KSR's takeaways from Kentucky's 75-66 win at Ole Miss

Despite a non-conference slip-up vs. Kansas, the Kentucky Wildcats entered the day on a four-game winning streak in the SEC and closed it out by pushing it to five straight with a victory in Oxford, defeating Ole Miss by a final score of 75-66.

It was a bit of a chaotic first half, with both sides going into the matchup shorthanded — two starters missing for the Rebels, one for the Wildcats — along with another injury for the latter coming before the break. That led to a back-and-forth affair that saw both teams shoot 44% from the field through 20 minutes, Kentucky nearly tripling up the opposition in bench points (15-6) and leading for over 11 minutes, but Ole Miss winning the rebounding battle (17-16) and finishing with more points in the paint (16-12), assists (11-9) and points off turnovers (5-0).

After a four-minute adjustment to open the second half that saw UK lead by just one at the first TV timeout, the Wildcats finally strung together some buckets on offense and stops on defense, pushing the lead to seven with 12 minutes to go, then 13 with eight minutes remaining. Kentucky would lead by as many as 14 points in the second half, hitting that mark twice with 4:32 to go, then with 2:42 remaining. Up by 13 with less than a minute remaining, Ole Miss scored four points in garbage time to make it a single-digit loss, closer than the game felt in the final 10 minutes.

In the end, the Wildcats shot 48.1% from the field (25-52), 50% from three (6-12) and 82.6% from the line (19-23) while holding the Rebels to 44.3% shooting (27-61), 21.1% from deep (4-19) and 80% at the charity strip (8-10).

KSR has the top takeaways from the road win, the team’s third straight away from Rupp Arena.

Cason Wallace out, Sahvir Wheeler in

After starting five straight games for Kentucky, Wallace was unable to take the floor in Oxford after being held out with a knee contusion, an injury suffered Monday in practice. John Calipari said after the game he was fine during pregame shootaround, but “stepped funny” and came up hobbled a bit, leading the Kentucky head coach keep him sidelined for the matchup.

“I told him, ‘Just stay out, man,'” Calipari said. “He can’t hurt himself, but you don’t need to be playing guys that are 80% or 90%, you just don’t.”

Insert Sahvir Wheeler, who returned to his starting point guard role and played 33 minutes, finishing with four points (2-8 FG), nine assists, four rebounds and just one turnover. It wasn’t a perfect performance, missing some shots at the rim while struggling defensively to open the game, but he thrived as a facilitator and guarded 94 feet — even forcing a 10-second violation with six minutes to go.

And the bulk of his production came after suffering a turned ankle to close out the first half, missing the final four minutes before returning to add two points and six assists in 20 second-half minutes. Calipari admitted Wheeler was in pain at the break, but knew he had to give it a go because the Wildcats were shorthanded and his presence was needed on the floor.

“Sahvir’s in the locker room, and he says, ‘Coach, I’m going to go because you guys need me to win. I’m going.’ He said, ‘It hurts, but I’ll be fine. I’ll deal with it after the game.’ That’s a kid that plays for our state, that plays for this university, that plays for this basketball program.”

Wheeler stepped up when Kentucky needed him.

Antonio Reeves is embracing the green light

The Illinois State entered the day hitting the double-figure scoring mark in seven consecutive games, but shooting above 40% from the field in four of those. He also shot just 33.3% from three in that stretch, 14 makes on 42 attempts. Calipari clearly trusts him to be a high-volume scorer, but the efficiency hasn’t always followed.

It certainly followed him to Ole Miss, with Reeves finishing with a season-high 27 points on an absurd 8-12 shooting and 6-7 from three to go with three rebounds, two steals and one assist in 31 minutes. He was a human flamethrower, specifically in the second half, going for 18 in the final 18 minutes alone (5-7 FG, 3-3 3PT, 5-5 FT).

Entering the game with 17:59 to go, he scored 11 of Kentucky’s 13 points in a five-minute stretch. He then scored five straight to go up 12 points with six minutes to go, then another two to go back up 11 with 1:20 remaining.

“We got separation because Antonio made shots,” Calipari said after the game.

Part of that, though, is the green light he’s earned (and been granted) from the coaching staff. Reeves is clearly wired to score, someone with a short memory and confidence every shot he takes is going to fall. That leads to erratic play — he also had four turnovers — and poor shot selection at times, but allowing a player to battle through that over the course of a game, a stretch of games or even the season as a whole brings forth performances like this one. The 6-foot-5 senior has embraced the green light, and tonight, he rewarded the Wildcats with a season-high scoring effort.

