KSR Today: Kentucky Ends Regular Season with a Bang

Wow. Who saw that coming? Playing without two point guards and finishing the final 5+ minutes without two centers, Kentucky went to Arkansas and ran the Razorbacks off the court. Antonio Reeves scored a career-high 37 points in the Wildcats’ 88-79 romp that secured a No. 3 seed in the SEC Tournament.

Not even John Calipari believed it. “I went back and hugged him. I didn’t know he had 37,” Kentucky’s head coach shared after the game.

Reeves scored 37 and only made two three-pointers. The former Illinois State shooting guard was 12 of 17 from the floor and hit all 11 free throw attempts. Reeves did it all while sharing ball-handling duties with Jacob Toppin, an adjustment the Cats were forced to make without Sahvir Wheeler or Cason Wallace in the lineup. Challenged by his coach and teammates, Reeves rose to the ocassion.

“Anything I shot, it just went in,” Reeves said. “It was one of those type of games — just stay aggressive, and I just found my spots on the floor.”

It was an all-time gutsy performance in a physical, chippy game. In a season filled with highs and lows, the unexpected regular season finale perfectly encapsulates these confounding Cats.

Chaos at Bud Walton Arena

Kentucky and Arkansas have played physical, chippy games since the Razorbacks joined the SEC in the early 90s. This took things to another level. There were four technicals, an ejection and a bench warning that resulted in this bizarre scene:

pic.twitter.com/HmRBvh9uhQ

— No Context College Basketball (@ContextFreeCBB) March 4, 2023

Oh, I almost forgot. In addition to a double technical, Oscar Tshiebwe received a flagrant foul (which looked less flagrant than his initial technical). Makhal Mitchell threw an ice-bag on his face to try to sell Oscar’s early elbow, hoping for an ejection. That did not work, but Arkansas did get Tshiebwe to foul out with 5:09 on the clock after securing a 12-point, 13-rebound double-double. Daimion Collins followed his soon after with his fifth foul. Reeves and Chris Livingston hung in and finished the game with four fouls apiece.

Jacob Toppin Knocks Down Clutch Shots

Kentucky started the half on a heater to extend the lead to double-digits. The Razorbacks cut into that and got Bud Walton Arena on its feet when the deficit shrunk to five. An offensive possession appeared to be going nowhere fast, until Jacob Toppin nailed a contested step-back three-pointer with one second left on the shot clock. The Cats got that lead back to 10 with a wild Adou Thiero dunk.

How did he get this dunk?! Woah 😱 pic.twitter.com/EQJXrddx4c

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 4, 2023

Toppin delivered once again when Kentucky needed it most. It looked a lot like the first three, using the dribble step-back to create space and knock down a contested three-pointer late in the shot clock. Playing point forward, he scored 21 points on only nine shot attempts. His fourth 20+ point performance of the season, Kentucky improved to 10-1 when Toppin scores 15+ points.

SEC Tournament Bracket is Set

Kentucky will be on that late night tip, not with Three 6 Mafia, in Nashville for the SEC Tournament. The Wildcats got the double-bye and will open postseason play at approximately 9:30 pm EST Friday night. John Calipari’s squad will play the winner of Vanderbilt and Georgia/LSU, potentially providing a revenge game opportunity for the Cats.

Keep Celebrating the Kentucky Victory

You don’t need to start looking ahead to Friday already. Enjoy this victory for 24 hours. You can start by listening to Matt Jones and Billy Rutledge on the KSR Postgame Show. Watch Drew, Jack and Zack on Rapid Reactions, then join the conversation on KSBoard by signing up for KSR+ for only $10.

Subscribe to the KSR YouTube Channel for press conferences, interviews, original shows, fan features, and exclusive content.

First NCAA Tournament Tickets Punched

Thanks to what I’ll call the “Bellarmine rule,” the Northeast Conference Tournament Semifinal was worth a bid. Ineligible to advance to the NCAA Tournament during its D-I transition period, top-seeded Merrimack already advanced to the NEC Final. Fairleigh Dickinson took advantage of the unique opportunity and blitzed St. Francis with a 70-50 win to become the first team to enter the NCAA Tournament field.

Late Saturday night there was chaos on Evansville at the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament final. Unfortunately, former Kentucky Wildcat John Pelphrey was on the wrong end of the result. Coaching Tennessee Tech, the Golden Eagles rallied and hit a go-ahead three with ten seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession, they fouled SEMO on a three. Down two with two seconds left, a Tennessee Tech prayer was answered, forcing overtime. The additional time did not do Pelphrey any favors as SEMO pulled away with an 89-82 win.

Will Levis Impresses at NFL Combine

The Kentucky quarterback stepped onto the field at Lucas Oil Stadium and everybody stopped to watch and listen to the way Will Levis throws footballs. Aside from throws to his short left, he was accurate and even showed more touch than we saw at UK. Kurt Warner and the NFL Network crew loved what they saw up close from the quarterback.

“I feel like he’s been under control. There’s been touch on the football,” said the Hall of Fame quarterback. “That’s one thing you wonder with guys with big arms, are they going to come out here and throw everything 100 miles an hour? I think he’s done a nice job having a little touch, having a little air right there just laying it outside to the boundary, so really like what I’ve seen from him so far in the Combine.”

Levis’ work is finished, but the Wildcats are not. Chris Rodriguez and Tashawn Manning will be on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium at 1 pm. You can watch all of the action on the NFL Network. Adam Luckett and I will have more from our conversations with the Wildcats this afternoon.

When Chris Rodriguez met Will Levis, he thought he was UK’s new tight end. The RB shares why teams should pick Levis. pic.twitter.com/YePR85yRgz

— Nick Roush (@RoushKSR) March 4, 2023

Bat Cats go for Sweep

The Wildcats got the best of the Sycamores during a Saturday doubleheader. Kentucky scored four runs in the second inning of game one to defeat Indiana State 4-2, then held off a late rally in game two for a 5-4 victory. Now 8-2 with three series wins, they’ll go for their first sweep of the season at Kentucky Proud Park, beginning at 1 pm EST.