John Calipari discusses balancing minutes throughout early season absences

The early part of the season will be key for Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari when it comes to sorting out his rotation. With Oscar Tshiebwe, Sahvir Wheeler and Daimion Collins all sitting out the Wildcats’ season opener Monday, Calipari had more minutes to give out to players who are still trying to find out where they fit in.

Those players rose up to the challenge as Kentucky cruised to a 95-63 victory against Howard. In his postgame press conference, Calipari talked about the importance of that opportunity for his players, and how he expects the next game against Duquesne to be similar.

“I’m holding guys to a high standard because they’re gonna be fighting for minutes,” he said. “Most of ’em will come down to, ‘Are you breaking down defensively? Are you not rebounding balls?’ Then I’ve gotta play someone else and there’s two or three of you. So, whoever’s the best defender, the best rebounder, a guy that’s out there and we click. The greatest thing about this game and I believe next game is everybody’s getting minutes to show what they are and if there’s any separation, you’ll see it.”

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Calipari went on to identify true freshman Ugonna Kingsley Onyenso as one player who stepped up in the midst of the absences. The four-star recruit played 20 minutes off the bench, making an impact on the defensive end with four blocks in addition to six points and four rebounds.

“Ugonna, I mean come on,” Calipari said. “Kid walks in and just starts blocking balls. So you think, ‘OK, I can get a basket,’ then he walks in and he blocks — how many blocks did he have? He had four blocks. That’s big. Changes the game. We go down and break it and get a layup.”

Other than Onyenso, Illinois State transfer guard Antonio Reeves was another player who made a big contribution off the bench. Reeves served as the sixth man for the Wildcats and led the team with 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting, including 6-of-12 from 3-point range.

Monday also marked the debut of CJ Fredrick, who missed the entire 2021-22 season due to a hamstring injury after transferring from Iowa. He responded by scoring 20 points to lead all starters. Lance Ware received a start after averaging only 6.3 minutes per game a year ago, and freshman Adou Thiero provided 14 minutes off the bench.

Until the stars return, expect much of the same from John Calipari when it comes to Kentucky’s rotation. Those players will continue to fight for their spot when the Wildcats face Duquesne at 7 p.m. ET on Friday in Rupp Arena.