This Kentucky Wildcat could be the SEC Player of the Year

The Kentucky guard is having an outstanding year. What are the main reasons why Reeves could be SEC Player of the Year?

The 2023-24 season has been good for the Kentucky Wildcats so far.

The Wildcats are currently ranked No. 8 in the country and they are seeing a high level of production from multiple players, but none more than senior guard Antonio Reeves.

Reeves, a Chicago native in his second season with the team, leads Kentucky in scoring, averaging 18.9 points per game. He is currently shooting 50.8% from the field and 42.7% from 3-point range.

What are the three biggest reasons that Reeves could be named SEC Player of the Year?

Reeves is among the SEC's highest scorers

Reeves' 18.9 points per game place him at No. 3 in the SEC behind Alabama's Mark Sears and Texas A&M's Wade Taylor IV who average 19.6 and 19.5 points per game respectively.

The top spot is within reach for Reeves. It would likely take him making one more shot per game on average to move him in front of Sears and Taylor.

The conference's leading score is not guaranteed to be named player of the year, but it is one of the most important statistics in determining the winner.

Reeves has a presence on the glass

Despite his primary purpose being to put points on the board, Reeves is a proven rebounder and averages 4.4 per game. 

While this places Reeves at No. 34 in the SEC, he is one of only two top-five scorers who ranks that high in rebounding. The other is Tennessee's Dalton Knecht who also averages 4.4 per game.

Being an efficient shooter while also being dependable on the glass is a combination that few players possess, but Reeves does both night in and night out.

Reeves is among the SEC's best in all three shooting categories 

Reeves is a top-10 player in field goal percentage, 3-point percentage and free-throw percentage.

Reeves is efficient in every area of the floor which is an important quality in determining a conference's player of the year.

If Reeves can continue to play on the level that he has been, Kentucky could see one of its players bring home SEC Player of the Year for the 19th time.