Jacob Toppin discusses the value of Kentucky winning while not playing through Oscar Tshiebwe

Oscar Tshiebwe finished Kentucky‘s 72-67 win over Florida on Saturday with four points in what was his worst performance offensively all season.

He still finsihed the game with 15 rebounds, three assists and a steal in 34 minutes on the court before fouling out late in the second half. Kentucky forward Jacob Toppin came to the aid of his teammate after the game, pointing out the immense positives Tshiebwe brought the game in every category except for scoring.

“Obviously, he still helped us in other ways [than scoring]. He got a lot of rebounds, but just being able to not play through him for once and be able to win a game just shows the kind of team we are,” Toppin said postgame. “He got a little down on himself — I had to tell him that he can’t be great every night. He understands that he has to be better.”

It was just the second time all season that the reigning Wooden Award winner has been held under five points. The first was against Alabama, where the Crimson Tide easily handeled Kentucky on their home floor. Tshiebwe went 1-of-7 shooting on the night — he would shoot 2-of-14 against Florida.

Instead, UK relied on Toppin’s 17-point, 10-rebound double-double and Cason Wallace‘s 20 points to go with three blocks. The victory gave Kentucky their sixth SEC win in a row after starting out 1-3 in conference play.

Kentucky will move on to an even tougher matchup at home against a strong Arkansas team. The Razorbacks are 1-5 in true road games this season, giving UK the upper hand heading into Tuesday night.

The Wildcats have opened as five-point favorites with the over/under is set at 140, according to Caesar’s Sportsbook. Tip-off between the two former top-10 ranked teams is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET live on ESPN.