When Virginia Tech’s Kenny Brooks was announced as the new Head Coach of Kentucky women’s basketball, he was given one of the most challenging tasks a coach could perform: bringing back a program at its absolute lowest.

In just under a year, Kenny Brooks has orchestrated a historic turnaround for the Kentucky women’s basketball program and became the first coach in program history to earn a National Coach of the Year honor, being named by The Sporting News earlier this week.

This isn’t Brooks’ only chance of a national honor. He has also been named a Naismith Coach of the Year semifinalist alongside some of the SEC’s greatest: South Carolina’s Dawn Staley, Texas’ Vic Shaefer and Vanderbilt’s Shea Ralph. 

Taking over a team that finished 12-20 the previous season, Brooks rebuilt the roster from the ground up, recruiting 11 new players and assembling a competitive coaching staff. His leadership pushed the Wildcats to a 22-7 record, a fourth-place SEC finish and their first NCAA Tournament appearance in three years. 

Along the way, Kentucky shattered multiple program records, sold out home games and re-established itself as a force in women’s college basketball. 

With only a couple of months to build a team, Brooks found a way to assemble a stacked roster led by multiple of his Virginia Tech players, most notably Georgia Amoore and Clara Strack.

His team found success right away, starting 7-0 for the first time since 2020 and defeating its first two ranked opponents of the season for the first time since 2016.

However, something far more important to Kentucky fans is that the Cats were able to snap a seven-game losing streak against in-state rival Louisville in front of a sold-out crowd and later defeated Tennessee in the program’s most significant margin of victory ever. 

Kentucky continued to shatter expectations as the season progressed, breaking a school record for 3-pointers in a single game and achieving its best conference scoring margin in over a decade.

He began his first season in the SEC by leading Kentucky to a 91-69 win over Mississippi State, which marked the most points ever scored in a league opener in program history. He also started 5-0, among one of the best conference starts in history. 

Kentucky concluded its conference season 11-5 and secured a double-bye in the SEC Tournament for the first time in five years. The Cats also ended their regular season holding the reigning National Champions of South Carolina to a one-point game in the fourth quarter, an accomplishment no other SEC team had managed in Columbia since 2020.

However, Brooks’ success this season goes far beyond wins and record books. His most significant impact has come with the culture he has created within the program. His approach to recruiting has led Kentucky to be recognized as a top landing spot for some of the best players in the country, with Brooks’ emphasis on chemistry and team building. 

Inside the brand-new Historic Memorial Coliseum, the program’s revival was reflected in record-breaking ticket sales, with reserved season tickets selling out before the season and having a sold-out crowd for four home games. 

As Kentucky prepares to host the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament, the excitement surrounding the program is at an all-time high. Brooks, who has now led three different programs to the NCAA Tournament, will look to take Kentucky to its first-ever Final Four. 

Brooks has not only revived the Wildcats but positioned them for sustained success, and if this season has proven anything to Big Blue Nation, the best is yet to come for Kentucky women’s basketball.