Kentucky star Otega Oweh left off of the All-SEC First Team

With the regular season concluded today, the SEC announced the award winners for the conference, and some Wildcats did take home some hardware. Otega Oweh was named to the All-SEC Second Team, and Malachi Moreno was on the All-Freshman Team.

Big Blue Nation has taken to social media to protest the fact that Oweh was not on the All-SEC First Team. I pulled his numbers for SEC play, and they are quite impressive. In SEC play, Oweh averaged 21.1 points per game, 4.5 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.8 steals. He shot 48% (132-276) from the field and 37% (27-73) from three.

Feb 28, 2026; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Otega Oweh (00) reacts towards a referee after a play at the basket during the second half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Oweh did have a slow start to the season, which is why his season average only sit at 18.2 points per game, but over the last handful of non-conference games and in just about every SEC game, Oweh was incredible.

The All-SEC First Team included Arkansas Darius Acuff Jr., Thomas Haugh of Florida, Labaron Philon Jr. of Alabama, Tyler Tanner from Vanderbilt, and Ja’Kobi Gillespie from Tennessee. Four of these players should have, without question, made this team over Oweh, but Gillespie is the name that has fans so angry.

Oweh and the Wildcats are 2-0 against Gillespie, and he isn’t even the best player on his team. Nate Ament, the Vols' star freshman, has missed a few games with an injury, and in Tennessee’s matchup with Vanderbilt this past Saturday, Gillespie had a terrible game.

In the game against Vanderbilt, Gillespie was 5-22 from the field, 1-11 from three, and turned the ball over five times. Obviously, Oweh has had rough games in SEC play as well, but the point of bringing this up is it shows that Ament is so important to Tennessee. They aren’t as good when he isn’t on the floor.

If Kentucky lost Oweh, this entire team would fully fall apart. This shows just how important he is to the Wildcats. Gillespie is a very good player, and he has had an excellent season for the Volunteers, but there is no shot he should have been the fifth player to make the All-SEC First Team, and Big Blue Nation is outraged.

Obviously, Oweh is a team player and doesn’t care about personal accolades, but it is frustrating for him knowing he should have been on the first team. Moreno making the All-Freshman team is very exciting, and the future is bright for Moreno with another year in college playing for his hometown team.