2021–22 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

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2021–22 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
s
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 7
APNo. 5
2021–22 record17–4 (6–2 SEC)
Head coach
  • John Calipari (13th season)
Assistant coaches
Home arenaRupp Arena
(Capacity: 20,545)
Seasons
← 2020–21
 →
2021–22 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 Auburn 8 – 0   1.000 20 – 1   .952
No. 5 Kentucky 6 – 2   .750 17 – 4   .810
Arkansas 5 – 3   .625 16 – 5   .762
No. 22 Tennessee 5 – 3   .625 14 – 6   .700
Mississippi State 4 – 3   .571 13 – 7   .650
No. 25 LSU 4 – 4   .500 16 – 5   .762
Texas A&M 4 – 4   .500 15 – 6   .714
Alabama 4 – 4   .500 14 – 7   .667
South Carolina 4 – 4   .500 13 – 7   .650
Florida 3 – 5   .375 13 – 8   .619
Vanderbilt 3 – 5   .375 11 – 9   .550
Missouri 2 – 5   .286 8 – 12   .400
Ole Miss 2 – 6   .250 11 – 10   .524
Georgia 1 – 7   .125 6 – 15   .286
† 2022 SEC Tournament winner
As of January 29, 2022; Rankings from AP Poll

The 2021–22 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represents the University of Kentucky in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Wildcats, founding members of the Southeastern Conference, play home games at Rupp Arena and are led by John Calipari in his 13th season as head coach.

Previous season[]

The Wildcats' last season was marred with many inconsistent stretches and a multitude of losses which saw the team finish the season 9–16, 8–9 in SEC play. It was their worst season since 1988–89 and their worst winning percentage since 1926–27, as was their 1–6 start to begin the season, from which they never recovered. This start was their worst since 1911. To end their SEC play, they lost by one point in the first round of the SEC tournament to Mississippi State which left the Wildcats without an automatic tournament bid. Because of that, they did not qualify for the NCAA Tournament. This also marked the worst season that John Calipari has coached since 1989 which was his first season at Massachusetts.

Offseason[]

Coaching changes[]

Departures[]

Name Position Year at
Kentucky 		Alma mater (year) Reason for departure
Tony Barbee Associate Head Coach 7th UMass (2004) Head coach at Central Michigan[1]
Joel Justus Assistant Coach 5th UNC Wilmington (2004) Assistant at Arizona State[2]

Additions to staff[]

Name Position Year at
Kentucky 		Alma mater (year) Previous position
Orlando Antigua Associate Head Coach 1st (current stint)
6th (overall) 		Pittsburgh (1995) Assistant at Illinois; previously a UK assistant from 2009–2014.[3]
Ron "Chin" Coleman Assistant Coach 1st Lamar (1997) Assistant at Illinois.[3]
Brad Calipari Graduate Assistant 1st Kentucky (B.A., 2019)
Detroit Mercy (M.A., 2021) 		Player at Detroit Mercy; also played at Kentucky from 2017–2019. Son of UK head coach John Calipari.[4]
Riley Welch Graduate Assistant 1st Kentucky (2021) Player at Kentucky; also played at UC Irvine in 2018–19.[5]

Player departures[]

Note that all players in the 2020–21 season, regardless of their classification, had the option to return to the program. Due to COVID-19 impacts, the NCAA declared that the 2020–21 season would not count against the athletic eligibility of any student-athlete in any of the organization's winter sports, including basketball.[6] This led the NBA and its players union to agree that for the 2021 draft only, players who were seniors in 2020–21 had to declare their eligibility for the draft.[7]

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason left
Devin Askew 2 Guard 6'3" 198 Freshman Sacramento, CA Transferred to Texas[8]
Brandon Boston Jr. 3 Guard 6'7" 185 Freshman Norcross, GA Declared for the 2021 NBA draft[9]
Terrence Clarke 5 Guard 6'7" 194 Freshman Boston, MA Declared for the 2021 NBA draft, but died in a car accident prior to the draft.[10]
Riley Welch 13 Guard 6'0" 185 Senior Littleton, CO Graduated and joined the UK coaching staff; walk-on
Cam'Ron Fletcher 21 Forward 6'6" 215 Freshman St. Louis, MO Transferred to Florida State[11]
Isaiah Jackson 23 Forward 6'10" 206 Freshman Pontiac, MI Declared for the 2021 NBA draft[9]
Olivier Sarr 30 Center 7'0" 237 Senior Bordeaux, FRA Graduated and declared for the 2021 NBA draft; undrafted

2021 recruiting class[]

On October 26, 2020, Bryce Hopkins committed to UK over offers from Louisville and Wisconsin. Hopkins is the first commitment in the 2021 recruiting class and the #9 ranked power forward in the 2021 class by 247Sports. He is a consensus four-star player by the four main recruiting services and is ranked #38 overall by 247Sports.

