Collin Chandler has officially entered the chat - and he’s not just showing up, he’s taking over.
Ever since Kentucky’s road win in Knoxville, where Chandler lit up Tennessee for four threes - the most he’s ever hit in an SEC game - the sophomore guard has flipped a switch. That performance wasn’t just a good night; it was a turning point.
Since then, he’s scored in double figures in four straight Kentucky wins, knocking down 10 threes in that stretch, including another four in the Wildcats’ victory over Oklahoma on Wednesday night. That game?
Chandler tied his career high with 18 points and looked every bit the confident shot-maker Kentucky fans had been waiting to see.
During that Oklahoma game, ESPN’s Tom Hart dubbed him “Captain Clutch” - and honestly, it fits. Chandler has developed a knack for rising to the moment, especially when the game tightens up and the pressure hits. His head coach, Mark Pope, didn’t hesitate to co-sign the nickname when asked about it at his press conference.
“He loves it down the stretch, doesn’t he?” Pope said with a smile. “My goodness, he just is putting together play after play after play after play.”
Pope went on to talk about what makes Chandler’s growth so compelling. In a world where every move a player makes is under the microscope, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture - development, resilience, and embracing the grind. For Chandler, that journey has been anything but linear, and that’s what makes this recent surge so impressive.
“There’s such a hyper focus on every word a player says, or every play he makes, or everything he does, and then we make a grand evaluation on it,” Pope said. “And I think that’s fun.
There’s a funness to that. But what’s great is to watch guys’ growth trajectory.
I think that’s what’s really inspiring. And Collin is making strides.
He just keeps getting better and better and better, and he loves the moment. He’s not afraid of the moment; he’s not afraid of all the pressure that comes with it.
He just embraces it. And the guys around him are doing it too.”
What makes Chandler’s resurgence even more compelling is where he was just a few weeks ago. Before that breakout against Tennessee, he hadn’t scored in double figures since Kentucky’s loss to Gonzaga back in early December.
His minutes were trending down, and he even found himself out of the starting lineup, logging just five minutes in a game against Missouri. But that stretch - the quiet one, the one without the highlight reels - is where Pope believes the real growth happened.
“At one point, he went several games without playing much,” Pope recalled. “And we talked a bunch, and he just was continuing like, ‘Hey, I get it.
I knew what I was signing up for, and this is how it goes.’ And sometimes things are humming and clicking and going great, and sometimes you just have to put your head down and work really hard to try and grow.”
That mindset has paid off. Chandler has found his rhythm, not just as a shooter, but as a player who understands Kentucky’s system, who feels comfortable in the moment, and who’s earning his teammates’ trust with every possession.
“It’s fun to watch him right now,” Pope said. “Because he’s becoming more comfortable in his own skin, right? He’s becoming more comfortable with what we do and how we do it, and how it looks and how it feels.”
Now, with another matchup against Tennessee looming - this time at Rupp Arena - the spotlight turns back to Chandler. The first meeting sparked something. The question now is: how far can he take it?
Captain Clutch is heating up. And Kentucky’s ride just got a lot more interesting.