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2019–20 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

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2019–20 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball
s
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 13
APNo. 14
Record10–3 (1–0 SEC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaRupp Arena
Seasons
2019–20 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 8 Kentucky 15 – 3   .833 25 – 6   .806
No. 20 Auburn 12 – 6   .667 25 – 6   .806
LSU 12 – 6   .667 21 – 10   .677
Mississippi State 11 – 7   .611 20 – 11   .645
Florida 11 – 7   .611 19 – 12   .613
South Carolina 10 – 8   .556 18 – 13   .581
Texas A&M 10 – 8   .556 16 – 14   .533
Tennessee 9 – 9   .500 17 – 14   .548
Alabama 8 – 10   .444 16 – 15   .516
Arkansas 7 – 11   .389 20 – 12   .625
Missouri 7 – 11   .389 15 – 16   .484
Ole Miss 6 – 12   .333 15 – 17   .469
Georgia 5 – 13   .278 16 – 16   .500
Vanderbilt 3 – 15   .167 11 – 21   .344
Note: The 2020 SEC tournament was canceled after the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rankings from AP poll

The 2019–20 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team represents the University of Kentucky in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team plays its home games in Lexington, Kentucky for the 44th consecutive season at Rupp Arena, with a capacity of 20,545. The Wildcats, led by John Calipari in his 11th season as head coach, will play in the Southeastern Conference.

Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 2018–19 season 30–7, 15–3 in SEC play to finish in a tie for second. In the SEC Tournament, the Wildcats defeated Alabama, but were defeated by Tennessee in the semi-finals of the tournament. The Wildcats received an at-large bid NCAA Tournament. As the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region, they defeated No. 15 Abilene Christian,[1] No. 7 Wofford, and No. 3 Houston to advance to the Elite Eight.[2] There, they lost to the No. 5-seed Auburn.[3]

Offseason

Departures

On April 9, 2019, P. J. Washington announced that he would be entering the 2019 NBA Draft and would sign with an agent. However, due to changes in NCAA rules that took effect with the 2019 draft, signing with an agent no longer automatically results in loss of NCAA eligibility.[4] On April 16, Tyler Herro announced that he would remain in the NBA draft, forgoing his remaining eligibility.[5] The following day, two more players announced their departures, with Keldon Johnson announcing he would leave Kentucky and stay in the 2019 NBA draft and Jemarl Baker announcing his intention to transfer from Kentucky.[6][7]

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason left
Reid Travis 22 Forward 6'8" 245 Senior Minneapolis, Minnesota Completed athletic eligibility; graduated from Stanford in 2018
Jonny David 10 Guard 6'2" 183 Senior Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Graduated
P. J. Washington 25 Forward 6'7" 236 Sophomore Dallas, Texas Declared for the 2019 NBA Draft
Tyler Herro 14 Guard 6'5" 195 Freshman Milwaukee, Wisconsin Declared for the 2019 NBA Draft
Keldon Johnson 3 Forward 6'6" 210 Freshman South Hill, Virginia Declared for the 2019 NBA Draft
Jemarl Baker 13 Guard 6'4" 185 RS Freshman Eastvale, California Transferred to Arizona
Brad Calipari 12 Guard 6'0" 176 Junior Franklin Lakes, New Jersey Graduate transferred to Detroit Mercy

2019 recruiting class

In May Kentucky announced the completion of its 2019 signing class. It ranked as a consensus top-three class for the eleventh straight season under Calipari. The 2019 class consists of forward Dontaie Allen (Falmouth, KY), forward Keion Brooks (Fort Wayne, IN), guard Johnny Juzang (Studio City, CA), guard Tyrese Maxey (Garland, TX), and forward Kahlil Whitney (Chicago).[8]

On May 9, 2018, Maxey committed to become the first member of the class.[9] He chose Kentucky over offers from Michigan State and Texas. Maxey was ranked as the consensus #2 ranked point guard in the 2019 class, and became a McDonald's All-American.[10]

On August 2, 2018, Allen committed to Kentucky over offers from Florida and Louisville.[11] On March 5, 2019 Allen was named Kentucky Mr. Basketball.[12]

On August 8, 2018, Kahlil Whitney committed to play basketball for UK over offers from Illinois and Georgetown. Whitney is the third commitment to commit in the 2019 class and is ranked #19 overall in the 2019 class by 247 sports.

