Kentucky star Oscar Tshiebwe is a beast in the paint, and an All-American. He’s also gotten away with several borderline dirty plays this season.
Oscar Tshiebwe will end his career a Kentucky legend, whenever that is. Last season, he was the first player in program history to win six NCAA-recognized awards in the same year (Sporting News, Associated Press, United States Basketball Writers Association, National Association of Basketball Coaches, Naismith Trophy and Wooden Award).
He’s well on his way to several more this season, though the Wildcats have struggled to live up to their high expectations entering the 2022-23 league year.
On Friday night, the Wildcats fell to Vanderbilt in the SEC Tournament despite a valiant effort from Tshiebwe, who scored 19 points and had 15 boards. Still, Tshiebwe’s name was shrouded in some controversy, as fans pointed out a consistent, borderline-dirty play he’s gotten away with all season.
Kentucky: Is Oscar Tshiebwe getting away with a dirty play?
Tshiebwe went viral on social media for the wrong reasons, as he appeared to elbow a Vanderbilt player in the face.
This isn’t the first time Tshiebwe has been called into question this season, either. The thread includes several questionable no-calls, which could’ve even been upgraded to flagrant fouls without much of an argument from this viewer.
Tshiebwe is a bruiser and plays physical down low. It’s how he succeeds — he establishes himself in the paint early and often. The Kentucky big man is imposing. There’s bound to be some jostling, but much of that contact comes down low, rather than via his elbows and hands. That ought to be called by SEC officials, even if it’s on the player of the year.
Expect officials to take a closer look at Tshiebwe’s physical style of play in the NCAA Tournament.
