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Kentucky basketball: Oscar Tshiebwe joins elite company with latest award

By Alicia de Artola

Kentucky basketball's Oscar Tshiebwe. (Syndication: The Courier-Journal)
Kentucky basketball's Oscar Tshiebwe. (Syndication: The Courier-Journal) /
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Kentucky basketball star Oscar Tshiebwe was named the Naismith National Player of the Year, joining a Wildcats legend as the only ones to do it at UK.

Oscar Tshiebwe’s immense debut season with Kentucky basketball was capped by the biggest individual award out there.

On Sunday, Tshiebwe was named the Naismith Men’s College Player of the Year in recognition of his outstanding campaign.

He beat out Kansas’ Ochai Agbaji, Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis and Iowa’s Keegan Murray for the honor.

Oscar Tshiebwe joins elite company with Naismith Award

Tshiebwe is only the second Kentucky player to take home that award. Anthony Davis set the standard and Tshiebwe found a way to match it.

How did he do it? All it took was doing things that hadn’t been seen in college basketball for 40 years. He averaged 15 points and 15 rebounds, setting a Kentucky record with 28 double-doubles.

His 515 rebounds were the third-most in a single season for the Wildcats ever. Bill Spivey and Cliff Hagan outpaced him playing in the 1950s. No one else in the modern era of UK basketball had even sniffed 500 rebounds. Julius Randle had 416 while Davis had 415.

Kentucky’s single-season record books are now littered with Tshiebwe’s name. He ranks first in offensive rebounds and defensive rebounds, second in player efficiency rating and win shares, third in box plus/minus and fifth in field goal percentage.

Tshiebwe has achieved just about every individual height possible. The only question that remains is whether or not he’ll head for the NBA or run it back with an eye on the ultimate team accomplishments.

The Wildcats were shocked in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in an upset by No. 15 Saint Peter’s. Getting Tshiebwe back for 2022-23 would give Kentucky a strong foundation to flip the script in the next NCAA Tournament.

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