On March 15, 2019, Keion Brooks, from Fort Wayne, IN, committed to play basketball for Kentucky over offers from Michigan State and Indiana. Brooks is the fourth recruit to commit in the 2019 class and is ranked #23 overall in the 2019 by 247 sports.

On May 10, 2019, Johnny Juzang committed to play basketball for Kentucky over an offer to play for Virginia. Juzang is the fifth commitment to commit in the 2019 class and is ranked #32 overall in the 2019 class by 247 sports.

College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date


Tyrese Maxey
PG 		Garland, TX South Garland High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) May 9, 2018 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 93
Dontaie Allen
SF 		Falmouth, KY Pendleton County High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Aug 2, 2018 
Star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:3/5 stars   ESPN grade: 78
Kahlil Whitney
SF 		Roselle, NJ Roselle Catholic High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Aug 8, 2018 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 94
Keion Brooks
SF 		Fort Wayne, IN La Lumiere 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Mar 15, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 89
Johnny Juzang
SF 		Studio City, CA Harvard-Westlake School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) May 10, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 89
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: #2   Rivals: #2  247Sports: #2  ESPN: #4
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Kentucky 2019 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  • "2019 Kentucky Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2019-05-22.

Incoming transfers

On April 4, 2019, Nate Sestina announced that he would transfer to Kentucky for the 2019–2020 season.[13] Sestina was named second team All-Patriot league for Bucknell and averaged 15.8 PPG and 8.7 RPG in his final year with the Bisons. As a grad transfer, he is eligible to play immediately under NCAA rules.

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Nate Sestina 4 F 6'9" 245 Graduate Student Emporium, PA Bucknell

2020 recruiting class

On July 27, 2019, Brandon (B.J) Boston committed to play basketball for the University of Kentucky over offers from Florida and Duke. Boston is the first commitment to the 2020 recruiting class and the #2 ranked shooting guard in the 2020 class by 247 sports.

Cam'Ron Fletcher, from St. Louis, Missouri, is the second commitment in the Kentucky 2020 recruiting class. He committed to Kentucky on August 4, 2019 and chose Kentucky over Michigan State.[14] He is a consensus four-star player by the four main recruiting services and is ranked #36 overall by 24/7 Sports.

Power forward Lance Ware, from Camden, New Jersey, is the third commitment in the Kentucky 2020 recruiting class. He committed to Kentucky on September 12, 2019 and chose Kentucky over Ohio State. He is a consensus four-star player by the four main recruiting services and is ranked #32 overall by Rivals.

Two days later, on September 14, 2019 SF Terrence Clarke from Brewster Academy pledged to Kentucky. Clarke is one of the most highly regarded prospects in the 2020 class, with most services ranking him among the top five players overall.

College recruiting information (2020)
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date


BJ Boston Jr.
SG 		Chatsworth, CA Sierra Canyon School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jul 27, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 96
Cam'Ron Fletcher
SF 		St. Louis, MO Vashon High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Aug 4, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 85
Lance Ware
PF 		Camden, NJ Big Picture Learning Academy 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sep 12, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 85
Terrence Clarke
SF 		Wolfeboro, NH Brewster Academy 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sep 14, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 95
Devin Askew
PG 		Santa Ana, CA Mater Dei High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Oct 17, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 91
Isaiah Jackson
PF 		Waterford, MI Waterford Mott High School 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Nov 16, 2019 
Star ratings: Scout:5/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:5/5 stars   ESPN grade: 90
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 1st  247Sports: 1st  ESPN: 1st
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Other news

As part of a major renovation of Rupp Arena, included within a larger expansion project for the attached Lexington Center convention complex, nearly half of the upper arena bowl, originally consisting entirely of bleacher seating, was refitted with chairback seats during the 2019 offseason. This reduced the arena's basketball capacity by nearly 3,000—from 23,500 to 20,545.[15]

