Kentucky hoping to see a "more active" Oscar Tshiebwe in Arkansas rematch

The last time Kentucky played Arkansas, it didn’t go well for the Wildcats. More specifically, it didn’t go well for Oscar Tshiebwe.

Back when these teams first met in Rupp Arena on Feb. 7, Kentucky played Arkansas close for the first 20 minutes but wound up getting blown out after halftime, losing 88-73 — tied for the second-most points allowed by the ‘Cats all season long. It was a poor effort on defense for UK and an even poorer outing for Tshiebwe, who finished with just seven points and seven rebounds in 32 minutes of action. Arkansas outscored Kentucky in the paint, 46-28, as the Mitchell twins, Makhel and Mitchell, combined for 19 points, 13 rebounds, and five blocks on 8-10 shooting.

It wasn’t the worst performance of the season for Tshiebwe, but it was his second straight game that would be considered a disappointment. Luckily for the ‘Cats, he appeared to take that defeat personally.

Since that loss to Arkansas, Tshiebwe has returned to National Player of the Year form. Over his last six outings, in which Kentucky is 4-2, the senior big man has posted averages of 20.3 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.5 blocks in 36.0 minutes per game. He’s also been shooting 62.1 percent from the field and an excellent 80 percent from the charity stripe (40-50). Tshiebwe was named the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week after dropping 25 points on 12-13 shooting against Florida then 22 points and 17 rebounds against Auburn.

That is the version of Tshiebwe Kentucky is going to need heading into Fayetteville on Saturday. Considering the injury statuses of Cason Wallace and CJ Fredrick are still up in the air, Arkansas could be in for an extra dose of the reigning National Player of the Year. That’s what the UK staff is hoping for too. They want to see Tshiebwe be as aggressive as he’s been the last few weeks, instead of what he did in the first matchup.

“I think (Tshiebwe’s) just gotta be a little bit more active than he was in the last game,” Kentucky associate to the head coach Bruiser Flint said during Friday’s pregame press conference. “Sometimes you got to go to your game instead of waiting for your game to come to you, and that’s what he’s been doing, that’s why he’s been playing really well as of late.

“(Arkansas) did a good job (in the first matchup). The (Mitchell) twins did a good job of being physical, they crowded him a lot. He just didn’t have that type of game he usually has for us but I think that was sort of an eye-opener for him that night. People really criticized him for only having seven points and seven rebounds, that’s usually not a Tshiebwe outing. I think since then he’s realized, you know what sometimes I just gotta go at it myself.“

Not only has it been an attitude change for Tshiebwe since that loss in early February, but he’s also being used differently on offense than he was back then. The Kentucky staff has since moved Tshiebwe from off the block, letting him operate more on the elbows where he has additional space to attack his defender or find open teammates.

Individually, that tactic has worked, evidenced by his recent six-game stretch. But will it again if Wallace isn’t running the show and helping set him up? Tshiebwe is also going to have to be more aggressive on defense against Arkansas, too. Last time out, Makhel Mitchell played his best game of the season for the Hogs. His 15 points from that first matchup are still a season-high.

Kentucky is already going to have its hands extra full dealing with the four-headed monster that is Arkansas’ backcourt. A dominant performance from Tshiebwe might be necessary if the ‘Cats want a shot at pulling off the upset.