It hasn’t been the offseason that many Kentucky Wildcats fans would have liked, but Mark Pope and his staff are working to fill the final spots on the roster with quality players. One of their biggest remaining needs was more frontcourt depth, preferably someone with experience. On Saturday, they got their man in Franck Kepnang.
Injuries have been an issue for Kepnang throughout his career. However, he did play in 27 games last season for the Washington Huskies alongside new Wildcats point guard Zoom Diallo. He will need a waiver to get another season of college basketball.
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Kepnang is a 6’11”, 250 lb center who was a top 50 recruit back in 2020. He spent two seasons with the Oregon Ducks before transferring to Washington, where he has played since then.
Last season, Kepnang was one of the nation’s better shot blockers, averaging 2.1 blocks in about 22 minutes per game. His offensive game is limited. He averaged just 6.2 points per game, but did post 6.3 rebounds per contest.
It’s not the scorer that Kentucky fans may have wanted, but center was a major need, and having a physical player who can block shots at a high level is something that helps the roster. Now, fans will monitor the situation with Malachi Moreno, and if he returns, the Wildcats have a very good center combination.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky basketball adds center Franck Kepnang from transfer portal
