2022–23 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team explained

Mode:Basketball
Year:2022–23
Team:Kentucky Wildcats
Conference:Southeastern Conference
Short Conf:SEC
Record:22–12
Conf Record:12–6
Hc Year:14th
Ac1 Year:7th overall, 2nd
Ac2 Year:2nd
Ac3 Year:1st
Bowl Result:Second Round

The 2022–23 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represented the University of Kentucky in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Wildcats, founding members of the Southeastern Conference, played their home games at Rupp Arena and were led by John Calipari in his 14th season as head coach. They finished the season 21–10, 12–6 in SEC play to finish in third place. As the No. 3 seed in the SEC tournament, they were upset in the quarterfinal round by Vanderbilt. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Providence in the first round before falling to Kansas State in the second round to finish the season with a final record of 22–12.

Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 2021–22 season 26–8, 14–4 in SEC play to finish a tie for second place. As the No. 3 seed in the SEC tournament, they defeated Vanderbilt in the quarterfinals before losing to Tennessee in the semifinals. They received an at large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed in the East region. The Wildcats became just the 10th No. 2 seed to lose in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament, losing to No. 15-seeded Saint Peter's 85–79 in overtime. It also marked the first time Kentucky had suffered a First Round exit under Calipari.

Offseason

Player departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason left
Dontaie Allen 11 205 Transferred to Western Kentucky
31 205 Completed college eligibility
23 220
10 195 Completed college eligibility
12 210 Transferred to Washington
Zan Payne 20 215 Transferred to Louisville
13 197 NBA Draft
21 200 London, ONNBA Draft

Class of 2022 signees

The Wildcats signed a four-man class of Chris Livingston, Cason Wallace, Adou Thiero and Ugonna Kingsley. Sharpe enrolled in January to join the 2022 team.

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Class of 2023 commitments

On November 20, 2021, Reed Sheppard verbally committed to UK over multiple offers, with Louisville and Virginia among the most active in attempting to recruit him. The son of former UK basketball players Jeff Sheppard and the former Stacey Reed, he was the first commitment to the 2023 recruiting class. At the time of his commitment, he was the #3 ranked combo guard in the 2023 class by 247 Sports.[1] On November 14, 2022, D. J. Wagner, ranked as the top point guard in the class by ESPN and Rivals, committed to the University Of Kentucky, deciding over Louisville.[2]

Incoming transfers

Schedule and results

|-!colspan=12 style=""| Big Blue Bahamas exhibition trip|-!colspan=12 style=""| Exhibition|-!colspan=12 style=| Regular season|-!colspan=12 style=""| SEC Tournament|-!colspan=12 style=| NCAA tournamentSource[4]

Notes and References

  1. News: Reed Sheppard, No. 37 men's basketball prospect in 2023, commits to Kentucky Wildcats . Jeff . Borzello . Paul . Biancardi . ESPN.com . November 20, 2021 . November 20, 2021.
  2. Web site: 2022-11-14 . No. 1-ranked recruit Wagner chooses Kentucky . 2022-12-31 . ESPN.com . en.
  3. Web site: Antonio Reeves transfers from Illinois State to play basketball for Kentucky Wildcats . Jeff . Borzello . Paul . Biancardi . ESPN.com . April 27, 2022 . April 27, 2022.
  4. Web site: 2022–23 Kentucky men's basketball schedule . ukathletics.com . 29 October 2022.