Antonio Reeves included in Wooden Award Late Season Watch List

Kentucky men’s basketball guard, Antonio Reeves, has been named to the Wooden Award Late Season Top 20 Watch List, announced by the Los Angeles Athletic Club. The Wooden Award recognizes the most outstanding player in men’s and women’s college basketball. The selection was made based on performances during the 2023-24 season, determined by a poll of national college basketball experts.

Reeves joins a group of front-runners for the prestigious honor. Players who didn’t make the late season list are still eligible for the Wooden Award National Ballot, which consists of the top 15 players who have proven their qualifications to their universities. The Wooden Award All American Team will be revealed during the “Elite Eight” week of the NCAA Tournament, and the winner will be announced following the tournament’s conclusion in April.

Reeves, who was also named to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Top 10 list for the 2024 Jerry West Award, is having an exceptional season for Kentucky. He is leading the Wildcats with an average of 19.5 points per game, while also boasting career bests in field goal percentage (50.2%), 3-point percentage (43.1%), and free throw percentage (87.3%).

Reeves is one of three players from the SEC on the late season top-20 list, alongside Auburn’s Johni Broome and Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht. The Chicago native has had notable performances, scoring 30 points in a win against Louisville and following it up with 27 points against Illinois State. Reeves became the fourth UK player to score 30 or more points in a game against Louisville. He has joined the ranks of Oscar Tshiebwe, Malik Monk, and Jamal Murray as the only players in the John Calipari era with multiple games of 30 or more points.

Throughout the season, Reeves has consistently reached double figures in scoring, missing the mark in just one game. He has scored over 20 points in 10 games. Reeves is the second player under Coach Calipari at UK to have 20 or more career 20-point scoring efforts, joining the 2022 National Player of the Year, Oscar Tshiebwe. Seven of his career 20-plus point games have come on the road.

In a game against Georgia, Reeves surpassed 2,000 career points when combining his time at Illinois State and Kentucky. As a Wildcat, he is just 142 points away from reaching the 1,000-point milestone. UK has previously had two players win the Wooden Award, Anthony Davis in 2012 and Oscar Tshiebwe in 2022.

The Wildcats will return to Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center on Wednesday for a matchup against Florida at 8 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN. For the latest updates on the Kentucky men’s basketball team, follow @KentuckyMBB on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, or visit UKathletics.com.