For Kentucky fans, Bryce Hopkins isn’t just another opposing forward. He’s a reminder of a strange, frustrating chapter in recent program history. Hopkins was a talented player who arrived with real hype and never quite got the opportunity many believed he deserved. His stock was rising as a future star at Kentucky based on how he played in high school at Fenwick High in Oak Park, Illinois. Before Hopkins, this school was not a highly-ranked national school, and he was awarded state player of the year. He was a four-star recruit coming out of the 2021 class, and was a two-time Chicago Catholic League Player of the Year.
Hopkins came to Lexington in the 2021–22 season as a four-star recruit who looked like a perfect Kentucky fit. He was strong, versatile, and capable of bullying smaller wings while still having the skill to stretch the floor. Instead of becoming a rotation staple, he became a “what if.” Hopkins appeared in 28 games that season, averaging just 6.5 minutes, 2.1 points, and 1.4 rebounds per game as a freshman reserve. Not what the Wildcats were expecting when they recruited him on the team.
There were flashes that made fans wonder. Everyone remembers LSU. Sixteen minutes. Thirteen points on 5-of-6 shooting, four rebounds, in a must-win game and Hopkins was the difference. It felt like the moment the door finally opened. Instead, it slammed shut. His role shrank again, the questions grew louder, and Big Blue Nation spent the rest of the season asking why a player with clear upside was stuck on the bench. John Calipari stayed firm, Hopkins stayed limited, and the transfer portal eventually did what it does.
Once Hopkins landed at Providence, the version Kentucky fans imagined quickly became reality. As a sophomore, he turned into a true star, averaging 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game and earning All–Big East honors. He followed that up with another strong season before an injury cut his senior year short, but the production and impact never faded.
Now Hopkins is at St. John’s under Rick Pitino, and the trust is obvious. Even with fewer minutes, he’s still producing, averaging over 17 points per game early in the 2025 season and serving as one of the Red Storm’s most reliable scorers. These aren’t empty touches. Hopkins is a featured piece.
Kentucky has seen this movie before. In the 2023 NCAA Tournament, sixth-seeded Kentucky defeated Providence 61–53. Hopkins played heavy minutes but never fully took over, finishing with seven points on 2-of-9 shooting in 39 minutes. BBN walked away feeling a little more at peace with how things ended.
Saturday brings another chapter, but this time the context is harsher. Kentucky needs the win. St. John’s needs it too. And looming over the matchup is the possibility that the same player who barely saw the floor in Lexington could now be the reason Kentucky takes another loss.
From a Kentucky perspective, the game plan is simple. Don’t let Hopkins become the emotional engine of the game. Make every catch difficult. Keep him off the offensive glass. Force tough jumpers instead of clean drives and post touches. Every bucket he scores will feel louder than it looks in the box score.
For Hopkins, this is a chance to finally have the Kentucky moment he never got in blue. For Kentucky, it’s a chance to remind everyone that even with the reunion storyline, the better program and the better night can still belong to the Wildcats.
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