Skip to main content

Reed Sheppard debuted with a six-assist game

Drew Franklinby:Drew Franklin07/12/23

DrewFranklinKSR

reed-sheppard-globl-jam-kentucky-germany
(Photo by Mont Dawson/KSR)

Kentucky freshman Reed Sheppard made his highly-anticipated debut in his dad’s old jersey, number fifteen, in the Wildcats’ win over Germany at GLOBL Jam. The 2023 Mr. Kentucky Basketball came off the bench for nearly seventeen minutes in his first run as a collegiate athlete, providing a first-quarter spark with an immediate assist to extend Kentucky’s early lead. Sheppard hit Antonio Reeves for a quick two to push the Wildcats ahead by eight.

Then in the second quarter, Sheppard logged his second assist of the game when he deflected and stole a German pass in the backcourt before finding DJ Wagner for Wagner’s first dunk as a Kentucky Wildcat.

The Big Blue Nation waited several years to see those two kids grow up to wear UK blue:

Sheppard added four more assists to match Wagner with a team-high six assists apiece.

“He played great today,” Wagner said of his freshman teammate. “He played intense. He played hard.”

John Calipari was impressed, too. When it was his turn to speak about Sheppard, Calipari said, “He got his hands on balls. He had assists. He’s an unbelievable thrower-in. You guys don’t even know because–that is, like, sideline out, baseline, the thrower-in is really important and he is always calm and waits and waits and throws it to the right guy.”

Calipari was referring to the inbounds play when Jordan Burks was that “right guy,” and Sheppard executed the cross-court lob with precision and only a second to spare.

Adou Thiero said, “Seeing him in practice and everything, I know he can shoot, get to the hoop. He can pass. His passing is really, like, that really got me. He threw that lob with one second left. I wasn’t expecting that. He’s just making great plays.”

Top 10

  1. 1

    Bowl insurance

    Historic policies for Hunter, Shedeur

    New
  2. 2

    Nick Saban endorsed

    Lane Kiffin suggests as commish

    Hot
  3. 3

    Diego Pavia

    Vandy QB ruling forces change

  4. 4

    Notre Dame takes shot

    Announcer trolls Fighting Irish

  5. 5

    Stephen A. Smith fires back

    Beef with Kirk Herbstreit continues

View All

Calipari also noted Sheppard was “unbelievable” in Kentucky’s closed-doors scrimmage against Africa on Wednesday.

“Like, if you were here, you said, ‘Wow.'”

Six assists, three rebounds, and two steals

Though Sheppard had no trouble finding the scorer, he himself struggled to score against Germany. He went 0-for-4 from the field, all from outside the three-point arc, for a scoreless afternoon.

Defensively, Sheppard had two steals and three rebounds. With the six assists, he was one of the most well-rounded players on the floor in Toronto.

Discuss This Article

Comments have moved.

Join the conversation and talk about this article and all things Kentucky Sports in the new KSR Message Board.

KSBoard

2024-12-23