Tshiebwe's 25 rebounds help Cats get NCAA monkey off their back
Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe challenged a shot by Providence guard Jared Bynum in Friday's first-round NCAA Tournament matchup in the East Region at Greensboro, N.C. (Jeff Drummond/Cats Illustrated)
Jeff Drummond • CatsIllustrated
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@JDrumUK
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Equal parts enthused and exhausted, Oscar Tshiebwe sat in the Kentucky locker room after the Wildcats' 61-53 win over Providence on Friday and flashed a smile of relief.
The senior big man from the Democratic Republic of the Congo had just set a UK program record for rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game, grabbing an eye-popping 25 to lead the Wildcats to victory in the opening round of the East Region.
And he was never aware of gawdy total. Or setting a record for arguably the program with more postseason tradition than any other. The only number Tshiebwe was concerned about was earning his first NCAA Tournament win as a Wildcat.
"I just wanted to win the game," said Tshiebwe, who was part of the Kentucky team that suffered a first-round loss to 15 seed Saint Peters last March which has hovered over the program ever since. "Just win the game. Nothing else."
The concensus two-time All-American was the driving force behing Kentucky's dominant 48-31 advantage on the glass. The Cats held an 18-2 advantage over Providence in second-chance points, the decisive stat in a game which saw both teams shoot 36% on the night.
"At the end of the day, the game was won on the backboard. When you look at that -- game, set match...That's the game right there," said Providence head coach Ed Cooley, who likened Tshiebwe to prolific former NBA stars like Dennis Rodman and Ben Wallace.
"I thought our team fought like crazy," UK head coach John Calipari said.
Kentucky (22-11) advances to the second round of the tournament for the first time since 2019. The Cats will face the winner of Friday's first-round finale at Greensboro Coliseum, either third-seeded Kansas State or 14 seed Montana State.
In adddition to Tshiebwe's big night, which also included eight points and three steals, Kentucky got a game-high 22 points from senior guard Antonio Reeves, who hit all five of the Cats' 3-pointers, and 18 points from senior forward Jacob Toppin.
Kentucky (22-11) advances to the second round of the tournament for the first time since 2019. The Cats will face the winner of Friday's first-round finale at Greensboro Coliseum, either third-seeded Kansas State or 14 seed Montana State.
In adddition to Tshiebwe's big night, which also included eight points and three steals, Kentucky got a game-high 22 points from senior guard Antonio Reeves and 18 points from Toppin.
The Cats won despite shooting 25% (7 of 28) in a sloppy second half by both teams. But they held Providence star Bryce Hopkins in check all night long, holding the former UK forwad to just seven points on 2-for-9 shooting from the field.
Hopkins entered the game averaging 16.1 points per game, but struggled with the length of Toppin, who may have also had a familiarity advantage from facing the former in practice last season.
"Bryce, I love him with all my heart. We got so close last year," Toppin said. "He's a really good player. It's definitely hard to guard him because he's so physical. It didn't just take me, it took the whole team, being in gaps, being my help. We just slowed him down."
Providence (21-12) got 16 points from Ed Croswell and 10 from Devin Carter.
*****
In this "Rapid Recap" feature, we touch on some quick-hitters from the UK game...
KEY MOMENT:
After Providence trimmed Kentucky's nine-point second-half lead to four with 4:04 emaining, Oscar Tshiebwe recorded perhaps the most important of his 11 offensive rebounds, slamming in an errant shot by the Wildcats to stem the Friars' momentum. Providence got no closer than six the rest of the way.
GAME BALL:
Oscar Tshiebwe, Kentucky -- Since rebounding and second-chance points were the decisive factors in tonight's game, we're going to go with Oscar over other worthy candidates like Antonio Reeves and Jacob Toppin. Tshiebwe outrebounded the Providence starting five by himself, 25-22. His 25 rebounds were the most ever at UK in the tournament, breaking a record held by Jerry Bird for 67 years. He had 24 against Iowa on March 17, 1956.
BY THE NUMBERS:
1 - Victory needed by Kentucky to tie North Carolina for the most ever in NCAA Tournament history. The Cats now have a 130-53 record in the event.
4-0 - Kentucky's all-time record against Providence.
8 of 9 - The Cats' free-throw shooting in the second half. They were 10-of-13 for the game.
18-2 - Second-chance points advantage for UK.
33-3 - Kentucky's record all-time in the NCAA Tournament against double-digit seeded opponents.
36.5% - The Cats' worst shooting percentage from the field in an NCAA Tournament win since March 17, 2006, against UAB when they shot 31.1%
QUOTABLE:
"You know what? That's how old, when I watch the Waltons, that show is." -- UK head coach John Calipari on Oscar Tshiebwe being the first player to grab 25 rebounds in the NCAA Tournament in more than 50 years.
UP NEXT:
Kentucky will face the winner of Kansas State (3) and Montana State (14) on Sunday at Greensboro Coliseum. The tip-off time will be announced when the matchp is finalized.
