LEXINGTON, Ky. (WDRB) – It was like no other game Antonio Reeves had ever played, and not just because he was in the NCAA Tournament and this was for a chance to reach the Sweet Sixteen.
Yesterday was Media Day for the 2024 season, but here Reeves was, still answering questions about that day last spring, when he went 1-for-15 from the field in Kentucky’s 65-59 loss to Kansas State in the NCAA’s second round in Greensboro, N.C.
He'd never experienced a game quite like it, nor does he hope ever to again.
The transfer from Illinois State was Kentucky’s primary perimeter weapon last season. Without him, Kentucky wouldn’t have been in the postseason position it was in. But on this day, he couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. It was, well, stunning.
“It just wasn't my day,” Reeve said. “Probably tried a little bit harder than I expected. But I just needed to relax, you know. Never played in March Madness before. So, you know, definitely those things, you know, just need to learn from it. Now I just want to focus on the next game and the next March Madness.”
That Reeves is back in Lexington at all comes as something of a surprise, after he entered the transfer portal in the offseason and spent some time back at his old school. In the end, however, Reeves said the players in Lexington were a bit part in his decision to come back and try to finish strong.
That in itself takes a certain amount of maturity. Rather than running from a frustrating end, Reeves comes back to a new landscape, and entirely new team, and a significantly different role.
Antonio Reeves of Kentucky takes a shot in the first half of the Wildcats' NCAA Tournament win over Providence.
He's no longer a wide-eyed newcomer. He’s a veteran, who knows what to expect from the UK fishbowl, and the expectations that come with playing for a program under the national microscope.
His return was a big deal. It allowed both Kentucky coach John Calipari and the Wildcat fan base to breathe a little easier, and it was followed by other significant veteran additions.
“Antonio came in last year and it took him a minute to get his feet underneath him,” Calipari said at SEC Media Day. “By the end of the year, he was as good as anybody in the country. And now people walk in and say, ‘Jeez, he's talking on defense. He's efficient. He's really confident.’ There's not the anxiety that you have coming to Kentucky when you’re, ‘Oh my gosh I’m at Kentucky.’ He has none of that, and he leads and I’m proud of him and happy for him.”
Reeves said having been immersed in Kentucky basketball for a full season definitely is a benefit. He said he didn’t get the magnitude of the program, “until the first camp we did, and you walk in and see how much the fans love you and this program.”
Calipari has a team that should have more offensive punch than a year ago, but Reeves still figures to play a prominent role, no matter how talented the incoming backcourt is. His role has changed, Reeves said.
“I know my role on the floor,” he said. “You know, I have the ability shoot the ball and space the floor, the ability to make plays. But what I really want to do is play both ends and try to get better on the defensive end as much as possible, because I know we’re going to need it. . . . And I just try to be there for the younger guys, let them know what to expect, and be a voice that lifts them up and somebody they can look to.”
For a guy whose final chapter might’ve been a miserable game in an NCAA Tournament loss, Reeves has given himself a rare chance to re-write history. His decision to come back gives him a chance to create an enhanced legacy in a time of NCAA transfer tumult.
Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
