Friday Headlines: Support for Sahvir Wheeler Edition

Jan 20, 2023 - 11:40 AM

NCAA Basketball: South Carolina at <a href= — Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

Despite having a birthday earlier this week, it hasn’t been the most encouraging few days for veteran point guard Sahvir Wheeler. The former Georgia Bulldog came off the bench in return from injury during Tuesday’s game against his old team.

If you watched the game or read anything regarding the game’s outcoming in the following days, then you know it wasn’t Wheeler’s greatest performance. In fact, he played just one minute in the second half and it was due to Cason Wallace picking up a third foul.

Wheeler’s defense has never been his strong suit and his offense this year has been hit and miss. It also doesn’t help that Kentucky has put together two straight wins without him on the floor much.

But despite what fans and media think, Wheeler’s teammates have his back.

Both Chris Livingston and Jacob Toppin talked this week about how Wheeler is essential to Kentucky’s success and the team will need him to come up big in key moments.

They’re absolutely correct, too.

Though it’s still to be determined what role Wheeler will play if Kentucky continues their sudden hot streak, at the bare minimum he’ll be exactly what the Wildcats need off the bench with quick scoring and energy in the fast break.

We’ll definitely see more of what John Calipari has in store this Saturday when Kentucky hosts a red-hot Texas A&M team. Tip-off is scheduled for 2PM ET.

Tweet of the Day

Ready to feel old?

Adam Vinatieri kicked the #Patriots to a 16-13 divisional-round playoff win over the Raiders in the Snow Bowl … 21 years ago today. pic.twitter.com/FiVRpqgkvs
— Andrew Callahan (@_AndrewCallahan) January 19, 2023