Three single-season Kentucky records are up for grabs
Oscar Tshiebwe, Sahvir Wheeler and Kellan Grady have been the driving force behind UK’s resurgent season. Adding those three veterans and their specific skill sets to a top recruiting class and a foundation from last season has pushed Kentucky into the national title discussion. Beyond the team success, all three now have a chance to make UK history…all in the same season.
Sahvir Wheeler
Even with missed time, Wheeler has a shot at Kentucky’s single-season assist record with 170 dimes through 24 games. It was broken fairly recently by Tyler Ulis back in 2015-2016 with 246. Do the math and he’s 76 assists away from the record with four games left in the regular season. Add in three potential SEC Tournament games and at maximum six games in the NCAA Tournament and, depending on how the team performs, that leaves at least 10ish games left. Let’s assume Kentucky makes it to the SEC Championship and is at least a second-weekend NCAA Tournament team. Wheeler would need to average assists in this ballpark down the stretch to take the top spot.
- Elite Eight: 6.9 assists per game
- Final Four: 6.3 assists per game
- National Title: 5.8 assists per game
The issue with Wheeler is the potential to miss games. He’s already missed three games, has missed significant minutes in other games and could miss a couple more down the stretch. That skews how many more games he’ll have left to get this done. He’s had at least four assists in every game this season besides two, so the volume will likely be there. At this point, it may just come down to how many opportunities he has left out on the floor to accomplish it.
Kellan Grady
With Grady, it gets a little more interesting. While Wheeler’s absence along with TyTy Washington may not be best for the team, it puts Grady front and center with the ball in his hands. It forces one of the best shooters in the nation to be more aggressive with even more opportunity than he had before. After hitting a season-high-tying seven 3-pointers against Alabama, Grady now has 82 triples this season. That leaves him 35 shy of the record held by Jodie Meeks from 2008-2009. If we work under the same assumption about Kentucky’s postseason, Grady’s 3-point makes would need to look something like this down the stretch to break the record.
- Elite Eight: 3.2 3s per game
- Final Four: 2.9 3s per game
- National Title: 2.7 3s per game
As a 45.1% three-point shooter, Grady has a really good shot at this record. With the health of the Wildcat’s starting backcourt still up in the air, he would continue to have the opportunity to fire away as the regular season comes to a close. He’s taken fewer than three attempts from deep just once all season and has had at least three makes in 15 games. Combine the games left and newfound opportunity, along with his percentage, and this feels within reach for everyone’s favorite elder statesman.
Oscar Tshiebwe
This is one that eyes have been on all season. From opening night, Tshiebwe has put up rebounding numbers we haven’t seen in college basketball in quite some time. The 6’9 junior gives all-out effort every minute and it shows with his 411 rebounds so far this season. That places him seventh all-time already and 156 short of Bill Spivey’s record from back in 1950-1951. Again, let’s assume Kentucky’s postseason goes “according to plan”.
- Elite Eight: 14.2 rebounds per game
- Final Four: 13.0 rebounds per game
- National Title: 12.0 rebounds per game
Tshiebwe has grabbed 20 or more rebounds in five games this season while grabbing fewer than 10 just twice. That’s about as walking double-double as you can get considering his scoring contributions. Tshiebwe’s average currently sits at 15.2 per game and it’s a near certainty he’ll move into the top-five in Kentucky’s next game. At this point, it will come down to how many games left the Wildcats play. He has the effort, the numbers and the ability to grab more rebounds than his average night in and night out. He has firmly placed his name among UK’s all-time great rebounders and he may very well hold the crown by the time the season ends.
So much of this is going to depend on health and the amount of games Kentucky will play in March. Take all that away, though, and we have to recognize that this type of individual success is extraordinary. Three different players have a chance to break single-season records in the same season — all in their first year with the program. That speaks volumes about the job Kentucky did at constructing this roster over the offseason.
It’s special production and individual history that could lead this team all the way to New Orleans.
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