The Kentucky Wildcats have been in a season-long battle-not just with their SEC opponents, but with the injury report. And just when it looked like the hits might keep coming, the Cats caught a break before their big road win over Arkansas.
Head coach Mark Pope shared on his weekly call-in show that senior guard Otega Oweh was dealing with a sprained ankle in the days leading up to Kentucky’s matchup with the 15th-ranked Razorbacks. But if you watched the game, you wouldn’t have guessed he was anything less than 100 percent. Oweh poured in a game-high 24 points, leading the charge in what felt like a statement win for a Kentucky team still finding its rhythm.
“He’s actually coming off a little bit of an ankle injury, so he didn’t practice a whole lot in the two days leading up [to Arkansas],” Pope said. “We were a little cautious with him today. He’ll be full go tomorrow.”
That’s good news for the Wildcats, who are set to host Oklahoma on Wednesday. Having Oweh at full strength gives Kentucky a proven scorer and veteran presence as they head into the final stretch of the regular season.
But while Oweh’s situation seems to be trending in the right direction, the same can’t be said for freshman Braydon Hawthorne, who’s had a string of tough luck on the injury front. When Kam Williams went down with what could be a season-ending foot injury, there was immediate speculation that Kentucky might burn Hawthorne’s redshirt to bolster the rotation.
That talk cooled quickly after Pope revealed Hawthorne was already dealing with a calf injury. And now, just as the freshman was starting to show flashes in practice, another setback: a sprained ankle suffered on Monday.
“BH was actually terrific in practice today until he sprained his ankle,” Pope said. “So we’ll see how that goes.”
Pope didn’t close the door completely on Hawthorne seeing the court this season. “It’s not off the table,” he said of possibly pulling the redshirt. “The dynamics of our roster change every single day.”
And that’s the reality for this Kentucky team. With just nine games left in the regular season, time is running out to make that decision. Unless the injury bug bites again-and given this team’s luck, that’s not out of the question-it’s looking more and more likely that Hawthorne will stay sidelined and preserve his four years of eligibility.
For now, the focus shifts to Oklahoma, with Oweh expected to be back at full speed. And while the Wildcats continue to navigate a season full of twists, turns, and taped ankles, they’re still very much in the fight.