Kentucky big man Brandon Garrison sidelined for Wildcats’ game against Georgia State
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Game day: No. 8 Kentucky 105, Georgia State 76
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Friday night’s men’s basketball game between Kentucky and Georgia State in Rupp Arena.
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Sophomore forward Brandon Garrison was sidelined for Kentucky’s game against Georgia State on Friday night.
Garrison did not go through pregame warmups with the Wildcats, and head coach Mark Pope confirmed on his pregame radio show about 30 minutes before tipoff that he wouldn’t play. Pope said he was holding Garrison out of the game “more as a precaution than anything else” and noted “a little bit of soreness” as the reason for his absence.
The 6-foot-10 post player was present but not a full participant in UK’s shootaround earlier in the day, and he watched his teammates go through pregame warmups in Rupp Arena in the hour leading up to tipoff, chatting off to the side with coaches and other players.
Garrison is averaging 6.3 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.2 blocks and 1.2 steals in 16.8 minutes per game so far for the Wildcats, and he’s been starting center Amari Williams’ primary backup off the bench. Garrison is second on the team in blocked shots and third in rebounds, assists and steals.
The former McDonald’s All-American has been praised for his energy this season, particularly his sparkplug performance in the Wildcats’ 77-72 win over Duke in the Champions Classic.
Garrison averaged 7.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game as a freshman starter at Oklahoma State last season.
UK’s next game is Tuesday night at Clemson, and Pope’s description of Garrison’s injury did not indicate it would be a long-term issue. The Cats also play No. 3 Gonzaga next Saturday in Seattle.
“We just like to be as healthy as we can before we put him on the floor again,” Pope said.
This story was originally published November 29, 2024 at 6:42 PM.
