Kentucky players couldn't be happier for Jacob Toppin's breakthrough

Jacob Toppin is beginning to feel like himself again.

The Kentucky men’s basketball senior forward was incredibly open about his mental health struggles following his breakout performance against Louisville over the weekend. He says he hit “rock bottom” ahead of the Wildcats’ loss to Missouri on the road last week — his head was never in the right place. Prior to an 86-63 win over the Cardinals on New Year’s Eve, Toppin’s month of December saw him lose all confidence and his starting role.

Once considered a future NBA Draft selection following his promising four-game stretch in the Bahamas, Toppin has since played himself out of that position. But against Louisville, he began the process of turning his season around. Toppin finished with a career-high 24 points and seven rebounds in 35 minutes.

“That was really exciting. He deserved it. Jacob’s put in a lot of time, a lot of work,” Kentucky point guard Sahvir Wheeler said on Monday. “Sometimes when you put that work in and you have some success like he did in the Bahamas and early in the season and then sometimes you kinda struggle a bit, kinda hits home like ‘Yo I put all this time in, why am I struggling now?’ And that’s just part of the maturation process.

“Sometimes you have to go back to the drawing board and do what you did that had you having success in the first place. And that’s what he did. He got his mind right, he got his self right, and he played a big-time game. And now we need that type of energy. He’s not gonna make every shot like he did but (we need) that type of energy, that type of awareness, that type of presence from him for the rest of the season.”

That last sentence is the most important note. Toppin played like the version of himself that teammates, coaches, and fans envisioned over the summer, but now he has to keep it up. He was oozing energy and shooting with ultimate confidence. That has to stick around. Kentucky cannot be at its best this season without Toppin playing at or near the level he did against Louisville.

“It was definitely a great feeling. He’s been struggling a little bit to do what he does like we saw when we were scrimmaging at the beginning of the year in the Bahamas. That Jacob Toppin is unguardable,” Kentucky freshman guard Adou Thiero said on Monday. “And just to see what he was able to go out and get — what was it, 24 (points)? — 24, that was — I was just very happy for him.”

Over the last couple of weeks, Toppin has been taking steps (mostly off the court) to ensure his consistency continues. He spoke with famed sports psychologist Dr. Bob Rotella and took advice from his teammates, coaches, and support group. Toppin’s on-court skills are not the issue — it’s mostly mental for him at this point, and he’s fully admitted that.

“Jacob was really struggling,” Head coach John Calipari said during his radio call-in show Monday night. “I mean I talked to him before Missouri and I thought we had a great talk and I hugged him — you know I love you and I’m gonna do everything I can to help you. If you don’t play well I’m not gonna say much, if you play great I’m gonna be your biggest cheerleader.”

The entire Big Blue Nation will be cheering for Toppin to keep up his positive mindset moving forward. A good start would be another productive performance on Tuesday night against the 12-1 LSU Tigers.