Tshiebwe’s goal at Kentucky? ‘I want my name to be remembered forever.’
Being a transfer suggests impermanence. But Oscar Tshiebwe said he came to Kentucky from West Virginia intending to make a long-lasting impression.
Kentucky’s 78-66 victory at Vanderbilt on Tuesday night served that purpose.
“I want my name to be remembered forever,” Tshiebwe said. “Not just as a basketball player. The way I treat people.”
When it comes to making an impression as a player, Tshiebwe continued to be basketball’s version of the Rocky Mountains. He scored a career-high 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, thus becoming the first UK player with 30-plus points and 10-plus rebounds since Patrick Patterson had 33 points and 11 rebounds against Tennessee State on Dec. 22, 2008.
Tshiewbe, whose previous career high of 29 points came against Georgia three nights earlier, seemed stunned by his scoring.
“I never had a dream of scoring 30 points in a game,” he said. “It just happened.”
UK Coach John Calipari saluted Tshiebwe’s teammates for “finding him and passing him the ball.”
Kentucky, now 13-3 overall and 3-1 in the Southeastern Conference, needed a big game from Tshiebwe.
For a second straight game, UK played without Sahvir Wheeler, who Vanderbilt Coach Jerry Stackhouse had called “really the engine that gets them going in their transition game.”
A neck injury at LSU a week earlier forced Wheeler to sit out.
Vanderbilt’s point guard, Scotty Pippen Jr., looked the part of a player who had been voted the Southeastern Conference Preseason Player of the Year. After having made only two of 12 three-point shots in the last four games, he made six threes and scored 32 points.
That combination suggested Kentucky would get the kind of possession-by-possession test of late-game nerves and execution it said it needed to practice.
But the game in Vandy’s Memorial Gym was not close in score nor to that desired scenario.
Tshiebwe led the way. He became the first UK player to score at least 30 points in a game since Immanuel Quickley had 30 against Texas A&M on Feb. 25, 2020. He also grabbed 13 rebounds to post his 12th double-double.
Earlier in the season, Tshiebwe seemed indecisive when he caught the ball in the low post area. Assistant coach Orlando Antigua said at the time that the big man was considering too many options.
That hasn’t been the case in more recent games.
When asked what made him go from cautious to decisive, Tshiebwe said, “It’s about confidence.”
The coaches told him to shoot when guarded one-on-one. If double-teamed, he should look to pass.
“They trust me … ,” Tshiebwe said of coaches and teammates. “From the beginning of the season to now, I’ve got a lot of confidence now. I can see the floor really good.”
Kentucky never trailed in the first half in assuming a 41-28 lead at intermission. UK made 60.7 percent of its shots (17 of 28).
But the opening 20 minutes were not seamless.
Kentucky had the initiative early. For the 10th straight game, TyTy Washington made his first shot — this time a three-pointer — and contributed five points in a 7-0 UK run to start the game.
By making nine of its first 12 shots, Kentucky expanded its lead to 22-11. Vandy had gone scoreless for more than three minutes.
Just when a breeze to victory seemed possible for Kentucky, Vandy went on an 11-0 run to tie it at 22.
Kentucky went scoreless for more than five minutes. In that span, UK missed five shots and committed three turnovers.
After a UK timeout with 7:05 left, the game again changed dramatically.
Kentucky scored 14 straight points to take its largest lead yet, 36-22. The run extended to 18-2 with the lead cresting at 40-24 with 1:56 left.
Going into the second half, Pippen had already nearly matched his career scoring average against Kentucky (18 points per game). His four three-point baskets were one shy of shots from beyond the arc he had made in four previous games against UK (five of 20).
But Calipari said he was “aggravated” by how Kentucky finished the game. Vandy trailed 78-50 with about five minutes left. The Commodores forced Calipari to return starters to the court.
“We let go of the rope,” he said, “and it’s something we’ve got to get better at.”
One of the starters to return was Tshiebwe. That reinforced the impression that Kentucky is not the same team without him on the court.
When asked if this translated to pressure, Tshiebwe said, “Yes, sir. … Everybody just tells me, Oscar, do not get fouls because it’s such a difference when I’m on the court.
“Sometimes your presence just means something to some people.”
Next game
No. 22 Tennessee at No. 18 Kentucky
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
TV: ESPN
This story was originally published January 11, 2022 at 11:32 PM.
