John Calipari looking for one more 25-point scorer going into March

Six Kentucky Wildcats average at least 9.0 points per game, with four averaging double figures. It’s a consistent well-rounded scoring effort, with numerous instances of individual explosions throughout the season. All five starters have scored at least 25 points in a single game, with Oscar Tshiebwe hitting that mark four times. Beyond the top five, Davion Mintz has scored 21, Jacob Toppin, Daimion Collins and Dontaie Allen have gone for 14 and Bryce Hopkins has gone for 13. Lance Ware is the lone scholarship player to not hit the double figure mark on the year — his impact is felt elsewhere.

Kentucky sits at No. 3 overall in the latest KenPom offensive efficiency ratings, and that’s to be expected when you have 10 players scoring at least 13 points in a game and the team averaging over 80 points per contest. Still, though, John Calipari is looking for one more thing from the Wildcats offensively before March — and it’s not too much to ask considering the team’s collective success.

He wants one more player to score 25-plus points in a single game to give Kentucky six total on the team.

“We have five guys that have scored 25 points in a game,” Calipari said following Kentucky’s 71-66 win over LSU on Wednesday. “I would like to get one more guy to do that so we have six, because you’re going to get in a game and someone may need to make baskets for you to separate. Either they’re making shots and you’re going to have to score some baskets to separate.”

It’s a mindset he’s had since he first got to Kentucky, a measuring stick in his mind that indicates a team is capable of making a run in the NCAA Tournament. If your top two or three players struggle to make baskets, having six players score at least 25 in a game shows there are other options that can will you to victory with the season on the line. Five is solid, but six is the goal every season.

In fact, Calipari expressed a similar desire for his team almost two years ago to the day — following a win over LSU, no less.

“I like to have five and six guys have a game with 25,” Calipari said back in February 18, 2020. “And the reason is you get in the NCAA Tournament and you may need somebody to go crazy to win a game. … You just want to be able to go into that tournament knowing that you have a team full of guys and you don’t know who can go for 25. It makes you more balanced and makes you even a better team.”

Only two other Kentucky teams have had five players score at least 25 points in a game: 2015-16 (Jamal Murray, Tyler Ulis, Alex Poythress, Derek Willis and Skal Labissiere) and 2019-20 (Nick Richards, EJ Montgomery, Ashton Hagans, Tyrese Maxey and Immanuel Quickley).

Calipari wants this group to be the first of his teams at Kentucky to have a sixth.

Who could step up? Mintz is clearly the top threat, already hitting the 21-point mark vs. Vanderbilt earlier this month. Toppin has quickly found his groove at the four, maybe he gets hot one of these days. Maybe Hopkins or Collins get hot one night? Allen went for 23 twice last season, maybe he has another explosion left in him? There are a few interesting options.

Outside of scoring, there’s also a clear point of emphasis for Calipari going into March, and it’s an obvious one.

“You want a full team because the more players, more room for error,” Calipari added following Kentucky’s win vs. LSU. “We had a couple guys not play well (Wednesday). Well, you’re not playing as much. No big deal. Be ready for the next game. Somebody may get hurt like what just happened. Someone may be in foul trouble. You got to play the game anyway, so you want a full roster.”

“Now, I’ve done it with five when I was at UMass. We played five guys 38 minutes, 39 minutes, and had a chance to win a national title. You know what? We dodged so many bullets. … Marcus (Camby) went down in a game and it was like, ‘okay, we got to learn to do this without him,’ and we did. And we did.”

It starts with getting Sahvir Wheeler and TyTy Washington back from injury.

“I would rather have a full team, which we have,” Calipari said. “I’m proud of these guys. We get the other guys back, we’ll see how this works at what point they come back.”

Give Calipari a full-strength group with one more 25-point scorer, and he’s ready for March.