NCAA Basketball: Gonzaga, Houston lead in updated way-too-early top 25 ranking
By Joey Loose
4. Kentucky
It’s suddenly been seven years since John Calipari has led the Wildcats to the Final Four, even with some pretty talented rosters down in Lexington. Last year, the Wildcats ran into the buzzsaw that was Saint Peter’s, becoming the first victim of that dynamic and record-setting 15-seed. This year, there’s plenty of talent back in Kentucky and this may be the team to finally break through to the Final Four again.
The biggest news of Kentucky’s offseason was the return of forward Oscar Tshiebwe, the national player of the year who averaged 17.4 points and 15.2 rebounds per game last season. Crafty point guard Sahvir Wheeler is also back for a final season and will pair nicely with 5-star recruit Cason Wallace, a defensive stud who can score all over the court. Fellow 5-star Chris Livingston should make an immediate impact from the forward spot while some transfers look to shore up the rest of the roster, with Antonio Reeves averaging greater than 20 points a game last year at Illinois State.
The Wildcats need to figure out the outside shooting, ranking outside the top 100 in that category each of the last six seasons, but having a dominant force like Tshiebwe helps alleviate that concern. If those guards can get those outside shots to fall, then Kentucky will win the SEC and potentially have a 2-time national player of the year to boast. Embarrassed by last season’s defeat by the Peacocks, expect quite the tour of revenge for Tshiebwe and these Wildcats.