In tournament play, you have to have people step up that maybe wouldn't ever before, and that maybe never will again. For Kentucky on a high-stakes Wednesday afternoon in Nashville, when things weren't going great, that man was Brandon Garrison.
With Malachi Moreno looking a step slow and eventually forced to the bench with foul trouble, Garrison didn't just fill a gap; he became the reason the Cats survived an 87-82 scare from LSU to advance with back-to-back triples in crunch time.
Brandon Garrison answers the bell
When LSU cut the Kentucky lead to just 64-62 with under 12 minutes to go, the tension in Nashville started to rise up. You could feel the crowd's "Oh, boy, here we go again." That’s when Garrison, a player who was just 2-14 this entire year, decided to rewrite the script and launch it from deep.
He ignited a personal 7-0 run, punctuated by back-to-back triples that stretched the lead to 71-64 and effectively broke the Tigers' spirit. Garrison finished the afternoon with a career-defining line: 17 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.
Two steps up and three steps back
The redemption arc here is heavy. Garrison had reached double figures only twice all year (12 against Valpo and 20 against Oklahoma). After his defensive lapse at Auburn, where he stood and watched a season-defining offensive rebound get put in by former Kentucky recruit Elyjah Freeman, many wondered if he would even be in the rotation by March.
This was after he got benched earlier this season, and a KSR host said that he didn't want Brandon Garrison to play again. He probably changed his mind today.
Garrison outplayed the Moreno, and that should have been the case from the jump. Not because Moreno is bad, but Garrison is in his 2nd season in Lexington, he is a former McDonald's All-American. He should be better. This should be the baseline performance, not the surprise.
Where Kentucky goes from here
If Kentucky can get this version of Brandon Garrison, the aggressive, confident big man who answers the bell in a dogfight, then it makes everything easier. The "Ghosts of Nashville" may still be lurking, but today, Brandon Garrison was the one doing the haunting.
Up next is Missouri at 12:30 tomorrow.