< Previous18 @KentuckyMBB From Press Row Wildcats Begin Seven-Game Home Stand with Robert Morris After opening the 2021-22 season away from home and a year after the Wildcats could only host 3,075 fans inside Rupp Are- na, John Calipari and his squad will embark on a seven-game home stand beginning with a three-game multi-team event vs. Robert Morris, Mount St. Mary's and Ohio in the Kentucky Classic. Up first is Robert Morris on Friday. The Colonials and Wildcats will meet for the fourth time in the series' history and the third time in the Calipari era. Kentucky owns a 2-1 mark and won 87-49 in 2013-14, a season after Robert Morris captured a win in the National Invitational Tournament by a 59-57 score on its home floor when the Wildcats were unable to host the event in 2013. The Colonials opened its 2021-22 sea- son with a 69-59 loss at Central Florida on Wednesday. Three players Rasheem Dunn (12), Enoch Cheeks (12) and Kahliel Spear (10) scored in double figures. Cheeks led the way on the boards with 10 rebounds. Robert Morris is coming off a 3-15 sea- son in 2020-21, but the Wildcats will face a few early season tests in front of Big Blue Nation. Both of the other Kentucky Classic participants in Mount St. Mary's and Ohio appeared in the NCAA Tournament a season ago. Kentucky is 41-4 in Rupp Arena openers and 12-0 under Calipari. Despite Effort, Wildcats Fall to No. 9/9 Duke in Season Opener Freshman Trevor Keels scored 25 points and classmate Paolo Banchero added 22 to help No. 9/9 Duke open Mike Krzyzewski's final season by beating 10th-ranked Ken- tucky 79-71 on Tuesday night in the nightcap of the Champions Classic. The two basketball blue bloods, who have quite the history between them on the game's biggest stage, put on a spectacular show to open the season. The loud split crowd at Madison Square Garden that included many members of the New York Knicks and Bruce Springsteen was on its feet for most of the second half. Duke, which led by four at the half, built the advantage to 15 with just under 10 min- utes left behind Keels. The Wildcats wouldn't go away, scoring the next 11 points to get within 69-65 on a three-point play by Oscar Tshiebwe with 6:07 left. That's as close as Kentucky could get. Keels scored on the Blue Devils' next pos- session and Banchero followed with a three- point play after a huge block by Mark Wil- liams to start a 7-0 run. Kentucky could only get within eight the rest of the way. Tshiebwe finished with 17 points and 20 rebounds. Sahvir Wheeler added 16 points and 10 assists for the Wildcats. Despite the season opening loss, John Calipari was pleased with the team's effort." "I loved our fight," he said. "I loved our competitive spirit. And that's what our program is always been about." • Now in its 120th season of men's basketball, Kentucky fell to 98-21 in season openers (no season in 1952- 53) • Despite the loss, Kentucky still leads the series 12-11 • The Wildcats suffered their first loss in this arena in the Champions Classic and are 3-1 in Madison Square Garden in the annual series • Kentucky is 38-15 all-time in games in the New York City area, including wins in 10 of the last 13 games. • In the modern-day version of Madison Square Garden, UK is 14-5 • Led by Oscar Tshiebwe, who set a Champions Classic record with 20 rebounds, UK won the board battle 44-36 • In addition to setting the Champions Classic record for rebounds, Tshiebwe also set the UK record for most boards in a Wild- cat debut. His 20 boards are the most in the Calipari era. • Wheeler had 16 points and 10 rebounds for his ninth career double-double. He tied for the second-most assists (Kyle Macy) in a UK debut, trailing only De'Aaron Fox who had 12 against Stephen F. Austin on Nov. 11, 2016 'Big O' Makes Big Impression in Big Apple In Kentucky's season opener against Duke, fans and pundits alike noticed the size advantage the Blue Devils had over the Wild- cats. But there was one big man who stood out more than any other and that was Ken- tucky's 6-foot-9, 255-pound Oscar Tshieb- we, who nearly willed the Wildcats to victory with his ferocious tenacity and drive to come down with every rebound. Tshiebwe, who joined the Wildcats in the middle of the 2020-21 season, already had a reputation as one of the best rebounders in college basketball. In his Kentucky debut, Tshiebwe took it to another level. Tshiebwe , who notably told UK's me- dia contingent his goal for the season was to average 20 boards a game, did just that vs. Duke with a career-high 20 rebounds, better- ing his previous best by one. The mark set a Champions Classic record and it marked the most rebounds for any Wildcat in their debut. "If you really want to help your team, you got to fight, so I come out and fight," Tshieb- we said. "So I was going for everything. I was doing my best. I came in to win the game. That's why I was fighting. I cannot make any- body rebound them for me. That's why I was going for everything." It was also the most rebounds of any UK player under John Calipari and the most by a UK player since Jared Prickett pulled in 20 against Arkansas on Feb. 9, 1994. His 12 of- fensive rebounds were the most in the Cali- pari era. The big man was not intimidated by Duke's frontcourt or the bright lights of Mad- ison Square Garden. And he didn't just pro- duce on the boards. Tshiebwe poured in a team-high 17 points to mark his 13th career double-double. He also added a pair of blocks and a steal. He is the first Wildcat with at least 17 points and at least 20 rebounds in a season opener since Dan Issel vs. Xavier on Nov. 30, 1968. Issel had 29 points and 24 rebounds. As a freshman in 2019-20 at West Vir- ginia, Tshiebwe led the nation with a 19.0% offensive-rebounding percentage. After game one in UK blue, Tshiebwe is hauling in offen- sive rebounds at a 36.0% rate, according to KenPom.com. Prior to the season, Tshiebwe told UK's media contingent his goal for the season was to average 20 rebounds per game. He did just that in game one against a top-10 ranked op- ponent.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 Tennessee Knoxville, Tenn. 9 p.m. Tuesday February Alabama Lexington, Ky. 1 p.m. Saturday February LSU Lexington, Ky. 9 p.m. Wednesday February Arkansas Fayetteville, Ark. 2 p.m. Saturday February Ole Miss Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Tuesday March Florida Gainesville, Fla. 2 p.m. Saturday March 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 Vanderbilt Nashville, Tenn. 7 p.m. Tuesday January Texas A&M College Station, Texas 8:30 p.m. Wednesday January Auburn Auburn, Ala. 1 or 1:30 p.m. Saturday January Mississippi State Lexington, Ky. 9 p.m. Tuesday January Kansas Lawrence, Kan. | Saturday January Vanderbilt Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Wednesday February Alabama Tuscaloosa, Ala. 8 p.m. Saturday February South Carolina Columbia, S.C. 7 p.m. Tuesday February Georgia Lexington, Ky. 6 p.m. Saturday January Duke New York L, 71-79 Tuesday November Robert Morris Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Friday November Mount St. Mary's Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Tuesday November Ohio Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Friday November North Florida Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Friday