No. 7 Kentucky women’s basketball (17-2, 4-1 SEC) will hit the road to Humphrey Coliseum to take on Mississippi State (14-5, 1-4 SEC).

What to watch:

Kentucky is rolling in conference play, with its two most recent matchups showcasing an upset over No. 5 Oklahoma and a late-clinch victory over Florida.

Mississippi State isn’t experiencing the same success that the Wildcats are seeing, with its only win coming from the first game of conference play over Auburn. 

Since then, the Bulldogs have fallen to No. 8 Oklahoma, No. 20 Tennessee, No. 18 Ole Miss and No. 5 Vanderbilt. 

Notably, rankings don’t dictate much in the SEC. Kentucky’s most recent showing against Florida was forecasted to be a surefire victory for the Cats. 

However, the Gators dominated much of the game, and Kentucky had to come back to reclaim the lead with four minutes left. 

For MSU, its most recent matchup against undefeated Vanderbilt saw the Bulldogs fall just short of a comeback, losing 89-84. 

No game is an easy feat in this conference. Kentucky, although going 2-0 against AP Top 5 teams this season, has not been stranger to struggling against unranked teams. 

The Wildcats suffered their first conference loss to unranked Alabama, 64-51, in an irregular, poor display compared to what fans are used to.

Kentucky will be looking to extend its winning streak to three against the Bulldogs as it looks forward to taking on Tennessee following the trip to Mississippi, with the Vols sitting at No. 20 in the rankings.

Block party:

Taking the court in Starkville will be the SEC’s leaders in blocks this season – Kentucky’s Clara Strack and MSU’s Madison Francis. 

Strack and Francis are currently tied at No. 1 in the conference with 55 blocks throughout the season’s 19 games. Not only are they tied, but they comfortably sit 14 blocks ahead of the No. 3 spot. 

Simply put, the game will showcase two of the SEC’s most productive rim protectors. 

Strack entered the 2025-26 season as the reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year and as a selection to both the All-SEC Defensive Team and All-SEC Second Team. 

Leading the conference her sophomore year in blocks (73) and BPG (2.4) – both of which set single-season program records – the center is on pace this season to surpass those marks once again. 

Francis is earning huge marks in her first year of collegiate play, as indicated by the fact that she is simply keeping up with one of the best centers in the nation.

The freshman is currently averaging 13.4 PPG, 9.6 RBG and 2.0 BPG in conference play, and has tallied five double-doubles on the season, which ties for the most of any SEC freshman.

Both players also sit level at No. 1 in the SEC for blocks in a single game this season, with seven apiece. Strack hit her mark against Hofstra while Francis hit hers against Charlotte. 

Close margins:

Within the rankings of the SEC, the Wildcats and Bulldogs are in close quarters in many areas. 

Offensively, MSU sits at No. 7 with Kentucky trailing two spots behind in the SEC rankings. The Bulldogs enter the matchup averaging 79.8 PPG, while the Wildcats average 79.1 PPG.

Both of the team’s key blockers are leading the scoring for their respective teams, with Francis averaging 13.2 PPG and Strack with 16.4 PPG this season. Morgan follows close behind Strack for Kentucky with 16.4 PPG.

Both teams have three starters averaging double-digit points, with the other two following close behind. In Kentucky’s last showing against Florida, the entire starting lineup hit the double-digits, and in MSU’s last matchup, four players achieved the same mark. 

Moreover, the Bulldogs lead the Cats by two spots in team field goal percentage at No. 5, shooting 46%. 

Conversely, Kentucky tops MSU in opponent field-goal percentage, ranking No. 4, holding opponents to 34.5% from the field. The Bulldogs sit at No. 8 with 37.9% shooting from its opponents.

Mississippi State tops Kentucky by one at 3-point field goal percentage and combined team rebounds. Kentucky takes the cake with blocked shots, assist/turnover ratio, combined opponent rebounds and opponent 3-point field goal percentage. 

Long story short, the Bulldogs lead offensively, yet the Cats take the defensive mark. If both teams are on their games, the matchup will be one to watch. 

Tip-off for Kentucky versus Mississippi State is set for 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Jan. 18. The game will stream live on ESPN+.