KSR's quick takeaways from Kentucky's blowout win over Missouri

Kentucky will begin its conference schedule with a 1-0 record, defeating the Missouri Tigers by a final score of 83-56 at Rupp Arena. The Wildcats now move to 10-2 on the season, good for second in the SEC behind only Auburn (12-1).

How did Kentucky come out on top? And what does it mean for the Wildcats as they look ahead to Tubby Smith’s return when High Point heads to Lexington on Friday?

Keion Brooks Jr.’s best game of the season

Brooks has had a fine season, averaging 10.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per contest in 23.2 minutes per contest. The issue, though, is that the junior forward has floated on the perimeter to hunt mid-range jumpers rather than attacking the basket and creating mismatches at the rim.

Tonight, though, Brooks was wildly effective across the board, finishing with 17 points (7-11 FG, 3-4 FT), nine rebounds, two blocks and one assist. He finished strong, was aggressive on the glass and fought on defense, putting together easily his best all-around performance of the season.

There was some talk leading up to the game that Jacob Toppin could take some of Brooks’ minutes and potentially even his spot in the starting lineup. Tonight, though, the junior forward earned every one of his 27 minutes on the floor.

TyTy Washington with a smooth 14 points

The freshman guard just gets buckets, plain and simple. For the ninth time this season, Washington broke the double-digit scoring mark, finishing with 14 points on 6-13 shooting and 2-4 from three to go with six rebounds, two assists, two steals and just one turnover in 30 minutes.

It was right on par for his season scoring pace — he entered the game averaging 13.9 points per contest — and did so on solid efficiency, shooting greater than 42 percent for an eleventh consecutive game. The only time he fell short of that mark was the team’s season-opener against Duke (21.4 percent).

A cold shooting night for Oscar Tshiebwe

Maybe Oscar Tshiebwe is mortal after all? Eh, probably not. Tonight, though, the 6-foot-9 center had his worst shooting performance as a Wildcat, finishing the day just 2-10 from the field.

He did, however, finish with 13 points (9-10 FT), 20 rebounds, two blocks and one steal because he’s a freak of nature and his worst is better than everyone else’s best.

His game log continues to be absolutely absurd through 12 games

• 17 points and 20 rebounds vs. Duke
• 14 points and 20 rebounds vs. Robert Morris
• 24 points and 16 rebounds vs. Mount St. Mary’s
• 0 points and 10 rebounds vs. Ohio
• 12 points and 14 rebounds vs. Albany
• 12 points and 16 rebounds vs. North Florida
• 20 points and 16 rebounds vs. Central Michigan
• 23 points and 11 rebounds vs. Southern U
• 25 points and 7 rebounds vs. Notre Dame
• 16 points and 12 rebounds vs. North Carolina
• 14 points and 28 rebounds vs. Western Kentucky
• 13 points and 20 rebounds vs. Missouri

Tshiebwe continues to make history in his debut season as a Wildcat.

Sahvir Wheeler goes for 11 and 9

Wheeler’s ability to beat defenders off the dribble is second-to-none on the roster, and he proved it again Wednesday evening, finishing with 11 points (5-12 FG) and nine assists in the blowout win. He picked up easy buckets at the rim, pushed the ball ahead in transition, and found his teammates for scores on the perimeter and around the basket.

More importantly, he finished with just one turnover, good for an absurd 9-1 assist/turnover ratio. The entire backcourt combined for just three turnovers between Wheeler (1), Washington (1), Kellan Grady (0) and Davion Mintz (1).

It was the perfect complementary game for Kentucky’s starting point guard, his eighth with at least eight assists and seventh with at least ten points.

Davion Mintz leads the bench in scoring

Kentucky’s spark plug off the bench finally ignited Wednesday night, as Davion Mintz added seven points on 3-8 shooting to go with one rebound and one steal in 15 minutes.

It’s been a rough shooting year for Mintz, who shot greater than 30 percent just twice this season leading up to tonight’s matchup (80 percent vs. RMU, 57.1 percent vs. Ohio). He still shot just 37.5 percent from the field, but he had timely buckets on a couple of momentum-shifting plays for the Wildcats.

Kentucky needs to get Mintz rolling as SEC play ramps up, and tonight was a solid start for the super senior.

Dontaie Allen gets 1:46 of playing time

We saw our first appearance for Dontaie Allen since the Southern game back on Dec. 7, with the sophomore guard playing just shy of two minutes — the final 1:46 of the game, to be exact.

With the game well out of reach, Allen finished with zero points on 0-1 shooting and a foul in his limited time on the floor.

Kentucky surpasses last season’s win total

UK can officially move past its 2020-21 season, one in which the Wildcats finished with an abysmal 9-16 record. With tonight’s win, Kentucky moved to 10-2 on the year, surpassing last year’s mark with 19 games to go in the regular season.

What a difference one year makes.