Otega Oweh's late-game heroics lead Kentucky past Santa Clara 89-84

The Kentucky Wildcats began their NCAA Tournament journey on Friday in St. Louis, in hopes to keep that adventure going with a win over Santa Clara in the first round. After their up-and-down season, the Wildcats needed to right the ship and limit their mistakes in the big dance, starting with a win over the Broncos. They got it, but in thrilling fashion, and it was all thanks to the heroics of Otega Oweh who shined late.

In the first half, Kentucky started out on an 8-2 run, but the Broncos quickly got back in it and for much of the half, both teams were trading buckets. Even when Kentucky pushed their lead to 23-18 with 6:36 to go in the half, Santa Clara had answers. Towards the end of the half, the Wildcats had control, but thanks to four turnovers in the last few minutes as well as a near-three minute scoring drought, Santa Clara took a 31-29 lead into the half with some momentum. Shots weren't falling from deep much for both teams, so every three made was crucial. They ended the first half a combined 8-30 from three. The Wildcats entered the second half needing to get momentum back and they hoped that would be from a big early run that included some threes falling. They needed a guy like Collin Chandler, who was 0-5 in the first half, to get things going and propel the team to a win.

Well, Kentucky started the half on a 6-0 run, with Otega Oweh leading the charge. He had nine of their first 17 points of the half. Kentucky then extended their lead to seven with 12:21 left, but the Broncos continued to answer with timely buckets, even taking a four-point lead with 7:47 left thanks to those. From there, Kentucky needed to just find a way to grind it out. The Wildcats then took advantage of a late two-minute drought by the Broncos, retaking the lead and entering the final few minutes up 67-64. Things got interesting in the final minutes as Santa Clara hit a go-ahead three in the final seconds, but an Otega Oweh buzzer-beater sent it to overtime. Then, in extra time, the Wildcats made the big plays when it mattered. Kentucky was able to extend their lead in the final minute with an 8-0 run, before escaping with the win. A big reason was Otega Oweh, who not only sent it to overtime, but made crucial plays on his way to a career-high 35 points.

It was a thrilling one, indeed, and the Wildcats will be advancing to the second round on Sunday, playing the winner of Iowa State-Tennessee State.