Jacob Toppin is becoming the player Kentucky needs

It just wasn’t working for Toppin through the midway point of the season. Shots weren’t falling and he was struggling defensively, leading to poor body language and disappearing during games. He was played off the floor at Missouri, a moment he later described as “rock bottom” for him personally as a basketball player.

Then, a breakthrough. It was the realization that he could contribute and play well without being a superstar scorer, being comfortable with “good,” not necessarily great.

His continued growth was on display once again in Oxford, finishing with 18 points on 7-14 shooting while adding four assists and three rebounds in 36 minutes. He took some offensive risks, but really played within the offense for the most part, looking to finish around the basket while knocking down the occasional mid-range jumper. It was his fifth straight game in double figures and seventh of nine overall, 14+ points in five of those nine.

Again, it’s solid, consistent growth, not perfect basketball. He still had a few lapses where he didn’t fight, resulting in Calipari yanking him from the game, but he responded well when he returned to the floor. “Then I put them back in and he was really good,” the UK head coach said. That’s part of developing as a player, something he’s clearly doing at a time the team needs it.

Chris Livingston is a “beast” in all-around effort

“How about Chris Livingston today? I mean, Chris Livingston was an absolute beast, and that’s what we need him to be,” Calipari said after the game. “And I tried to tell him, ‘You’re not Antonio. I know people want you to play like Antonio, but you’re not him. And guess what? Antonio can’t do any of the things that you do. Be an all-star at what you do.'”

There’s a lot going on there with that quote. What does that tell you? For starters, the five-star freshman did play well, finishing with six points on 3-5 shooting to go with seven rebounds, one assist and zero turnovers in 31 minutes. He led the team in +/- with a +16. And he guarded, played hard. Fought.

But read that quote again: “I know people want you to play like Antonio, but you’re not him.”

What does that tell you? You don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to read between those lines. Livingston’s role and how he’s been used has been a constant topic of conversation this season, a non-stop battle of three vs. four talk. He wants to put the ball on the floor and create his own shot, take threes the way he did throughout his high school career as a five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American. The people around him do, too. And why wouldn’t they? He’s a talented player who produced at a high level under legendary high school coach Steve Smith at Oak Hill. He signed with Kentucky to do the same under John Calipari in Lexington.

But that doesn’t mean his game wasn’t flawed in high school, either. He was stiff and didn’t shoot extremely well, not the strongest hands. That’s where the four talk began, and it’s why he spent a lot of time playing the four in a four-out dribble drive offense under Smith at Oak Hill. It hides his flaws better while maximizing his strengths — and there are a lot of them.

And I guess my confusion lies here: since when is the modern four in the NBA not a position that favors versatility or lets dynamic players like Livingston thrive? How many fours in the league don’t take threes, put the ball on the floor or guard multiple positions? It’s a small number that will only shrink as time marches on. Will he embrace that? We’re at least taking steps in the right direction, with the win at Ole Miss being the latest example.

Adou Thiero, Daimion Collins step up off the bench

With Wallace out and Wheeler going down with an ankle injury in the first half, Adou Thiero was thrust into the lineup to play spot minutes at point guard. The results? Two points (2-4 FT), one rebound, one assist, one block, zero turnovers in six minutes of action. Like he always does, the freshman role player entered the game looked to make plays, attacking the basket on offense while flying around with a refreshing recklessness on defense. He stepped up.

Also stepping up? Daimion Collins, who played his first minutes since the South Carolina loss back on Jan. 10. It may have only been two, but he still came in and competed in limited action, putting up a quick four points (1-1 FG, 2-3 FT) and one rebound, highlighted by an and-one dunk in transition in the first half.

Daimion AND ONE 💥 pic.twitter.com/nHFPfj42lN

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) February 1, 2023

Maybe the biggest note on Collins? Calipari called out Oscar Tshiebwe’s defensive struggles once again, specifically in the pick-and-roll. Despite finishing with 14 points and 11 rebounds, had the senior superstar continued to give up baskets on the other end, the Kentucky head coach made it clear Collins was next man up.

And in that role Tuesday evening, the sophomore athlete shined in limited minutes. Will that be expanded as the staff looks further into Tshiebwe’s defensive struggles? He certainly wasn’t a liability.

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Kentucky moves to 15-7 on the year with the win, including 6-3 in conference play. The Wildcats will next return home to face the Florida Gators on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 8:30 p.m. ET, live on ESPN.

Just keep winning.