Oweh's Huge Game Leads Kentucky Past Santa Clara in NCAA Tournament

Otega Oweh scored a career high 35 points, but none bigger than three he scored at the end of regulation on Friday.

With Kentucky trailing Santa Clara by three and just 2.4 seconds left, Oweh launched a 40-foot shot that banked in and tied the game at 73.

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— Kentucky Men’s Basketball (@KentuckyMBB) March 20, 2026

In extra time, the Cats used an 8-0 run to break open a close game and Kentucky beat Santa Clara 89-84 in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in St. Louis.

Oweh’s game is one that will go down as one of the most memorable performances in Kentucky’s storied basketball history. In addition to his 35 points, Oweh had eight rebounds and seven assists. It was the first time anyone has had such a stat line in an NCAA Tournament game since Hall of Famer Larry Bird did so for Indiana State against DePaul in 1979.

In fact, Oweh joins Bird, Princeton’s Bill Bradley and Cincinnati’s Oscar Robertson as the only players to have a 35/8/7 stat line in an NCAA Tournament game.

Mo Dioubate scored 17 points and had eight rebounds for UK, while Denzel Aberdeen had 16 points. Brandon Garrison had 10 points, seven rebounds and six blocked shots in the contest.

Kentucky scored first on a Malachi Moreno putback. Aberdeen followed with a three to give UK an early 5-0 lead. After a Santa Clara bucket, Oweh hit a three and the Cats led 8-2. However, the Broncos scored the next six to tie the game at 8-8.

An Oweh layup gave UK the lead back but Santa Clara hit a three to lead 11-10. Garrison scored four in a row to give the Cats a three-point lead but the Broncos scored to get within one, 14-13. Garrison scored again but Santa Clara hit a three to tie the game at 16-16.

Dioubate scored underneath and Oweh converted a layup to give UK a four-point lead. After a Santa Clara basket, Moreno hit a free throw and Aberdeen scored on a fast-break dunk and Kentucky led 23-18. The Broncos hit a three to get within two before Dioubate hit a three to give UK a 26-21 advantage.

Santa Clara scored five in a row to tie the game, but Aberdeen hit a three and the Cats led 29-26. The Broncos scored the last five points of the half and Santa Clara led 31-29 at the half.

Oweh hit two free throws to start the second half, tying the game in the process. Santa Clara scored the next four before Oweh made two more free throws to cut the deficit to 35-33. A Collin Chandler steal and dunk tied the game but Santa Clara responded with a basket to lead 37-35.

A three from Oweh gave UK a 38-37 lead but Santa Clara got a three-point play to take the lead back. UK then got consecutive threes from Chandler and Aberdeen to lead 44-40. After the Broncos scored, Oweh took it to the rim and Uk led 46-42. Again, Santa Clara would score to get within two.

Kentucky then got a thunderous dunk from Garrison and a three from Aberdeen to lead 51-44. Santa Clara scored five straight to get within two before Dioubate scored at the rim to extend the lead to 53-49. The Broncos scored five in a row to take the lead back, but Oweh got loose underneath and UK led 55-54 with 8:54 to play.

Santa Clara scored five in a row to lead 59-55, but UK responded. Dioubate hit two free throws, then Oweh completed a three-point play and the Cats led 60-59. The Broncos hit a three to lead again, but Kam Williams hit a three for the Cats and UK led 63-62. Santa Clara would score to take the lead back.

Dioubate scored underneath and Oweh did the same, giving Kentucky a 67-64 advantage. The back-and-forth continued as Santa Clara scored four in a row to lead 68-67 before Oweh made one-of-two at the line to tie the game with 2:03 remaining. The Broncos scored on a putback to lead 70-68 with 1:33 remaining.

Neither team scored until Oweh drove to the basket and tied the game with just nine seconds left. That was the first basket in a wild sequence that ended regulation. Santa Clara’s Allen Graves hit a three with 2.4 seconds left, appearing to win the game for the Broncos. However, Kentucky got the ball inbounds and Oweh raced up the floor and launched a 30-foot shot that banked in, tying the game and sending the teams to overtime.

In overtime, Oweh scored to give UK a two-point lead. Santa Clara hit a three to lead by one before Dioubate gave the Cats a 77-76 lead. The Broncos made a three to lead by two, but Dioubate scored again, Oweh made two free throws and Garrison scored on a breakaway dunk, giving Kentucky an 83-79 lead with 52 seconds remaining.

Dioubate hit two free throws to close the 8-0 run, which gave the Cats an 85-79 lead with 31 seconds to play. Santa Clara hit a three with 19 seconds left to get within three but the Broncos would get no closer.

Kentucky returns to action on Sunday, facing the winner of Friday’s Tennessee State/Iowa State game. Time and TV information will be available after that game concludes.