Roster

2019–20 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Ashton Hagans 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 198 lb (90 kg) So Newton HS Covington, GA
F/C 1 Nate Sestina Injured 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 234 lb (106 kg) GS Bucknell Emporium, PA
F 2 Kahlil Whitney 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Roselle Catholic HS Chicago, IL
G 3 Tyrese Maxey 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 198 lb (90 kg) Fr South Garland HS Garland, TX
C 4 Nick Richards 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 247 lb (112 kg) Jr St. Patrick HS Kingston, Jamaica
G 5 Immanuel Quickley 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 188 lb (85 kg) So The John Carroll School Havre de Grace, MD
F 10 Johnny Juzang 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 214 lb (97 kg) Fr Harvard-Westlake School Studio City, CA
F 11 Dontaie Allen Injured 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Pendleton County HS Falmouth, KY
F 12 Keion Brooks 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr La Lumiere School Fort Wayne, IN
G 13 Riley Welch 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr UC Irvine Los Angeles, CA
F 14 Brennan Canada (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 198 lb (90 kg) Fr George Rogers Clark HS Mount Sterling, KY
F 21 Zan Payne (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS Fr Lexington Catholic HS Lexington, KY
F 23 E. J. Montgomery 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 228 lb (103 kg) So Joseph Wheeler HS Marietta, GA
F 33 Ben Jordan 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) RS So West Carter HS Olive Hill, KY
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: October 22, 2019

Depth chart

Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2
C Nick Richards E. J. Montgomery Ben Jordan
PF Nate Sestina Johnny Juzang Brennan Canada
SF Kahlil Whitney Keion Brooks Dontaie Allen
SG Tyrese Maxey Immanuel Quickley Zan Payne
PG Ashton Hagans Riley Welch

Schedule and Results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 27, 2019*
5:00 PM, SECN 		No. 2 Georgetown (KY) W 80–53  –
  16 – Quickley   10 – Sestina   10 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (19,527)
Lexington, KY
November 1, 2019*
7:00 PM, SECN 		No. 2 Kentucky State W 83–51  –
  15 – Tied   9 – Brooks Jr.   9 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (19,588)
Lexington, KY
Regular Season
November 5, 2019*
9:30 PM, ESPN 		No. 2 vs. No. 1 Michigan State
Champions Classic 		W 69–62  1–0
  26 – Maxey   6 – Sestina   3 – Hagans  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York, NY
November 8, 2019*
7:00 PM, SECN 		No. 2 Eastern Kentucky W 91–49  2–0
  21 – Richards   11 – Sestina   5 – Tied  Rupp Arena (20,163)
Lexington, KY
November 12, 2019*
7:00 PM, SECN 		No. 1 Evansville L 64–67  2–1
  16 – Quickley   9 – Quickley   3 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (19,101)
Lexington, KY
November 18, 2019*
7:00 PM, ESPN2 		No. 9 Utah Valley
BBN Showcase 		W 82–74  3–1
  26 – Hagans   12 – Sestina   5 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (18,859)
Lexington, KY
November 22, 2019*
7:00 PM, SECN 		No. 9 Mount St. Mary's
BBN Showcase 		W 82–62  4–1
  19 – Richards   7 – Hagans   7 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,351)
Lexington, KY
November 24, 2019*
6:00 PM, SECN 		No. 9 Lamar
BBN Showcase 		W 81–56  5–1
  21 – Maxey   13 – Richards   9 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,048)
Lexington, KY
November 29, 2019*
7:00 PM, SECN 		No. 9 UAB
BBN Showcase 		W 69–58  6–1
  16 – Tied   9 – Richards   12 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,401)
Lexington, KY
December 7, 2019*
4:00 PM, SECN 		No. 8 Fairleigh Dickinson W 83–52  7–1
  25 – Montgomery   10 – Richards   11 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,080)
Lexington, KY
December 14, 2019*
5:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 8 Georgia Tech W 67–53  8–1
  21 – Hagans   7 – Tied   7 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,111)
Lexington, KY
December 18, 2019*
11:00 PM, ESPN2 		No. 6 vs. Utah
Neon Hoops Showcase 		L 66–69  8–2
  18 – Maxey   10 – Montgomery   8 – Hagans  T-Mobile Arena (5,507)
Paradise, NV
December 21, 2019*
5:15 PM, CBS 		No. 6 vs. No. 5 Ohio State
CBS Sports Classic 		L 65–71  8–3
  15 – Maxey   6 – Maxey   9 – Hagans  T-Mobile Arena 
Paradise, NV
December 28, 2019*
3:45 PM, CBS 		No. 19 No. 3 Louisville
Battle for the Bluegrass 		W 78–70 OT 9–3
  27 – Maxey   10 – Richards   8 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,437)
Lexington, KY
January 4, 2020
2:00 PM, SECN 		No. 17 Missouri W 71–59  10–3
(1–0) 		 23 – Quickley   12 – Richards   7 – Hagans  Rupp Arena (20,396)
Lexington, KY
January 7, 2020
9:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 14 at Georgia       Stegeman Coliseum 
Athens, GA
January 11, 2020
12:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 14 Alabama       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
January 15, 2020
6:30 PM, SECN 		at South Carolina       Colonial Life Arena 
Columbia, SC
January 18, 2020
4:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		at Arkansas       Bud Walton Arena 
Fayetteville, AR
January 21, 2020
7:00 PM, ESPN/2/U/SECN 		Georgia       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
January 25, 2020*
6:00 PM, ESPN 		at Texas Tech
Big 12/SEC Challenge 		      United Supermarkets Arena 
Lubbock, TX
January 29, 2020
6:30 PM, SECN 		Vanderbilt       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 1, 2020
6/8:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		at Auburn       Auburn Arena 
Auburn, AL
February 4, 2020
9:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		Mississippi State       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 8, 2020
1:00 PM, CBS 		at Tennessee
Rivalry 		      Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
February 11, 2020
7:00 PM, ESPN/2/U/SECN 		at Vanderbilt       Memorial Gymnasium 
Nashville, TN
February 15, 2020
2:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		Ole Miss       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 18, 2020
9:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		at LSU       Pete Maravich Assembly Center 
Baton Rouge, LA
February 22, 2020
6/8:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		Florida
Rivalry 		      Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
February 25, 2020
7:00 PM, ESPN/2/U/SECN 		at Texas A&M       Reed Arena 
College Station, TX
February 29, 2020
3:45 PM, CBS 		Auburn       Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
March 3, 2020
9:00 PM, ESPN/2/U 		Tennessee
Rivalry 		      Rupp Arena 
Lexington, KY
March 7, 2020
1:00 PM, CBS 		at Florida
Rivalry 		      O'Connell Center 
Gainesville, FL
SEC Tournament
March 11–15, 2020
 SECN/ESPN 		vs. TBD
2020 SEC Tournament 		      Bridgestone Arena 
Nashville, TN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

