Draft Combine Scrimmage (Day 2): Otega Oweh, Koby Brea show out in head-to-head battle

Following decent — but far from great — performances in their first 5-on-5 scrimmage at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago on Wednesday, the Kentucky boys needed to show out in round two.

The Wildcats’ two draft hopefuls, Otega Oweh (Team Lazare) and Koby Brea (Team Mueller), did just that on Thursday in a head-to-head battle. Both looked far more comfortable and confident on the hardwood from what we saw in the first scrimmage roughly 24 hours ago.

Oweh finished with 14 points (4-8 FG, 1-1 3PT, 5-6 FT), five rebounds, one assist, two steals, and one turnover in 26 minutes for Team Lazare. But his effort wasn’t enough to overpower Brea and Team Mueller, which picked up the 104-87 victory. Brea was much improved from his subpar shooting outing the day prior. He was credited with 16 points (6-12 FG, 4-8 3PT), five rebounds, one assist, and two turnovers in 30 minutes.

Here are all the highlights from Oweh and Brea that I was able to grab. https://t.co/RNYGHmdwlc pic.twitter.com/rY3Wec1gG0

— Zack Geoghegan (@ZGeogheganKSR) May 15, 2025

We didn’t see any Cat-on-Cat crime from these two former teammates, but they were putting in plenty of work against their defenders. Brea opened the game with a three-pointer after a 1-7 clip from deep on Wednesday, although he didn’t fully settle into the game until the second half. But once he did, the 6-foot-7 guard showed off plenty of tricks.

Brea was only credited with one assist, but we saw at least two crafty passes that immediately led to baskets. He also knocked down a long, tough runner right from the nail. With Team Mueller down to just eight available players, the former ‘Cat had plenty of time to find his groove. His second-half performance was easily his best two-quarter stretch of the two scrimmages this week.

Coming into the week, Brea was projected by most as a second-round draft pick. I wouldn’t say he did enough in the two scrimmages to truly boost his stock, but I also don’t think he did anything to seriously damage it. He was also efficient in the shooting drills from earlier in the week.

As for Oweh, he put together a much better start-to-finish game than he did on Wednesday. His defense, in particular, stood out. It was clear the flow of this game came much more easily to him than it did the day before. Although he missed a handful of contested layups, Oweh knocked down his lone three-pointer and made five of his six free throws thanks to his many drives to the rim.

And much like Brea, Oweh didn’t do anything to blow away the scouts in attendance. But he was more consistent day-to-day than Brea while also bringing more on the defensive end. All that being said, Oweh wasn’t on any mock draft projections coming into this week; his play in the scrimmages likely wasn’t outstanding enough to gain serious ground.

We’re now officially done with the Combine’s live 5-on-5 scrimmages, but interviews and workouts will continue through Sunday in Chicago. After that, Oweh will have a decision to make if he wants to return to Kentucky for his senior season or bet on himself in the NBA Draft. He has until May 28 to make the call.

The 2025 NBA Draft is set for June 25-26 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.