Maxey's Star Power Unlocked on Big Stage
Tyrese Maxey waited patiently on the bench for the first few minutes of his Kentucky debut.
He’s too energetic to sit quietly for that long, but he took in the scene at Madison Square Garden and readied himself for his moment.
When it came, Maxey certainly was ready.
“Coach Cal told me a couple days before the game and today, he told me, ‘Be ready as soon as you get in,’ ” Maxey said. “He said, ‘You know what you’ve done. You know what you do. You work on it every day, every morning at 6 a.m.’ He said, ‘Go out there and play basketball. Go out there and play. Don’t think about anything else.’ That’s what I did. I had a lot of fun.”
In actuality, Maxey had multiple moments in the State Farm Champions Classic on Tuesday night. He came off the bench to set a school record for points by a freshman in his first game as a Wildcat, pouring in 26 points as No. 2 UK (1-0) downed No. 1 Michigan State (0-1) 69-62 in the second season-opening matchup of the nation’s two top-ranked teams in college basketball history.
Maxey’s first points didn’t come until just after the midway point of the first half, but he quickly scored seven straight UK points from there. He had 11 by halftime and then there was no slowing him, particularly in crunch time.
From the 10:03 mark of the second half until a pair of Ashton Hagans finally broke the streak with 37 seconds left, Maxey scored or assisted on 14 straight UK points to hold off the Michigan State rally everyone knew would come. The last three were the most crucial, as Maxey drilled a deep 3-pointer – his third of the night – with a minute left. The clutch shot came just after national player of the year favorite Cassius Winston’s and-one cut UK’s lead to two.
“Honestly, I just trust my training,” Maxey said. “Coach Cal told me I put in the work, getting in at six o’clock every morning and I shoot that shot a thousand times. I shot it a thousand times in high school, I shot it a thousand times this summer and I have confidence in myself.”
Maxey’s teammates share that confidence.
“I expect that from Tyrese,” Ashton Hagans said. “He was doing that in high school and AAU and Coach has been telling me—he called me into the office and told me, ‘Get after him.’ “
That’s precisely what Hagans has done since June.
Just as the sophomore made life difficult on MSU’s Winston, who finished with 21 points but made only 1-of-7 3-pointers, so too has Hagans bothered Maxey in practice. That has led to inevitable moments of frustration for the freshman, but they have only made Maxey stronger.
“He has to go against Ashton every day,” Calipari said. “Like, it’s ridiculously hard. He gets demoralized at times and I keep telling him, ‘There’s no defender like this kid and if you can get baskets and play and keep pace to the game – fast when you want it, slow – you’re going to be fine.’ “
Mostly because of Hagans’ presence, Maxey hadn’t consistently shown the kind of dynamic scoring ability that made him a five-star prospect coming out of high school. It wasn’t that lack of production that prompted Calipari to leave Maxey out of the starting lineup. Instead, Calipari believed that doing so would empower Maxey to unleash his ability.
“The two days prior to this, all I talked about was, ‘You be that sniper. Play. We need you to get baskets for us,’ ” Calipari said. “I told him, ‘I’m not going to start you.’ “
Maxey, always smiling, embraced the role. And just a day after his birthday, Maxey’s star shone brightest on a night in New York City that featured the teams ranked first through fourth in the preseason.
“This was an amazing birthday celebration,” Maxey said. “I’m very happy for me and my guys. A lot of fun out there. I wouldn’t want to go to war with anybody else.”
