Looking back at Otega Oweh's career as a Kentucky Wildcat

· Yahoo Sports

When Mark Pope took over the Kentucky Wildcats basketball team, he had little time to assemble his first roster, which he had to build completely from scratch. He went into the transfer portal and put together a cast of talented, but mostly overlooked players that would ultimately make a surprising run to the Sweet 16. One of the players he signed that year was guard Otega Oweh.

Oweh was a strong top 100 recruit out of high school in New Jersey. He committed to the Oklahoma Sooners, and by his sophomore season, had established himself as a potential star. Unfortunately for Oklahoma, he decided he wanted to continue his development elsewhere, and entered the transfer portal.

Visit bettingx.club for more information.

In his first game with the Wildcats, Oweh showed what he can do, scoring 21 points, and adding 3 steals. He quickly became the go to guy for Kentucky when they needed a big basket, and he seemed to deliver every time.

After two seasons in Lexington, Oweh's college career has come to a close. He played himself into being an all-time great who will be remembered fondly by Big Blue Nation forever. Here's a look back at a Kentucky legend.

Otega Oweh takes over against Oklahoma

Oweh would have a number of great games as a Wildcat, but he always had something special for his former team. In their first meeting, with Kentucky trailing, he took over the game down the stretch. Over the final eight-plus minutes, he scored 18 straight points for the Cats, including a game-winner in the final seconds.

He does it to Oklahoma again

A few short weeks after a game-winner in Oweh's first matchup with Oklahoma, the two teams met again at the SEC Tournament. Once again, it would be a close game, and once again, it would be Oweh who had the final say. With just seconds remaining, down one, he drove to the baseline and hit the buzzer beater again.

Kentucky to the Sweet 16

Few expected Kentucky to be a contender in Mark Pope's first year, but Oweh helped make them into one. In the NCAA Tournament, the Wildcats made it to the Sweet 16 by taking down Illinois in round two. He scored 15 points and had 4 rebounds in the win.

Otega Oweh turns it on down the stretch

The Wildcats floundered a bit in the closing stretch this season, but Oweh was doing everything he could to prevent it. In the final six games of the season, he averaged 23.3 points per game, and that includes an 8 point outing against South Carolina. In five of the six games, he scored at least 23 points, and scored at least 28 in three of them. He also averaged 5 rebounds and 2 steals during that run.

The shot

In a moment that will be seen in March Madness highlight videos for decades, Oweh saved Kentucky's season in round one of the tournament this year. After Santa Clara hit a three to seemingly knock off the Cats, Oweh answered with a heave from near mid-court that found the basket and sent the game to overtime, where Kentucky would get the win.

The numbers

In two years at Kentucky, Oweh averaged 17.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. The Wildcats went 46-26 during those two seasons, and were 3-2 in the NCAA Tournament with a Sweet 16 trip. He was an all-time great for Kentucky, and he will be missed. Next stop: NBA.

This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky basketball star Otega Oweh had a great Wildcats career

Read full story at source