The Kentucky Wildcats had a tough loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores in a 68-66 thriller at Rupp Arena on Wednesday night. The hot-shooting Commodores faced a Kentucky team that was cold on the offensive end, going 6-for-20 and missing its first seven three-point attempts. The result was a back-and-forth game in which Kentucky trailed most of the second half and finally came up short, losing on Senior Night to fall to 20-10 on the season.
Despite the loss, Oscar Tshiebwe provided one final gift for the home fans, earning his 45th double-double with 21 points and 20 rebounds. The West Virginia transfer was the consensus National Player of the Year in 2022 and was recognized as the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week last week. Tshiebwe also scored more than 1,000 points in a Kentucky uniform and came into the home finale ranked eighth all-time in program history with 861 total rebounds.
The Wildcats struggled early on the offensive end and missed a lot of shots. They had some momentum after Adou Thiero jumper, and CJ Fredrick nailed a much-needed three for the Wildcats. Daimion Collins got an easy dunk to extend the lead to 28-23 before Vandy closed with a pair of free throws and a trio of three-pointers to complete an 11-4 run that resulted in a 34-30 halftime lead.
Vanderbilt opened the second half strong and extended the lead to 44-35 with 16:27 remaining. Kentucky fought back and went on a 9-0 run and ultimately cut the lead to 49-47 on a Chris Livingston three-pointer. Jacob Toppin cut the lead to 64-61 with two free throws, and Tshiebwe dunk and an Antonio Reeves free throw tied the game at 64-all. The two teams traded baskets before Jordan Wright hit a jumper at the foul line for the game-winner with 2.7 seconds remaining.
The Wildcats played without Cason Wallace for most of the second half after he went down with an ankle injury. The freshman guard has been sensational running the point this season, and the team is already without Sahvir Wheeler with an injury. Wheeler just had a procedure that could sideline him for the rest of Kentucky’s season.
On Senior Night, a total of six seniors were honored during pre-game ceremonies as Oscar Tshiebwe, Jacob Toppin, CJ Fredrick, Antonio Reeves, Brennan Canada, and Sahvir Wheeler were all recognized. Unfortunately, Wheeler was not in attendance after going through a minor procedure this week that is unrelated to his current ankle injury. All of the seniors will have an opportunity to return for one final season due to the NCAA’s Covid-19 eligibility rule, and only time will tell who might be back next season. Tshiebwe and Toppin are most likely headed to the NBA Draft.
With the loss, the Wildcats will likely fall out of the Top 25 again. They began the week by cracking the AP Top 25 for the first time since December 26th, when they were ranked No. 19 before losing to Missouri. The “Cats will now have to regroup when they travel to Arkansas this weekend for the season finale before prepping for the SEC Tournament that will be played Mach 8-12 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The Wildcats will have to work hard to bounce back from this loss and hope for a better showing in the tournament.
