Wildcats Take Down the Rebels

The Kentucky Wildcats (24-6, 13-4) stay undefeated at home on the season after beating the Ole Miss Rebels (13-17, 4-13) on Tuesday, winning 83-72.

1️⃣8️⃣-0️⃣ at Rupp.

Thank you, #BBN 💙 pic.twitter.com/0gQXuZNZkK

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) March 2, 2022

For the Wildcats seniors, Tuesday night’s game would be their last in Rupp arena as it was Senior Night and they ended it with a win.

Tshiebwe Continues to Dominate for the Wildcats

Kentucky junior Oscar Tshiebwe might be one of the best big men in all of college basketball right now. He consistently hits his averages and has proven to be a tough assignment for whoever is guarding him. On the season, he is averaging 16.9 points and 15.3 rebounds.

Tshiebwe finished the game with 18 points and 15 rebounds – four of the 15 being offensive rebounds. Tshiebwe scored efficiently against the Rebels, shooting 9-12 in the game.

Tshiebwe’s 15 rebounds would be half of the Wildcats’ total rebounds, 30, in this game. Furthermore, he only had nine less than the Rebels’ total of 24.

This would be his 24th double-double of the season, tying him with former UK player Julius Randle for second all-time on the Kentucky leaderboards.

https://twitter.com/SECNetwork/status/1498843230477205505

In addition, he now has 12 straight games with a double-double. This is the longest streak for the Wildcats since Dan Issel in 1969-1970.

Double-Double No. 24 for Big O 💪

12 straight double-doubles is the longest streak at UK since Dan Issel had 12 straight in 1969-70. pic.twitter.com/DqOksRxhUh

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) March 2, 2022

Wildcats’ Offense Fuels them Past the Rebels

Kentucky’s offense boasted an efficient shooting night. It was 60% from the field, shooting 33-55 on the night. Additionally, it was 6-14, 42.9%, from behind the arc. In the game it only missed four free throws, ending 11-15 from the charity stripe.

Four players for Kentucky scored in double digits. Tshiebwe had 18 points, Sahvir Wheeler with 16, TyTy Washington Jr. scored 14 and lastly, Keion Brooks Jr. finished with 10.

For Wheeler, he was one of the many bright spots for the Wildcats. He ended the game with 16 points, seven assists, a team-high and three rebounds.

On the flip side, the Rebels’ offense just couldn’t keep pace with their opponents. They shot 50% from the field and 38% from behind the three-point line. They only shot 10 free throws and made seven of them.

Ole Miss sophomore Matthew Murrell led the team with 25 points. He also led the team in assists with four. Fifteen of his points came from beyond the three-point line, which he was 5-8 from behind the arc. Outside of Murrell, only one other player scored over 10 points. Senior Nysier Brooks tallied 14 points, five rebounds (all five were offensive), two assists and two steals.

However, the Wildcats O was just too much for Ole Miss as it fell 83-72 on Kentucky’s Senior Night.

Win No. 24 ☑️ pic.twitter.com/uzgVGdy5sg

— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) March 2, 2022

Last Game of the Regular Season for Both

Kentucky will finish the season Saturday on the road against Florida. It will be hoping to finish the regular season with a win and the chance at the SEC title as it sits second in the league table.

Ole Miss hosts Vanderbilt Saturday. The Rebels will be looking to finish their regular season on a positive note with a win against the Commodores to take into SEC tournament play.