See also: 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes
Week
PollPre12345678910111213141516171819Final
AP2 (2)1 (64)99886191714Not released
Coaches22*10111096191413

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings

References

  1. ^ "Kentucky overwhelms NCAA Tournament first-timer Abilene Christian". Florida Times-Union. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  2. ^ "Second-seeded Kentucky holds off No. 3 Houston to advance to NCAA Tournament Elite Eight". USAToday.com. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  3. ^ "Kentucky vs. Auburn score: Surging Tigers shock Wildcats in OT to earn the first trip to Final Four in school history". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  4. ^ Hale, Jon (2019-04-09). "Kentucky basketball: PJ Washington to enter NBA draft". USA Today. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  5. ^ Moore, Annie (2019-04-16). "Tyler Herro declares he will stay in NBA draft". Wave 3 News. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  6. ^ "Keldon Johnson declares for 2019 NBA draft". WKYT. 2019-04-10. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  7. ^ Hale, Jon (2019-04-17). "Kentucky basketball: Jemarl Baker set to transfer". USA Today. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  8. ^ "UK Men's Basketball Lands 11th Straight Top-Three Signing Class". University of Kentucky. 2019-05-24. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
  9. ^ "Junior guard Tyrese Maxey commits to Kentucky for 2019 class". ESPN. 2018-05-09. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
  10. ^ Hoyt, Joseph (2019-01-24). "Tyrese Maxey, Jordyn Oliver among 5 locals named to McDonald's All-American game". Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
  11. ^ Hale, Jon (2018-08-02). "Pendleton County basketball star Dontaie Allen commits to Kentucky". Courier-Journal. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
  12. ^ Moore, Josh (2019-03-05). "UK signee Dontaie Allen named 2019 Kentucky Mr. Basketball". Lexington Herald-Leader. Retrieved 2019-10-26.
  13. ^ "Grad transfer Nate Sestina commits to Kentucky". KentuckySportsRadio.com. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  14. ^ Wheatley, Nick (August 4, 2019). "Cam'Ron Fletcher commits to Kentucky". A Sea of Blue. Retrieved August 5, 2019.
  15. ^ Pilgrim, Jack (October 8, 2019). "Rupp Arena Unveils New Upper-Level Chair Back Seats". Kentucky Sports Radio. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
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