KSR's takeaways from White's 70-67 win over Blue in Pikeville

Kentucky’s trip to Pikeville for its annual Blue-White Game was a success, with the White squad fighting off the Blue down the stretch to pull off the 70-67 victory. It was also a night dedicated to charity, with the team raising money for flood relief in Eastern Kentucky — a massive impact overall.

How did the philanthropic evening unfold? Who were the event standouts? KSR has the takeaways live from Pikeville.

$162,450 raised for flood relief

Let’s start with why the Wildcats were in Pikeville to begin with: raising money for flood victims in Eastern Kentucky. Taking place away at Appalachian Wireless Arena, all ticket proceeds went to flood relief efforts, with the 7,000-seat venue packed with UK fans there for a great cause.

The grand total? $162,450, with a giant check presented with the team alongside Gov. Andy Beshear at halftime.

It was a moment that drew the loudest cheer of the night, a long standing ovation from fans in the stands.

Kentucky raises $162,450 for flood relief in Eastern KY with the Blue-White Game in Pikeville

Ticket proceeds went to charity. Very impressive. pic.twitter.com/Kb5WOquqUx

— Jack Pilgrim (@JackPilgrimKSR) October 23, 2022

This night was bigger than basketball, and Big Blue Nation pulled through in that regard.

Injuries throw things off from the start

We already knew Oscar Tshiebwe would miss the Blue-White Game after undergoing minor knee surgery two weeks ago. He’s expected back by the regular season.

From there, though, John Calipari announced both Sahvir Wheeler and Lance Ware would miss the scrimmage, as well, forcing the program to audible leading up to the event. Kentucky opened with a practice, running light workouts and drills with the walk-ons and managers to make up for the important absentees.

After a 30-minute warm-up (Calipari said it was to let late-arriving fans get to their seats), the actual scrimmage began. As one would expect with three players rotation players out, the lineups were a bit wacky with a heavy mix of walk-ons and scholarship players.

We were one turned ankle away from Orlando Antigua out there anchoring the post.

Blue and White Lineups

What were those lineups? Well, things were a bit lopsided in terms of star talent and rotation players. The White group featured five core pieces from start to finish, while the Blue group was three scholarship players and two walk-ons throughout.

BLUE

• Adou Thiero, Antonio Reeves, Walker Horn, Brennan Canada, Ugonna Onyenso

WHITE

• CJ Fredrick, Cason Wallace, Chris Livingston, Jacob Toppin, Daimion Collins

That wasn’t indicative of the final score, though, as Blue fought and kept things competitive until the final buzzer.

Antonio Reeves and Adou Thiero put Blue on their backs

If I told you before the game that two players combined for 50 points in a three-point loss, I can almost guarantee you Antonio Reeves and Adou Thiero would not be the first two names that came to mind — well, maybe the former, but certainly not the latter.

That was the case Saturday evening, as Reeves led all scorers with 27 points on 8-19 shooting, 5-12 from three and 6-6 from the line to go with three rebounds, one assist and one steal. He was electric with the ball in his hands, showing off impressive handles to create (and make) shots at all three levels. Reeves was named event MVP at the conclusion of the evening. He was also Kentucky’s MVP in the Bahamas.

Leading the charge at point guard, Thiero added 21 points on 8-16 shooting and 4-7 from the line to go with 12 rebounds, six assists, three steals and three turnovers. The versatile freshman oozed confidence and played with freedom, driving to the basket and finishing through contact for some tough finishes while also holding his own defensively. It’s early, but between the Bahamas and tonight, Thiero is looking like a clear rotation piece on this deep roster.

Ugonna Onyenso makes his Kentucky debut

Kentucky’s lone true center available with Tshiebwe and Ware out, Ugonna Onyenso looked the part in his first live debut for the Wildcats, showing off his elite defensive instincts with a handful of head-turning blocks while also scoring with touch inside.

The 6-foot-11 freshman finished with 14 points, five rebounds and four blocks in his first live debut for the Wildcats. He knocked down six of nine shot attempts and both of his free throws, with maybe his most impressive bucket coming on a poster dunk over Daimion Collins in transition.

Onyenso may be a little raw and time for further development will be necessary, but the physical tools are there. Now it’s about turning that potential to production in real games — whenever that may be.

CJ Fredrick can shoot the rock

After missing the entire 2021-22 season due to injury, CJ Fredrick returned to the floor with something to prove on Saturday. Leading the White team with 18 points on a smooth 7-11 shooting, the senior guard knocked down four 3-pointers on five attempts, living up to his hype as a coin-flip shooting specialist.

Adou Thiero said after the game that he expects Fredrick to make every shot he takes from three, and it’s not hard to see why. A career 46.6% 3-point shooter, it’s the main reason he was brought in last offseason.

That isn’t all the Iowa transfer can do, though. He added five rebounds, two assists and one steal in 40 minutes (30 for the game, 10 for the practice) of action, with that final stat maybe being the most impressive at all. Everybody knows what he brings to the table as a player, but availability is the name of the game with Fredrick. When he’s on the floor, he produces. That proved to be the case yet again in the intrasquad scrimmage.

Cason Wallace at point guard

With Wheeler out due to injury, we also got another long look at freshman Cason Wallace at the lead point guard position, a role he thrived in yet again. He finished second on the White squad with 15 points on 6-11 shooting and 3-6 from three to go with a game-high eight assists, two rebounds and two steals with zero turnovers.

His court vision was spectacular, finding open teammates on the perimeter and around the rim, including a few lobs for alley-oop slams. He shined in catch-and-shoot situations away from the ball, as well, lifting for jumpers with zero hesitation and converting with hands in his face. And then there was the defense — but that’s a given at this point.

There’s little doubt Wallace will be one of the team’s top standouts this season, no matter the role or position. Tonight just so happened to be as PG1.

Jacob Toppin likes to get downhill

He was the second-leading scorer in the Bahamas, but Jacob Toppin finished fourth on his own team in that category in Pikeville, puttting up 12 points on 5-10 shooting and 1-3 from three to go with nine rebounds, four assists and a steal to go with three turnovers.

How he produced, though, stood out, as the 6-foot-9 forward showed off his versatility as a grab-and-go specialist, starting the break and pushing the pace to create scores in transition. He also drove with confidence and looked to finish through contact around the basket. Unsurprisingly, one of those drives resulted in a poster finish — and he almost had a second.

Toppin has some competition at the four spot with Daimion Collins (10 points, eight rebounds, three assists) and even a bit with Chris Livingston (15 points, four rebounds), who will spend some time on the floor as a small-ball four/fourth guard of sorts. But he’s going to play — a lot — and impact winning for the Wildcats this season.

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Now the real fun begins against new competition. Exhibition play starts next Sunday when the Wildcats take on Missouri Western State at 7 p.m. ET, followed by another vs. Kentucky State on Thursday, Nov. 3. From there, the regular season begins on Monday, Nov. 7 vs. Howard inside Rupp Arena at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Basketball season is finally here.