48 Opponents 1600 200.0 187-484 .386 48-162 .296 65-96 .677 487 60.88 71 144 215 26.9 115 80 103 54 22The UK HealthCare John Calipari Show Behind Kentucky Basketball SUBSCRIBE TO PODCASTS TODAY! SPORTS NETWORKSPORTS NETWORK Presented By2021-22 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Statistics TOTAL 3-POINT F-THROW REBOUNDS SCORING No. Player GP-S Min.-Avg. FG-FGA Pct 3FG-FGA Pct FT-FTA Pct Off Def Total Avg. PF DQ A TO Blk. Stl Pts Avg. 23 Goodwin, Dane 6-6 199-33.2 30-62 .484 15-30 .500 15-16 .938 7 27 34 5.7 13 0 4 4 2 4 90 15.0 0 Wesley, Blake 6-0 122-20.4 28-52 .538 9-23 .391 13-21 .619 4 12 16 2.7 14 0 5 9 1 2 78 13.0 20 Atkinson Jr., Paul 6-6 160-26.7 28-44 .636 0-0 .000 18-27 .667 17 21 38 6.3 12 0 8 13 6 7 74 12.3 5 Ryan, Cormac 6-6 197-33.0 20-48 .417 7-24 .292 10-13 .769 6 18 24 4.0 7 0 12 7 1 4 57 9.5 14 Laszewski, Nate 6-6 177-29.6 21-49 .429 9-26 .346 0-0 .000 10 46 56 9.3 17 0 6 8 8 5 51 8.5 3 Hubb, Prentiss 6-6 183-30.6 11-49 .224 4-29 .138 10-17 .588 6 9 15 2.5 10 0 19 15 0 5 36 6.0 2 Wertz, Trey 6-0 136-22.8 11-35 .314 5-18 .278 5-8 .625 0 15 15 2.5 16 1 17 8 0 2 32 5.3 22 Taylor, Elijah 2-0 09-4.6 3-3 1.000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 1 1 2 1.0 3 0 0 0 1 0 6 3.0 1 Konieczny, J.r. 2-0 05-2.5 1-1 1.000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 2 0 1 0 0 1 2 1.0 25 Zona, Matt 1-0 02-2.7 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 31 Morgan, Elijah 1-0 02-2.7 0-1 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 1 1 1.0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0.0 12 Sanders Jr., Tony 1-0 02-2.7 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 1 1 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 Team 8 9 17 2 Total 6 1200 153-344 .445 49-150 .327 71-102 .696 59 160 219 36.5 94 1 73 67 19 30 426 71.0 Opponents 6 1200 144-331 .435 46-109 .422 60-97 .619 46 143 189 31.5 99 1 68 71 12 34 394 65.7 Prentiss Hubb Nate Laszewski 24 @KentuckyMBBFind your vibe at VisitLEX.com26 @KentuckyMBB 2021-22 Kentucky Wildcats No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown/High School 0 Jacob Toppin F 6-9 200 Jr. Brooklyn, N.Y. / Woodstock Academy 1 CJ Fredrick G 6-3 190 RJr. Cincinnati / Covington Catholic 2 Sahvir Wheeler G 5-9 180 Jr. Houston / Houston Christian 3 TyTy Washington Jr. G 6-3 197 Fr. Phoenix /Compass Prep 4 Daimion Collins F 6-9 202 Fr. Atlanta, Texas / Atlanta 10 Davion Mintz G 6-3 195 Gr. Charlotte, N.C. / Mecklenburg 11 Dontaie Allen G 6-6 205 RSo. Falmouth, Ky. / Pendleton County 12 Keion Brooks Jr. F 6-7 210 Jr. Fort Wayne, Ind. / La Lumiere School 14 Brennan Canada F 6-6 198 Jr. Mount Sterling, Ky. / George Rogers Clark 20 Zan Payne G/F 6-4 215 RJr. Lexington, Ky. / Lexington Catholic 23 Bryce Hopkins F 6-6 220 Fr. Oak Park, Ill. / Fenwick 25 Kareem Watkins G 5-8 170 So. Camden, N.J. / Kingsway Regional 31 Kellan Grady G 6-5 205 Gr. Boston / Northfield Mount Hermon School 34 Oscar Tshiebwe F 6-9 255 Jr. Lubumbashi, Congo / Kennedy Catholic 55 Lance Ware F 6-9 225 So. Camden, N.J. / Camden Coaching Staff Head Coach: John Calipari Associate to the Head Coach: James "Bruiser" Flint Associate Coach: Orlando Antigua Assistant Coaches: Ronald "Chin" Coleman, Jai Lucas Quick Facts Location: Lexington, Ky. Founded: 1865 Enrollment: 31,800 Conference: SECNext >