LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky men’s basketball freshman guard Reed Sheppard captured his second Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week accolade of the season on Tuesday. The London, Kentucky, native recorded his first career double-double with 11 points and a career-high 11 assists in the win at Louisville.
UK has won more weekly SEC honors (129) than any other school during the John Calipari era, including 98 SEC Freshman of the Week awards and 31 SEC Player of the Week honors. Sheppard has claimed Freshman of the Week honors twice, alongside his teammate D.J. Wagner who also earned the distinction twice.
Sheppard’s 11 assists against the Cardinals were the most by any UK player in the series, topping the previous high of nine which had been done three times. It also marked the first double-double of the season for any UK player in the points-assists variety. In addition to his offensive contributions, Sheppard logged a pair of steals and has recorded at least two steals in every game this season. The Wildcats were plus-27 with Sheppard on the court in the victory.
The 6-foot-3 guard ranks fourth in the country in overall plus/minus for the season. Per KenPom.com, Sheppard is first in the country in true-shooting percentage and second in effective field-goal percentage, while his 57.8% clip from 3-point range ranks fourth in the nation. Furthermore, Sheppard ranks ninth in steals per game (2.82), 53rd in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.76) and 109th in assists per game (4.3).
Kentucky returns to action on Friday as UK hosts Illinois State. Game time is set for 7 p.m. ET with the game airing on SEC Network.
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