7-foot-5 WKU center Jamarion Sharp posts 7 first-half blocks against Kentucky before injury

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Halfway through Kentucky’s date with Western Kentucky on Wednesday, Hilltopper center Jamarion Sharp was more than halfway to a Rupp Arena record for blocks in a game, as well as another triple-double this season.

The 7-foot-5 Hopkinsville native had eight points, seven blocks and six rebounds at halftime and had proved to be a potent anchor to WKU’s 2-3 zone. He left in the second half with an injury, however — which coach Rick Stansury later said was an ankle sprain — but not before he’d impressed against the Wildcats and captured the state’s attention in recent days.

“He was a little bit (of a) nightmare,” said UK center Oscar Tshiebwe, who matched up against Sharp, “because every time I tried to go up to shoot the ball, he just got me. I was pissed out there. I said, ‘How? How are you going to be this tall? What are you eating? What did you do? How tall are your parents?’”

To answer one of Tshiebwe’s questions, Sharp’s father is 6-foot-9 and his mother is 6-foot-3, and Sharp himself has a 7-foot-7 wingspan. He was the No. 1 junior college prospect in the country, per 247Sports, after two years at John A. Logan College, but began this season as a backup at WKU. However, he’s emerged as not only a starter for the Hilltoppers, but the nation’s leading blocker with an average of 5.0 swats per game.

Background: Who's the tallest player in Division I basketball? This 7-foot-5 Kentucky native

Over the past two weeks, since tornadoes devastated the western part of the state, the Hilltoppers have played three high-major games, easily defeating Ole Miss in Atlanta, beating Louisville at home, and then, on Wednesday, falling 95-60 to UK in Rupp Arena.

But Sharp, who is the tallest player in Division I basketball, has established himself as a uniquely towering and fascinating force.

In his first career WKU start last month, he notched a triple-double against Alabama A&M — the first points/rebounds/blocks triple-double in nearly two years — and then had a big game (16 points, nine boards, six blocks) against Ole Miss. He was strong again against Louisville (14/8/4) and was well on his way to more of the same against No. 18 UK.

The Wildcats were dominant Wednesday — “they were the best team in America today,” Stansbury said — but in the first half, it wasn’t easy for them to score around the rim when Sharp was in the game. He blocked UK’s first shot attempt of the game, a Keion Brooks mid-range jumper, and disrupted most tries in the paint.

He also altered shots and was a nuisance in other ways; on one play, UK’s Davion Mintz approached the rim on a drive, realized he had nowhere to go but into Sharp’s extended arms, and instead opted to throw the ball towards the perimeter, where it bounced out of bounds.

With seven blocks, Sharp seemed poised to break the Rupp Arena single-game record, set by Navy’s David Robinson in a January 1987 game in which the future NBA Hall of Famer posted 45 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocks.

But after falling down as he tried to grab a rebound with 13 minutes left in the game and being helped to the locker room, Sharp didn’t return, and instead, it was Tshiebwe who set an arena record with 28 boards. The UK post now averages a nation-best 15.5 rebounds per game.

More: Three takeaways from Kentucky basketball's blowout of Western Kentucky

Tshiebwe stole the show with a complete, singularly amazing game, but Sharp was also impressive in the first half, when he somehow blocked seven of UK’s 31 field goal attempts. He’s notched four blocks in each of his nine starts this year, and he’ll seek to continue that streak as the Hilltoppers (8-5) begin Conference USA play next week.

At that point, puzzled, opposing big men in the league are sure to have as many questions as Tshiebwe did about the 7-foot-5 shot-blocker.

Hayes Gardner can be reached at hgardner@gannett.com; Twitter: @HayesGardner.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: 7-foot-5 WKU center Jamarion Sharp injured against Kentucky basketball