Ex-Kentucky basketball signee Nolan Hickman helps lead Gonzaga to win in Rupp Arena debut
More than two years after he was expected to make his Rupp Arena debut, Nolan Hickman set foot on the home court of Kentucky basketball for the first time Saturday afternoon.
The Gonzaga player left Lexington with a victory.
Hickman, who was UK’s first commitment for the recruiting class of 2021 before later backing out of that pledge, scored 17 points, grabbed five rebounds and helped lead the Bulldogs to an 89-85 win over the Wildcats, handing UK its third straight loss in Rupp for the first time in program history.
Now a junior, Hickman set the tone early in Saturday’s game. He hit his first shot attempt in Rupp Arena and had 11 points midway through the first half, the first player on either team to score in double figures. His layup with 16:50 left in the first half gave the Zags an 11-4 lead and forced John Calipari to call a timeout before the first TV stoppage of the day. At the end, Hickman hit two free throws with one second left on the clock to put the Zags up four and ice the game.
Hickman originally committed to Kentucky back in the summer of 2020, becoming the Wildcats’ first recruit for the following year’s class. He pledged to UK without setting foot on the school’s campus, however, due to COVID-19 protocols that banned recruiting travel at the time.
“I never physically visited the campus,” Hickman said Friday. “Me and my family had online visits, Zoom. It was during COVID times — that’s the only reason why. It probably wasn’t a good representation of how big (Kentucky basketball) is, I just tried to get the gist of it.”
Hickman got a good look at it Saturday, with Rupp Arena packed to the rafters for the marquee nonconference game. He said the day before the game that he didn’t know how the fans would react to his presence on the Rupp court. “Maybe get a few boos when I touch the rock,” he predicted.
That didn’t happen, and the Wildcats fell behind so quickly that Kentucky fans in the building had other things to worry about.
Hickman actually signed with UK in November of 2020 and didn’t back out of his commitment until April 30, 2021, well after the Wildcats’ dreadful 9-16 season had ended. His departure from Kentucky’s recruiting class left the Wildcats with zero point guards for the 2021-22 season.
The Cats later added star recruit TyTy Washington, who was already expected to commit to UK even before Hickman’s decommitment, and Georgia transfer Sahvir Wheeler, who had led the SEC in assists the previous season and did the same thing for the Cats in the 2021-22 campaign.
That Kentucky team earned a 2 seed in the 2022 NCAA Tournament before being upset by 15-seeded Saint Peter’s in the first round.
Hickman ended up at Gonzaga, where he played 17.2 minutes per game as a freshman for the top-seeded Zags, who were defeated in the Sweet Sixteen that season. The Seattle native started 36 of 37 games for Gonzaga’s Elite Eight team last season, though he scored only four points in that one, an 88-72 victory for the Zags in Spokane Arena.
The ex-UK recruit has started all 24 games for the Bulldogs this season. He came into Saturday’s game averaging a career-high 13.0 points, along with 2.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
Hickman finished his high school career as the No. 46 recruit in the 247Sports rankings for 2021. He was selected as a McDonald’s All-American during his senior year. He’s now 1-0 in Rupp Arena.
“Great atmosphere, man,” Hickman said of his first trip to Lexington. “That’s what college hoops is about — just coming and doing what we do in different arenas, different atmospheres. And this was right up there with The Kennel, you know what I’m saying. It was amazing. I love crowds like that. It was cool. A great experience.”
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