John Calipari says Cason Wallace is going to play a lot this season

It was a tale of two halves of basketball for Kentucky freshman Cason Wallace on Sunday night, but the second half sure was encouraging.

After failing to record a point and shooting 0-2 from the field in the first half against Missouri Western State, Wallace popped off over the final 20 minutes of action. The 6-foot-4 two-way guard finished his night in Rupp Arena with nine points, a team-high seven rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals.

Wallace played 29 minutes and recorded the second-highest plus/minus on the team at +15. UK came away with a 56-38 win in what was the program’s first of two exhibition games this season. It certainly wasn’t a pretty performance from the ‘Cats as a whole, but Kentucky head coach John Calipari made it a point to praise the former five-star recruit.

“Our leading rebounder was Cason Wallace. That’s why he’s going to play and play a lot,” Calipari said postgame. “Even though he missed two lay-ups, deal with it. Missed some jumpers, his right hand, hurt his fingers. Deal with it because of how he defends, what he does.”

It’s no secret that Wallace was recruited to Lexington because of his undeniable defensive abilities. Even as a high school senior, he was a lockdown on-ball defender with incredibly quick hands. Through preseason scrimmages and exhibitions as a freshman, he’s continued to look that part. Not only is he an adept defender, but he also has a body big enough that allows him to be physical with experienced multi-year college veterans.

After not figuring into the starting lineup at tipoff of Sunday’s game, Wallace came out of the halftime break with the first group. No Wildcat played more second-half minutes (18) than Wallace as he began to make his mark on almost every single possession — offensively and defensively.

“We need Cason Wallace’s on the floor. Did you see that last rebound?” Calipari added. “He jerked it out of the guy’s arms? That’s how you’ve got to — this thing is a man’s game. It really is.”

Wallace is a projected NBA lottery pick for good reason. It was only an exhibition, but he looks to be in line for a major role on the ‘Cats. Even before Sahvir Wheeler went down with a knee injury in the second half, Wallace was assuming point guard duties and handling it moderately well all things considered. His decision-making will need some time to come along (Lance Ware doesn’t need a touch in the post every other time down the floor) but the defense appears to be legit and he’s not afraid to go find the rim with the ball in his hands.

“I feel like I got more comfortable,” Wallace said of his performance on Sunday night. “The court started opening up, especially late-game we’re still running up the court, other team may be getting tired. It’s just what we practice. I’ve been running the one (point guard) in practice, so it wasn’t too new for me.”

As Calipari noted, Wallace did miss some open looks at the rim and finished 3-10 from the field overall, including a 1-4 clip from long distance. But it’s everything else he brings to the floor that makes him invaluable. Wallace fights hard and plays tough defense — Calipari has a track record of feeding a player like that as many minutes as possible.