Chris Jans praises Reed Sheppard's IQ: 'It's like a coach out there on the floor.'

We’ve talked a lot about Reed Sheppard over the last 12+ hours — and rightfully so. So why not keep the good vibes rolling?

The home state kid poured in 32 points during Kentucky’s 91-89 road win over Mississippi State on Tuesday night. 11 of those points came in the final 95 seconds of regulation, including the go-ahead floater half a second before the buzzer. He was all but demanding teammate DJ Wagner to pass him the ball as Kentucky ran up the court on the final possession.

Wagner eventually obliged, dishing to Sheppard who drove into the lane for the game-winner.

“It was a heck of a play,” Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans said postgame. “(Sheppard) controlled, for his team, the last minute of the game. He’s so savvy and so smart, it’s like a coach out there on the floor. He’s inbounding the ball and getting it right back. He’s obviously an excellent free throw shooter and put us in some tough positions, having to foul him down the stretch.”

Sheppard put on a masterclass in how to run a team and take command of the game as a floor general and leader. In addition to his career-high in points, the freshman chipped in five rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and two blocks (with two turnovers) in 35 minutes. He directed Kentucky’s offense in the closing minutes and came up with timely defensive stops.

His only mistake was lobbing a pass to no man’s land with 20 seconds left — which head coach John Calipari jokingly said made him want to “choke” Sheppard — that Mississippi State turned into points.

Other than that, the Bulldogs simply had no answer for Sheppard, particularly in the second half when he scored 23 of his overall points. He was getting it done on both ends of the floor too.

During a 34-second span down the stretch, Sheppard hit a jumper that gave Kentucky a three-point edge, came right back with an and-one layup a possession later, and blocked a three-point attempt in the corner from MSU’s Shakeel Moore the next time down.

From there, he went on to knock down four straight free throws before hitting the last shot of the game. And just for good measure, Sheppard stole the inbounds pass on Mississippi State’s last-ditch effort as the clock expired. He literally did it all.