Cason Wallace to return, start for Kentucky men’s basketball Saturday night against Florida

Kentucky men’s basketball will be back at full strength Saturday night.

Freshman guard Cason Wallace will return and start for Kentucky after a one-game absence.

Wallace missed Kentucky’s win at Ole Miss on Tuesday with what head coach John Calipari described as a knee contusion.

On UK’s pregame radio show Saturday night, Calipari said Wallace practiced on Friday. Wallace went through all normal pregame warmups at Rupp Arena on Saturday night.

Earlier this week on his weekly radio show, Calipari said he didn’t know if Wallace would play against the Gators.

“He banged knees and so it’s painful, but there’s no structural (damage). That’s all good,” Calipari said Wednesday.

Prior to missing Tuesday’s game at Ole Miss, Wallace had started all 21 games for Kentucky this season as a freshman.

He currently boasts averages of 11.3 points, 3.6 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game. Wallace averages more than 31 minutes played per game for Kentucky this season.

Game-by-game Kentucky starting lineups

Here’s a look at the starting lineups that UK has used for all 23 games so far in the 2022-23 season.

The Cats have used nine different starting combinations.

Howard: Cason Wallace, CJ Fredrick, Chris Livingston, Jacob Toppin, Lance Ware.

Duquesne: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Ware.

Michigan State: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Ware.

South Carolina State: Sahvir Wheeler, Wallace, Fredrick, Toppin, Ware.

Gonzaga: Wheeler, Wallace, Fredrick, Toppin, Oscar Tshiebwe.

North Florida: Wheeler, Wallace, Antonio Reeves, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Bellarmine: Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Michigan: Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Yale: Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

UCLA: Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Florida A&M: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Ware, Tshiebwe.

Missouri: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Ware, Tshiebwe.

Louisville: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

LSU: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Alabama: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

South Carolina: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Collins, Tshiebwe.

Tennessee: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Georgia: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Texas A&M: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Vanderbilt: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Kansas: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Ole Miss: Wheeler, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Florida: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

Kentucky’s win-loss record by starting lineup

Here’s a look at Kentucky’s win-loss record this season by starting lineup for all 22 games this season.

Lineups are listed in order of total games played.

4-1: Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

4-1: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

▪ This is the lineup that is starting against Florida.

2-1: Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Ware.

2-1: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

1-1: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Ware, Tshiebwe.

1-0: Wheeler, Wallace, Fredrick, Toppin, Ware.

1-0: Wheeler, Fredrick, Livingston, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

0-1: Wheeler, Wallace, Fredrick, Toppin, Tshiebwe.

0-1: Wheeler, Wallace, Livingston, Collins, Tshiebwe.

This story was originally published February 4, 2023 at 8:08 PM.

Cameron Drummond

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-242-5257

Cameron Drummond works as a sports reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader with a focus on Kentucky men’s basketball recruiting and the UK men’s basketball team, horse racing, soccer and other sports in Central Kentucky. Drummond is a second-generation American who was born and raised in Texas, before graduating from Indiana University. He is a fluent Spanish speaker who previously worked as a community news reporter in Austin, Texas. Support my work with a digital subscription