On October 31, 2020, Daimion Collins committed to UK over offers from Alabama and Oklahoma. Collins is the second commitment in the 2021 recruiting class and the #2 ranked power forward in the 2021 class by 247Sports. He is a consensus five-star player by the four main recruiting services and is ranked #10 overall by 247Sports.

On May 12, 2021, TyTy Washington committed to UK over offers from Arizona, Baylor, Kansas, LSU and Oregon. Washington is the third commitment in the 2021 recruiting class and the #1 ranked point guard in the 2021 class by 247Sports. He is a consensus five-star player by the four main recruiting services and is ranked #11 overall by 247Sports.

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Bryce Hopkins
PF 		Oak Park, IL Fenwick (IL) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Oct 26, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 88
Daimion Collins
PF 		Atlanta, TX Atlanta (TX) 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Oct 31, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 92
TyTy Washington
PG 		Phoenix, AZ AZ Compass Prep (AZ) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) May 12, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 94
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 5th  247Sports: 6th  ESPN: 5th
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Kentucky 2021 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  • "2021 Kentucky Basketball Commits". ESPN.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  • "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.

2022 recruiting class[]

On November 10, 2021, four consensus five-star prospects signed with UK—Skyy Clark, Chris Livingston, Shaedon Sharpe, and Cason Wallace. Clark plans to enroll at UK in the spring 2022 semester, while the others plan to arrive in fall 2022.[12]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Skyy Clark
PG 		Los Angeles, CA Montverde Academy (FL) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Nov 10, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 90
Chris Livingston
SF 		Akron, OH Oak Hill Academy (VA) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Nov 10, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 91
Shaedon Sharpe
SG 		London, ON Dream City Christian (AZ) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Nov 10, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 95
Cason Wallace
CG 		Dallas, TX Richardson (TX) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Nov 10, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 92
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 2nd  247Sports: 8th  ESPN: 1st
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • The 247Sports class ranking reflects Skyy Clark's originally planned enrollment at UK in January 2022, technically placing him in the 2021 recruiting class. However, Clark ended up not enrolling at that time, and ESPN and Rivals rankings consider Clark to be a 2022 recruit.

2023 recruiting class[]

On November 20, 2021, Reed Sheppard verbally committed to UK over multiple offers, with Louisville and Virginia among the most active in attempting to recruit him. The son of former UK basketball players Jeff Sheppard and the former Stacey Reed, he was the first commitment to the 2023 recruiting class. At the time of his commitment, he was the #3 ranked combo guard in the 2023 class by 247 Sports.[13]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Reed Sheppard
CG 		London, KY North Laurel (KY) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Nov 20, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 86
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 21st  247Sports: 17th  ESPN: 37th
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Incoming transfers[]

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School Years Eligible[a] Date Eligible
CJ Fredrick[14] 1 G 6'3" 190 RS Junior Cincinnati, OH Iowa 3 October 1, 2021
Sahvir Wheeler[15] 2 G 5'9" 180 Junior Houston, TX Georgia 3 October 1, 2021
Kellan Grady[16] 31 G 6'5" 205 Graduate Student Boston, MA Davidson 1 October 1, 2021
Oscar Tshiebwe[17] 34 F 6'9" 255 Junior Lubumbashi, DR Congo West Virginia 3 October 1, 2021
  1. ^ Due to a special NCAA ruling, the 2020–21 season does not count against the eligibility of players in all NCAA winter sports, including basketball.

Roster[]

2021–22 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 Jacob Toppin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Rhode Island Brooklyn, NY
G 1 CJ Fredrick Injured 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Jr Iowa Cincinnati, OH
G 2 Sahvir Wheeler 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Georgia Houston, TX
G 3 TyTy Washington 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 197 lb (89 kg) Fr AZ Compass Prep Phoenix, AZ
F 4 Daimion Collins 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 202 lb (92 kg) Fr Atlanta Atlanta, TX
G 10 Davion Mintz 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) GS Creighton Charlotte, NC
G 11 Dontaie Allen 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS So Pendleton County Falmouth, KY
F 12 Keion Brooks Jr. 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr La Lumiere School Fort Wayne, IN
F 14 Brennan Canada (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 198 lb (90 kg) Jr George Rogers Clark Mount Sterling, KY
G/F 20 Zan Payne (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Jr Lexington Catholic Lexington, KY
G 21 Shaedon Sharpe Current redshirt 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Dream City Christian London, ON
F 23 Bryce Hopkins 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Fenwick Oak Park, IL
G 25 Kareem Watkins (W) 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Kingsway Regional Camden, NJ
G 31 Kellan Grady 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) GS Davidson Boston, MA
F 34 Oscar Tshiebwe 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Jr West Virginia Lubumbashi, DR Congo
F 55 Lance Ware 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So Camden Camden, NJ
Head coach
  • John Calipari (Clarion)
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: May 18, 2021

