Jacob Toppin has emerged as a leader for the Kentucky Wildcats this season, both on and off the court.
John Calipari named Toppin and junior forward Lance Ware team captains entering the NCAA Tournament.
During Kentucky’s win vs. Providence, Toppin showed his maturity by stepping in and correcting Chris Livingston after a mistake on the defensive end.
The team was walking into a timeout after Livingston’s mistake, where Calipari was ready to yell at the freshman forward about his defensive breakdown. Instead, Toppin intervened.
If you noticed on TV, Toppin met Livingston at halfcourt and directed him away from Calipari.
“I saw coach going over to him and I saw he was going to yell at him,” said Toppin. “The message can come so many different ways and I told coach ‘I got it, I’ll tell him. I saw what he did wrong.’ It’s better when it comes from one of his teammates rather than the coaches.”
Hear what Toppin had to say about the moment below.
