‘That’s just basketball.’ Malachi Moreno reflects on March Madness debut
Malachi Moreno took only a pair of field-goal attempts against No. 10 seed Santa Clara in No. 7 seed Kentucky’s first-round overtime victory Friday afternoon, which also served as his NCAA Tournament debut.
A lifelong fan, Moreno dreamed of wearing Kentucky blue in March Madness. The homegrown kid — a Georgetown, Ky. native named the 2025 Mr. Kentucky Basketball after a strong career at Great Crossing — is now a pivotal player for Mark Pope’s program.
Friday’s game marked his 29th start in 35 games played as a true freshman. And, though the opportunity meant a lifelong dream realized, Moreno admitted he “didn’t understand” what the NCAA Tournament environment would be like.
“It was definitely crazy,” Moreno said Saturday. “You know, being a little kid, making all these brackets, watching all these games, it was definitely like a dream come true. I think the only thing that caught me unexpected was, I didn’t really understand what the atmosphere would be. I mean, you can only hear so much noise on the TV, so hearing it in person was definitely a crazy feeling. And y’all saw what happened yesterday. So it’s just something you always expect, that March Madness.’”
Moreno will get his second taste Sunday, when Kentucky faces No. 2 seed at 2:45 ET in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Plagued by early foul trouble, Moreno clocked 20 minutes of playing time against the Broncos; he finished with three points, going 1 of 2 from the field and 1 of 2 from the free-throw line. Moreno also logged six rebounds and an assist, but he committed three turnovers to go with his trio of personal fouls.
“It’s just another game,” Moreno said. “Most games don’t go my way. But I mean, I’m never too keen on individual performances. I’m more about the team performance. And we won the game, so I have no reason to be upset with myself because we got the win. And I’m always happy for a victory.”
In Moreno’s place, junior forward Brandon Garrison found a rhythm, and disrupted Santa Clara’s. Garrison’s shining, double-double performance — during which he played more than 10 minutes with four fouls — featured 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the field, plus seven rebounds and six blocks.
As with most first-time experiences, it’s difficult to know how to emotionally prepare for a March Madness debut, even for a talented player like Moreno who’s spent much of the season resetting outside expectations.
“Just having those kinds of games and just trying to get that under my belt,” Moreno said. “Like I said, it’s a new experience. And just having that experience under my belt now, I think kind of took away a little bit of my nerves.”
Like Moreno, Garrison turned the ball over three times. However, when Garrison picked up his fourth foul at the 8:17 mark of the second half, Pope substituted the freshman for the veteran for less than two minutes before opting to risk it and return Garrison to the floor. In the overtime period, Moreno only subbed in for the final two seconds of overtime once Garrison fouled out.
“Even though numbers didn’t show, I feel like he still helped us get a big-time win,” Garrison said. “Everybody not gonna play good, but I feel like his presence, his rebounding and his leadership, he knew he wasn’t playing good. And I was playing good, so he was helping me out when I was on the floor and just telling me about things. So I feel like tomorrow he gonna have a huge game for us. I can just feel it.”
Early in Friday’s game, Garrison said, Santa Clara was “getting a lot of 3s off of me.” The Broncos led the West Coast Conference in 3-point field goal attempts and makes, so defending the arc was a priority on the scouting report. Garrison’s defense helped shift the momentum in Kentucky’s favor, but he said he couldn’t have responded without Moreno’s help.
“The ball-screen defense,” Garrison said. “When we was in a different coverage, he was telling me some of his ways he was stopping them…he was just telling me, I need to step up a little more. And once I did that, they started missing 3s.”
Moreno’s performance in his March Madness debut — as well as in the SEC Tournament — make more sense with additional context.
Moreno’s two field-goal attempts against Santa Clara brought his postseason attempt total to 10, beginning with the team’s three SEC Tournament games earlier this month. He’s also only notched one double-digit scoring performance over the past 10 games.
Pope highlighted Saturday how invested Moreno is in the team in response to a question about the freshman’s recent struggles.
“Malachi, his care is on an elite level,” Pope said Saturday. “He cares. He cares. He cares about his teammates, he cares about playing great, he cares about winning, he cares about Kentucky. And he cares deeply. And so, you know, you see that manifest out. It’s actually peaked as you get to the end of the season, and we’ve talked about how steady he’s been and how consistent he’s been for a freshman, it’s really remarkable, and how vocal he is, and how smart he is, and what a leader he is. And we’re seeing all those things come through.”
When asked if there was any particular reason why he wasn’t taking many shots this month, Moreno expressed a desire to create opportunities for the other Cats in the game.
“I want to try to make plays for my teammates,” Moreno said. “Because that’s something we key in on a lot. I think that also makes me better. I mean, I’m never too keen on taking a lot of shots. I kind of let the game come to me. And if I take two shots, I take two shots. If I take 10 shots, I take 10 shots. So just kind of letting the game flow through and letting it run its course.”
Moreno took 70 field goal attempts across UK’s 13 nonconference games, and 93 field goal attempts over the course of the team’s 18 regular-season SEC games.
The program’s demands for Moreno haven’t shifted, but his lower production as of late doesn’t necessarily come as a surprise. As a reward for his expectation-busting performance this season — particularly during SEC play — Moreno’s name now sits much higher on opponents’ scouting reports. His 7-foot frame and big-body play have become a point of emphasis, and his production over the past month has stuttered because of it.
“That’s just basketball, you know?” Sophomore forward Andrija Jelavić said. “That’s why you have 10 guys on the team instead of five Because it’s just sometimes, it’s not even that it wasn’t his day. The game is like that. Some other guys, maybe, had a good day. They stepped up…He’s never been a selfish guy, on and off the court.”
Moreno’s teammates aren’t concerned about the freshman.
“He’s getting better every day,” senior guard Otega Oweh said. “When you a freshman and you in this position, you got to grow up quick. And he’s been growing super quick. That physicality is gonna keep on having to be increased every single game now because we’re playing better teams. Everyone’s leaving it all out there on the line. Malachi’s grown tremendously.”
Moreno’s growth and development have become a point of pride for his teammates and coaches. It’s because of that growth and development, Dioubate said, that UK is confident Moreno is due for a bounce-back.
“Mally, he’s been good for us all year,” Dioubate said. “He’s been with us throughout the whole journey, from ups and downs. It’s not his first time having a bad game. And he responds the next game with having a good game. So, I think he’s gonna be real good for us tomorrow.”