Schedule and results[]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 29, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 10 Kentucky Wesleyan W 95–72 
 18 –  Tie   10 –  Tshiebwe   6 –  Tie  Rupp Arena (17,133)
Lexington, KY
November 5, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 10 Miles College W 80–71 
 15 –  Tie   12 –  Tshiebwe   6 –  Tie  Rupp Arena (17,814)
Lexington, KY
Regular season
November 9, 2021*
9:30 p.m., ESPN 		No. 10 vs. No. 9 Duke
Champions Classic 		L 71–79  0–1
  17 – Tshiebwe   20 –  Tshiebwe   10 –  Wheeler  Madison Square Garden (18,132)
New York, NY
November 12, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 10 Robert Morris
Kentucky Classic 		W 100–60  1–1
  19 – Grady   20 – Tshiebwe   11 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (18,454)
Lexington, KY
November 16, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 13 Mount St. Mary's
Kentucky Classic 		W 80–55  2–1
  24 – Tshiebwe   16 – Tshiebwe   8 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (18,227)
Lexington, KY
November 19, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 13 Ohio
Kentucky Classic 		W 77–59  3–1
  22 – Brooks Jr.   11 – Washington Jr.   5 – Washington Jr.  Rupp Arena (19,045)
Lexington, KY
November 22, 2021*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+/SECN+ 		No. 10т Albany W 86–61  4–1
  20 – Washington Jr.   14 – Tshiebwe   7 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (18,201)
Lexington, KY
November 26, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 10т North Florida W 86–52  5–1
  14 – Tie   16 – Tshiebwe   14 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (19,350)
Lexington, KY
November 29, 2021*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+/SECN+ 		No. 9 Central Michigan W 85–57  6–1
  20 – Tshiebwe   16 – Tshiebwe   6 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (18,080)
Lexington, KY
December 7, 2021*
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 10 Southern W 76–64  7–1
  23 – Tshiebwe   11 – Tshiebwe   6 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (18,947)
Lexington, KY
December 11, 2021*
5:15 p.m., ESPN 		No. 10 at Notre Dame L 62–66  7–2
  25 – Tshiebwe   7 – Tie   5 – Washington Jr.  Edmund P. Joyce Center (8,283)
South Bend, IN
December 18, 2021*
5:15 p.m., CBS 		No. 21 vs. No. 15 Ohio State
CBS Sports Classic 		Canceled due to COVID-19 issues at Ohio State T-Mobile Arena 
Paradise, NV
December 18, 2021*
5:30 p.m., CBS 		No. 21 vs. North Carolina
CBS Sports Classic 		W 98–69  8–2
  26 – Wheeler   12 – Tshiebwe   8 – Wheeler  T-Mobile Arena (12,117)
Paradise, NV
December 22, 2021*
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 20 Louisville
Rivalry 		Postponed due to COVID-19 issues at Louisville Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
December 22, 2021*
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 20 Western Kentucky W 95–60  9–2
  23 – Grady   28 – Tshiebwe   8 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (20,221)
Lexington, KY
December 29, 2021
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 18 Missouri W 83–56  10–2
(1–0) 		 17 – Brooks Jr.   20 – Tshiebwe   9 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (19,361)
Lexington, KY
December 31, 2021*
12:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 18 High Point W 92–48  11–2
  23 – Grady   8 – Tie   9 – Washington Jr.  Rupp Arena (19,735)
Lexington, KY
January 4, 2022
7:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 16т at No. 21 LSU L 60–65  11–3
(1–1) 		 16 – Mintz   13 – Tshiebwe   4 – Washington Jr.  Pete Maravich Assembly Center (11,808)
Baton Rouge, LA
January 8, 2022
6:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 16т Georgia W 92–77  12–3
(2–1) 		 29 – Tshiebwe   17 – Tshiebwe   17 – Washington Jr.  Rupp Arena (19,343)
Lexington, KY
January 11, 2022
7:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 18 at Vanderbilt W 78–66  13–3
(3–1) 		 30 – Tshiebwe   12 – Tshiebwe   4 – Washington Jr.  Memorial Gymnasium (8,343)
Nashville, TN
January 15, 2022
1:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 18 No. 22 Tennessee
Rivalry 		W 107–79  14–3
(4–1) 		 28 – Washington Jr.   12 – Tshiebwe   8 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (20,278)
Lexington, KY
January 19, 2022
8:30 p.m., SECN 		No. 12 at Texas A&M W 64–58  15–3
(5–1) 		 12 – Wheeler   14 – Tshiebwe   4 – Wheeler  Reed Arena (14,036)
