Reed Sheppard Stats Tonight: How did the Kentucky guard perform against Texas A&M? 

The Kentucky Wildcats (23-10) faced off against the Texas A&M Aggies (21-13) on Friday in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals and lost 97-87. Kentucky stood a small chance of winning the game after it failed to take the lead from the first buzzer and struggled to catch up till the end.

Freshman guard Reed Sheppard scored 14 points with three rebounds, four assists and two steals playing thirty minutes. He went 5-for-8 from the field, including 3-for-6 from the 3-point line. Sheppard averages 12.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, shooting 54% this season.

Rob Dillingham carried Kentucky with his 27 points while adding four rebounds and seven assists. Wildcats scoring leader Antonio Reeves, currently averaging 22.2 points, was limited to just 13 points playing 18 minutes before fouling out.

Later, speaking to the media, Reed Sheppard addressed the loss:

“We didn’t play like we’ve normally been playing. We didn’t share the ball. We got selfish and tried to make home run plays, just try and take over the game by ourselves.”

Kentucky's offense takes a back seat in the loss to Texas A&M

The Wildcats went 30-for-60 from the field with 11-for-27 from behind the arc while also having 14 turnovers. The team failed on both ends, and Kentucky coach John Calipari spoke on this in the post-game interview:

“I told ’em after, we didn’t pass the ball to each other like we’ve been doing. When the ball stops, we’re not the same team. Go one on five, you can’t make a play that way. We haven’t for weeks. Today we kind of did.

“We had some really bad turnovers today that led to baskets. When you’re talking a four-to six-point game, eight-point game, but you gave them three breakaways, think about that,” Calipari said (via On3)

For the Aggies, Wade Taylor IV was the star as he scored 32 points and three assists. Coach Buzz Williams praised the guard:

“He just has an elite-level IQ off the floor. But he has just as high of an IQ as a player. And he understands time-scoring momentum arguably as well as anybody I’ve ever been around."

With this win, Texas advances to the semifinals on Saturday where it will take on Florida in the semifinals, for the third time since joining the SEC. The Aggies' previous campaigns to the finals in 2016 and 2022 ended in losses. So they will be looking to right things this time.

Kentucky is projected as a No. 3 seed for March Madness.