November Central Michigan Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Monday November Notre Dame South Bend, Ind. 5:15 p.m. Saturday December Southern Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Tuesday December Ohio State Las Vegas | CBS Sports Classic | 5:15 p.m. Saturday December Louisville Lexington, Ky. 6 p.m. Wednesday December Missouri Lexington, Ky. 7 p.m. Wednesday December High Point Lexington, Ky. Noon Friday December UAlbany Lexington, Ky. TBA Monday November Home Neutral Away 2021-22 Basketball Schedule Tennessee Lexington, Ky. Noon or 1 p.m. Saturday JanuaryWe’re your Shield. We’re your Shelter. ShelterInsurance.com • 1-800-SHELTER WE ARE PROUD TO SUPPORT THE KENTUCKY WILDCATS! KENTUCKY 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 1-1- 29 29.0 8-14 .571 0-0 .000 1-1 1.000 17 17.0 12 7 19 19.0 3 1 2 1 2 02 Wheeler, Sahvir 1-1 38 38.0 6-15 .400 2-3 .667 2-2 1.000 16 16.0 0 3 3 3.0 3 10 7 1 0 12 Brooks Jr., Keion 1-1 17 17.0 4-10 .400 1-3 .333 0-0 .000 9 9.0 1 2 3 3.0 2 0 2 0 0 31 Grady, Kellan 1-1 31 31.0 3-8 .375 3-7 .429 0-0 .000 9 9.0 0 2 2 2.0 0 0 0 1 0 03 Washington Jr. , TyTy 1-1 28 28.0 3-14 .214 0-2 .000 3-4 .750 9 9.0 0 2 2 2.0 2 3 0 1 0 10 Mintz, Davion 1-0 21 21.0 2-7 .286 1-3 .333 0-0 .000 5 5.0 0 1 1 1.0 3 0 0 0 0 00 Toppin, Jacob 1-0 23 23.0 2-6 .333 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 4 4.0 2 4 6 6.0 4 1 0 0 0 55 Ware, Lance 1-0 9 9.0 1-2 .500 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 2 2.0 1 1 2 2.0 2 0 1 0 1 04 Collins, Daimion 1-0 2 2.0 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 1 0 1 0 0 23 Hopkins, Bryce 1-0 2 2.0 0-1 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 1 200 200.0 29-77 .377 7-18 .389 6-7 .857 71 71.00 19 25 44 44.0 20 15 13 4 3 Opponents 200 200.0 31-61 .508 1-13 .077 16-23 .696 79 79.00 9 27 36 36.0 15 7 9 9 5The UK HealthCare John Calipari Show Behind Kentucky Basketball SUBSCRIBE TO PODCASTS TODAY! SPORTS NETWORKSPORTS NETWORK Presented By2020-21 Robert Morris Colonials Final 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. 05 BRAMAH, AJ 12-11 411-34.2 96-188 .511 0-2 .000 60-75 .800 34 90 124 10.3 31 1 19 35 5 17 252 21.0 01 WILLIAMS, Jon 18-18 595-33.1 64-154 .416 48-109 .440 16-21 .762 3 39 42 2.3 37 0 92 23 0 12 192 10.7 02 SPEAR, Kahliel 18-10 424-23.6 70-128 .547 7-24 .292 31-48 .646 37 57 94 5.2 36 1 21 22 23 18 178 9.9 00 FARRIS, Kam 17-16 371-21.8 50-105 .476 35-76 .461 6-7 .857 7 25 32 1.9 29 1 16 18 1 7 141 8.3 20 BAIN, Charles 16-16 323-20.2 48-125 .384 12-48 .250 10-19 .526 21 33 54 3.4 30 2 10 14 3 5 118 7.4 12 WILLIAMS, Trayden 18-1 418-23.2 55-141 .390 13-39 .333 8-15 .533 6 27 33 1.8 13 0 35 39 0 19 131 7.3 03 TREACY, Dante 18-18 596-33.1 42-131 .321 20-68 .294 15-29 .517 9 41 50 2.8 53 3 86 43 4 19 119 6.6 22 WILBON, Cameron 19-1 345-18.2 40-84 .476 2-8 .250 23-31 .742 24 41 65 3.4 44 0 8 20 2 7 105 5.5 11 CHEEKS, Enoch 15-4 243-16.2 30-71 .423 5-20 .250 9-26 .346 20 23 43 2.9 30 0 10 15 5 15 74 4.9 23 NGONADI, Olisa 10-0 80-8.0 10-20 .500 0-0 .000 6-10 .600 11 16 27 2.7 13 1 0 7 5 1 26 2.6 24 SUEMNICK, Pat 16-0 134-8.4 13-22 .591 0-0 .000 12-18 .667 10 16 26 1.6 30 1 1 11 9 4 38 2.4 13 BROWN, Terrell 3-0 10-3.3 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0-0 .000 0 1 1 0.3 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 Team 25 30 55 7 Total 19 3950 518-1169 .443 142-394 .360 196-299 .656 207 439 646 34.0 348 10 299 254 57 124 1374 72.3 Opponents 19 3950 527-1125 .468 162-421 .385 278-385 .722 220 495 715 37.6 291 - 276 261 50 122 1494 78.6 Kahliel Spear Kam Farris 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 >