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2021–22 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

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2021–22 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
s
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Record0–0 (0–0 SEC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaRupp Arena
Seasons
2021–22 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 14 Auburn 15 – 3   .833 28 – 6   .824
No. 16 Kentucky 14 – 4   .778 26 – 8   .765
No. 15 Tennessee † 14 – 4   .778 27 – 8   .771
No. 8 Arkansas 13 – 5   .722 28 – 9   .757
LSU 9 – 9   .500 22 – 12   .647
Alabama 9 – 9   .500 19 – 14   .576
South Carolina 9 – 9   .500 18 – 13   .581
Texas A&M 9 – 9   .500 27 – 13   .675
Florida 9 – 9   .500 20 – 14   .588
Mississippi State 8 – 10   .444 18 – 16   .529
Vanderbilt 7 – 11   .389 19 – 17   .528
Missouri 5 – 13   .278 12 – 21   .364
Ole Miss 4 – 14   .222 13 – 19   .406
Georgia 1 – 17   .056 6 – 26   .188
† 2022 SEC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

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

Previous season

The Wildcats' last season was marred with many inconsistent stretches and a multitude of losses which saw the team finished 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 well as their ugly 1–6 start from which they never recovered. The 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 play basketball for the University of Kentucky 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 play basketball for the University of Kentucky 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 play basketball for the University of Kentucky 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.
  • "Kentucky 2021 Basketball Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved May 12, 2021.

Incoming transfers

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School Years Eligible[a] Date Eligible
CJ Fredrick[12] 1 G 6'3" 195 RS Junior Cincinnati, OH Iowa 3 October 1, 2021
Sahvir Wheeler[13] 2 G 5'9" 180 Junior Houston, TX Georgia 3 October 1, 2021
Kellan Grady[14] 31 G 6'5" 205 Graduate Student Boston, MA Davidson 1 October 1, 2021
Oscar Tshiebwe[15] 34 F 6'9" 254 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) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Rhode Island Brooklyn, NY
G 1 CJ Fredrick 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 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) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr AZ Compass Prep Phoenix, AZ
F 4 Daimion Collins 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 190 lb (86 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 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 207 lb (94 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
F 23 Bryce Hopkins 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Fr Fenwick Oak Park, IL
G 25 Kareem Watkins (W) 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 145 lb (66 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) 254 lb (115 kg) RS So West Virginia Lubumbashi, DR Congo
F 55 Lance Ware 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 223 lb (101 kg) So Camden Camden, NJ
Head coach
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*
TBA 		Kentucky Wesleyan       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
November 5, 2021*
TBA 		Miles College       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
Non-conference regular season
November 9, 2021*
TBA, ESPN 		Duke       Madison Square Garden 
New York, NY
November 12, 2021*
TBA 		Robert Morris       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
November 16, 2021*
TBA 		Mount St. Mary's       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
November 19, 2021*
TBA 		Ohio       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
November 22, 2021*
TBA 		Albany       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
November 26, 2021*
TBA 		North Florida       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
November 29, 2021*
TBA 		Central Michigan       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
December 4, 2021*
TBA, TBA 		at Michigan       Crisler Center 
Ann Arbor, MI
December 7, 2021*
TBA 		Southern       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
December 11, 2021*
TBA, TBA 		Notre Dame       TBA 
TBA
December 18, 2021*
TBA, CBS 		Ohio State       TBA 
TBA
December 22, 2021*
TBA, TBA 		at Louisville       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
December 31, 2021*
TBA, TBA 		at High Point       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
January 29, 2022*
TBD, TBD 		at Kansas
Big 12/SEC Challenge 		      Allen Fieldhouse 
Lawrence, KS
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

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. ^ "Former Iowa guard CJ Fredrick transfers to Kentucky". The Athletic. May 5, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  13. ^ Haste, Adam (2021-05-17). "Sahvir Wheeler commits to Kentucky". A Sea Of Blue. Retrieved 2021-05-17.
  14. ^ "UK Men's Basketball Adds Davidson Grad Transfer Kellan Grady". ukathletics.com. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  15. ^ 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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