College Station, TX
January 22, 2022
1:00 p.m., CBS 		No. 12 at No. 2 Auburn L 71–80  15–4
(5–2) 		 17 – Tie   14 – Tshiebwe   4 – Tie  Auburn Arena (9,121)
Auburn, AL
January 25, 2022
9:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 12 Mississippi State W 82–74 OT 16–4
(6–2) 		 21 – Tshiebwe   22 – Tshiebwe   6 – Wheeler  Rupp Arena (18,144)
Lexington, KY
January 29, 2022*
6:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 12 at No. 5 Kansas
Big 12/SEC Challenge 		W 80–62  17–4
  27 – Brooks Jr.   14 – Tshiebwe   8 – Wheeler  Allen Fieldhouse (16,300)
Lawrence, KS
February 2, 2022
7:00 p.m., SECN 		No. 5 Vanderbilt       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 5, 2022
8:00 p.m., ESPN 		No. 5 at Alabama       Coleman Coliseum 
Tuscaloosa, AL
February 8, 2022
7:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2 		at South Carolina       Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
February 12, 2022
4:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2 		Florida
Rivalry 		      Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 15, 2022
9:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2 		at Tennessee
Rivalry 		      Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
February 19, 2022
1:00 p.m., CBS 		Alabama       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 23, 2022
9:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2 		LSU       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 26, 2022
2:00 p.m., CBS 		at Arkansas       Bud Walton Arena 
Fayetteville, AR
March 1, 2022
7:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2 		Ole Miss       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
March 5, 2022
2:00 p.m., CBS 		at Florida
Rivalry 		      O'Connell Center 
Gainesville, FL
SEC Tournament
March 9–13, 2022
 vs.        Amalie Arena 
Tampa, FL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Tony Barbee Named Head Coach at Central Michigan" (Press release). Kentucky Wildcats. April 23, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  2. ^ "Joel Justus Accepts Assistant Coach Position at Arizona State" (Press release). Kentucky Wildcats. April 28, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "UK Men's Basketball Adds Orlando Antigua, Chin Coleman to Staff" (Press release). Kentucky Wildcats. August 26, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  4. ^ "Brad Calipari Joins Men's Basketball Staff as Graduate Assistant" (Press release). Kentucky Wildcats. August 26, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  5. ^ "Men's Basketball Adds Riley Welch as Graduate Assistant Coach" (Press release). Kentucky Wildcats. August 27, 2021. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
  6. ^ "DI Council extends eligibility for winter sport student-athletes" (Press release). NCAA. October 14, 2020. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  7. ^ Givony, Jonathan (February 26, 2021). "Pandemic changes NBA draft rules for seniors". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  8. ^ "Longhorns Land Commitment From Talented Kentucky Transfer Devin Askew". SI.com.
  9. ^ a b "Kentucky's Brandon Boston Jr. becomes third Wildcat to declare for NBA draft". ESPN.com.
  10. ^ "Former UK guard Terrence Clarke dies in car accident in L.A." KentuckyToday.com.
  11. ^ "Freshman Cam'Ron Fletcher enters basketball transfer portal, will leave Kentucky Wildcats after rocky year". ESPN.com.
  12. ^ Howard, Lee K. (November 10, 2021). "Kentucky basketball adds four during fall signing period". Lexington, KY: WKYT-TV. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  13. ^ Borzello, Jeff; Biancardi, Paul (November 20, 2021). "Reed Sheppard, No. 37 men's basketball prospect in 2023, commits to Kentucky Wildcats". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 20, 2021.
  14. ^ "Former Iowa guard CJ Fredrick transfers to Kentucky". The Athletic. May 5, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  15. ^ Haste, Adam (2021-05-17). "Sahvir Wheeler commits to Kentucky". A Sea Of Blue. Retrieved 2021-05-17.
  16. ^ "UK Men's Basketball Adds Davidson Grad Transfer Kellan Grady". ukathletics.com. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  17. ^ Borzello, Jeff (January 10, 2021). "West Virginia men's basketball transfer Oscar Tshiebwe commits to Kentucky". ESPN. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
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