Brandon Garrison was quietly impressive in Kentucky's win vs. Gonzaga

Brandon Garrison isn’t making any headlines (well, aside from this one) for his performance against Gonzaga over the weekend, but his impact shouldn’t (and won’t) go unnoticed.

Garrison was quietly impressive during Kentucky’s 90-89 overtime victory against the Zags in Seattle on Saturday. His numbers don’t burst off the stat sheet — a season-high 10 points, a season-high nine rebounds, one block, one assist, and three turnovers in 17 minutes. He shot 4-7 from the field, including his first made three-pointer of the season. The seven-foot sophomore was a +1 in the plus/minus category. But he made big plays at key moments in both halves (did not play in overtime).

There’s certainly a lot of give-and-take with the still-developing big man though.

For example, against Gonzaga, after making his first triple of the season, he followed it up with another (much more contested) shot from deep on the very next possession, which hit off the back of the iron. In the aftermath of his lone blocked shot, he stared down the player he just rejected and missed out on saving a loose ball that ultimately went to Gonzaga. He converted on a tough and-one late in the first half that quickly resulted in a (admittedly, ridiculous) technical foul for talking smack to his defender.

But there were plenty examples of him making huge winning plays, too.

When Amari Williams was tagged with back-to-back fouls early in the second half — during the midst of Kentucky’s comeback attempt — that sent him to the bench, Garrison stepped in and performed. Gonzaga’s Graham Ike — the night’s leading scorer with 28 points — went right at Garrison on back-to-back possessions. Despite being positioned just a couple of feet beyond the rim, Garrison held his ground and forced Ike into misses on both. Garrison entered the game with Kentucky down 10 points and checked out with UK down just three.

He was playing so well that Pope elected to keep throwing Garrison into battle for spurts down the stretch. Most of his points came in the first half, but his winning plays came after halftime. In 11 second-half minutes, he grabbed five rebounds. He dished out a timely back-door pass for a Jaxson Robinson layup that made it just a two-point Gonzaga lead with roughly five minutes left in regulation.

Brandon Garrison is a really, really good passer. Excellent vision.

This is the action made "famous" by Aly Khalifa last season at BYU. Fake the handoff, turn, and hit the cutter at the rim.

19 assists on the season for Garrison. pic.twitter.com/1dTryLlVBO

— Brandon Ramsey (@BRamseyKSR) December 8, 2024

Garrison is playing fewer minutes and producing lower numbers as a sophomore at Kentucky than when he was a freshman at Oklahoma State, but we’re seeing a much improved all-around player. He’s rebounding the ball and dishing out assists at a much higher rate than a season ago. As a playmaking big man, he fits cleanly into Mark Pope‘s offense and he’s a naturally talented defender.

It doesn’t take long to see why he’s considered a future NBA guy. The Gonzaga game was just a small look at it.