Collin Chandler quietly had the best passing game of his college career

Collin Chandler didn’t go for 20-plus points like a couple of his teammates on Tuesday night, but he played a role in helping them get there.

The sophomore from Utah quietly put together the best passing performance of his still-young college career. Chandler dished out a career-high eight assists during Kentucky’s 103-67 win over North Carolina Central while totaling just a single turnover. Those eight dimes were the most by a UK player in a single game this season.

“Collin Chandler had a great night for us at 8-1 (points and assists),” Head coach Mark Pope said. “That’s really impressive. He was an 8-1-1 (points, assists, and steals) and was a big catalyst for us.”

Chandler’s eight assists led directly to 20 points for the Wildcats, which included four made three-pointers. He also threw a pretty look-ahead pass to Trent Noah in transition for what was Noah’s first career college dunk. In fact, eight of Noah’s 11 points on the night came via a Chandler pass. Chandler’s lone steal of the night quickly led to a hockey assist, Otega Oweh finishing the play with a layup at the rim.

His willingness to share the ball must’ve been infectious, too. Kentucky’s 27 assists (to just nine turnovers) tied the team’s season-high.

Some nice hustle from Collin Chandler. 👏pic.twitter.com/3mRy6f0c2E

— KSR (@KSRonX) December 10, 2025

Chandler was on the court more than any other Kentucky player against NC Central, seeing 32 minutes. He only managed seven points on 2-5 shooting (1-4 3PT), but Pope didn’t need him to score in this matchup. Chandler also grabbed five rebounds. His playmaking ability has seen a significant uptick from his freshman campaign.

While he didn’t play nearly as often last season as he has in 2025-26, Chandler only posted three or more assists in two games in 2024-25. He’s reached or surpassed that mark in half of Kentucky’s 10 games so far this season. His 30 total assists rank second-most on the roster behind Denzel Aberdeen‘s 35. But Chandler is doing his damage without turning the ball over. He has just nine turnovers on the season, the fewest among any UK guard not named Jaland Lowe, who has only appeared in four games so far.

His three-point shooting is understandably regressing to the mean after an unsustainable hot start (just 5-19 over his last four games), but Chandler is still at 42.6 percent from deep on the season. He’s finished in double-figures in eight of his 10 games played (including all four against ranked competition) and sits in fourth on the team in scoring at 11.2 points per outing. He’s shooting an impressive 60 percent on two-pointers this season.

Kentucky will need even more offensive production out of Chandler to turn the season around. He can start by showing out on Saturday against Indiana.