‘Very thankful that he’s back.’ Aaron Bradshaw shines for Ohio State in upset of Kentucky.

There was a familiar face on the other side of Kentucky basketball’s comprehensive defeat on Saturday night.

Ex-Cat Aaron Bradshaw — a 7-foot-1 forward from New Jersey who was the second-highest ranked recruit (per the 247Sports Composite) in Kentucky’s 2023 freshman class — made a big impact for Ohio State in the Buckeyes’ 85-65 upset win over UK as part of the CBS Sports Classic in New York City.

Bradshaw — who averaged 4.9 points and 3.3 rebounds during the 2023-24 season at UK, his lone season with the Cats — returned from a lengthy absence to provide Ohio State with a spark off the bench inside Madison Square Garden.

Bradshaw finished Saturday’s game with 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the field. He made a 3-pointer, missed both of his free throws, pulled down two rebounds and dished out an assist. Bradshaw was also credited with two of Ohio State’s eight steals in the game. He finished as a plus-7 in 18 minutes on the floor.

Prior to this performance, there were plenty of questions regarding whether Bradshaw would even play against UK. Earlier on Saturday, Bradshaw was listed by Ohio State as “questionable” for the game.

Bradshaw hadn’t played for the Buckeyes in a month. He last appeared in a Nov. 19 home win against Evansville.

After that Evansville game, Bradshaw was kept away from Ohio State team activities while the school investigated a possible domestic incident at his off-campus apartment, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

In early December, Ohio State head coach Jake Diebler said during an episode of his weekly radio show that Bradshaw was back with the Buckeyes. But Diebler repeatedly failed to provide a timeline for Bradshaw’s return to the court.

“I think it was a significant boost,” Diebler said postgame Saturday about the returns of both Bradshaw and sixth-year guard Ques Glover (9 points and 3 rebounds) to the Ohio State team. “… It was nice to have some depth tonight and those guys certainly stepped up.”

Bradshaw was plenty ready for his opportunity when it came against his former team.

He checked into the game just 2:14 into the contest. At halftime — with Ohio State leading Kentucky by nine — Bradshaw had nine points on 4-for-4 shooting.

Bradshaw was Ohio State’s leading scorer at the break. Junior guard Bruce Thornton scored 22 second-half points for the Buckeyes as part of his own 30-point scoring night to change that.

Entering Saturday’s game, Bradshaw had averages of 7.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game for Ohio State across four contests, all starts, this season.

“Missing a 7-footer is always going to hurt,” Thornton said of Bradshaw after the Buckeyes’ win. “Not a lot of people who are 7-foot are able to make tough shots in the mid-range. His energy, his passion, is very contagious. We all rub up off of it. We’re just very thankful that he’s back.”

Bradshaw is one of several members of John Calipari’s final UK squad from last season who are now playing college basketball at other schools.

Bradshaw hit the transfer portal on April 8, before committing to Ohio State and Diebler one week later on April 15. Calipari officially left Kentucky on April 9. The Wildcats appointed Mark Pope as the program’s next head coach on April 12.

The other six scholarship players from the 2023-24 UK team who are still in college basketball are: Jordan Burks (Georgetown), Joey Hart (Ball State), Zvonimir Ivisic (Arkansas), Ugonna Onyenso (Kansas State), Adou Thiero (Arkansas) and D.J. Wagner (Arkansas).

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