It’s officially basketball season in the Commonwealth and all eyes have begun to turn toward one venue: Rupp Arena.
In Kentucky, basketball is on the same level as gospel, and fans all over are eager to see the Cats tip off a new season of college hoops.
With both the Kentucky men’s and women’s teams looking to take significant steps up from the season’s prior, speculation and predictions are running rampant all over the country. Everyone has thoughts, but very few have answers.
As for the passionate sports fans that operate the Kernel Sports desk, Cole Parke, Ali Cetinok and Samantha Money, they certainly don’t have the answers either, but they do have the platform to share their thoughts.
MEN’S TEAM
How successful will Kentucky be in improving upon last year’s performance?
Parke: I said it last year and I’ll say it again, anything short of a national championship this year will feel like a disappointment. On paper, this UK team should be one of, if not the best the school has seen since the 2015 team that nearly completed a perfect season. I tend to be one who scoffs at the often extremely reactionary “Fire Cal!” takes, but if this team can’t improve upon last season’s No. 6 seed and Round of 32 exit, it may really be time to consider a change in leadership. With that said, I do tend to have more faith in Calipari than most, so I say the Cats will be very successful in getting past the second round come March.
Cetinok: It is nine or bust this year for Coach Cal and his team. In the last few years, UK has been reliant on the transfer portal, which hasn’t gotten the Cats where they should be: competing for a national championship. This upcoming season sees a more true Calipari roster. With the sheer amount of talent that will be showcased at Rupp Arena this year, there are no excuses for Calipari. Everything is pointing to the Cats at least making the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2019, but for BBN, that might not be enough to silence the critics that are coming for Calipari’s head. I do believe that the Cats will lose around six or seven games in the regular season just given the difficulty of the schedule this year, but that doesn’t mean it will be time to press the panic button. Let this team get going and let’s see where they stack up come March, as I believe they will have a successful season. The question is, will it be enough for BBN to roll with Calipari for another season?
Smoney: In terms of improving from last year, this year should be nothing less of a night-and-day difference. Fans have had such high expectations for the past couple of years whenever March Madness rolls around, but Kentucky has consistently come unglued under the pressure of the SEC and NCAA Tournaments. While there’s some truth to pointing the finger at Coach Cal, I also point the finger at leadership. I was never a fan of Sahvir Wheeler leading on the court considering his play-making abilities were always declining, so I think the key to improving this year is better leadership on the court. The return of Antonio Reeves is game-changing for this roster, and with this loaded recruiting class, there’s no way improvement won’t be seen in March.
What does Kentucky need to do in order to meet your expectations this year?
Parke: Based on all we’ve seen? Stay healthy. The Cats have been plagued by injuries to key players for years now and, unfortunately, it seems for this lineup it’s begun before the season has. Highly touted five-star freshman Aaron Bradshaw will miss time early and so will returning sensation Ugonna Onyenso. Reports out of UK Pro Day also indicate that returner Adou Thiero may have tweaked his ankle as well. That’s a worrying sign. This Kentucky team has a solid amount of depth, but if it wants to be in the national conversation, it desperately needs to stay healthy going into the big dance.
Cetinok: Consistency. Last season, Kentucky would look like two different teams within the same week. Losing to South Carolina at home just to go knock off a top Tennessee team a few days later and then losing in Athens to a lower-level Georgia team will not be enough this year. We saw flashes of what last year’s team could be, but we didn’t see it night in and night out. That will need to change this year if Kentucky wishes to grab its ever-elusive ninth national championship.
Smoney: Kentucky has the new talent and it has the veterans. It needs balance, and it has it. The question is, will Calipari find that balance and consistency with the team before SEC play starts? The recruiting class is a weapon, but those freshmen won’t come out of the gates perfect and will need time to develop. Finding a balance between them, Antonio Reeves and Tre Mitchell will be crucial in finding success this year. It has pieces, now it needs to put them together. Getting Aaron Bradshaw healthy again is also key.
WOMEN’S TEAM
How successful will Kentucky be in improving upon last year’s performance?
Parke: Simply put, last year’s Cats just weren’t very good. The team struggled all year to even get a conference win, finishing 2-14 in conference play. The squad also, unsurprisingly, went on to miss the NCAA Tournament. It was a massive step down from winning the first SEC title in 40 years the season prior with one of the most prolific scorers in all of Kentucky basketball’s, men and women, history. I don’t know that this year’s Cats are going to be a serious threat come March, but I have the utmost faith in both Kyra Elzy and the players to be far better than last season.
Cetinok: Fortunately for the Cats, it will not be too hard to improve on last year’s performance given just how poor last season was for Elzy’s squad. I don’t expect Kentucky to be a force within a tough SEC, but I do expect them to be something that they weren’t last year: a competitive squad. This team has a lot of new faces with Jada Walker, Robyn Benton and Blair Green all gone. It will be interesting to see how a younger Wildcat team might perform this season and potentially win some games that it wouldn’t have won last year.
Smoney: The roster is smaller this year, and Coach Elzy pointed out that it’s going to be easier to handle than last year so, hopefully for her squad, the chemistry the Wildcats seem to have been missing out on can be present this season. I think there will definitely be improvement, but losing Robyn Benton and Jada Walker is tough and could be reflected on the scoreboard this year. A fresh start and a fresh season with positive attitudes is what Kentucky needs to improve.
What does Kentucky need to do in order to meet your expectations this year?
Parke: It needs to craft a stronger identity. Last season, the hole left by Rhyne Howard, who went No. 1 overall in the WNBA Draft, was very apparent. Maddie Scherr and Jada Walker did their best to be leaders on the team, but they just couldn’t seem to put it together. Well, Walker left the program, meaning Scherr should be the player that the offense flows through, something that I think can work very well in its favor with some strong athletes and ballers around her. Now, two years removed from the Rhyne era, Kentucky needs to create a strong core identity with the players it has now and, luckily for fans, I think it’ll have little issue doing that. Watch out for the women’s team this year, they may really shock some people.
Cetinok: Simply put, this is Scherr’s team. Elzy spoke nothing but praise for the Kentucky native at media day, stating that this team will need to run through her offensively. What does that mean exactly? It means Scherr can’t take any days off. Last year, we would see Scherr be the best player on the court at times and other days you wouldn’t even notice her out there. This will need to change, but it is not all on Scherr to find a way to win. Veterans Ajae Petty, who was named offseason MVP by Elzy, Emma King, who was named most improved by Elzy at media day, Tennessee transfer Brooklyn Miles, Eniya Russell and others will all need to step up as well after being very inconsistent last year.
Smoney: Scherr is the bucket-maker for this team. She has the talent and the leadership skills to aid the Cats on the court but, most importantly, she has the work-hard mindset to do it. As Scherr developed last season, she became one of the most consistent players during SEC play, and I have high hopes she can keep that consistency this season. It’s an awkward subject to address the elephant in the room that this program had several transfers at the conclusion of last season, but this smaller roster with experienced athletes is a new beginning for the team to recreate who Kentucky women’s basketball is and show that on the court.
