Kerr Kriisa addresses future at Kentucky, hints at potential decision before NCAA Tournament

On Thursday, Kentucky guard Kerr Kriisa talked directly to the media for the first time since suffering a season-ending foot fracture 90-89 win over Gonzaga on Dec. 7. The fifth-year senior addressed the possibility of using his medical redshirt and returning to Kentucky next season.

“It’s been very interesting. I don’t want to talk about next year because it really doesn’t matter. We’re in March. We have the biggest games of the year right now,” Kriisa said. “I don’t know if I want to do another three months of college. College summers are long. I might go overseas. We’ll see.”

Despite Kriisa’s initial hesitation to discuss his future with the program, he also didn’t seem eager to run it back in Lexington next season. Kriisa transferred to Kentucky from West Virginia this past offseason after spending one season with the Mountaineers.

He began his collegiate career at Arizona, where he played three seasons. Before getting injured this season, Kriisa averaged 4.4 points, 2.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game while shooting 27.9% from the field and 26.3% from beyond the arc.

Despite Kriisa’s lackluster shooting numbers, he was a valuable sparkplug off the bench for Kentucky. Before leaving the game against Gonzaga, Kriisa tallied eight points, three rebounds and four assists.

On the play he was injured, he left a lasting impression in fans’ minds by rushing back to defend Gonzaga’s fastbreak after initially falling. Although Kriisa hasn’t been able to get in the box score since his injury, he hasn’t stopped contributing to the team.

Kriisa always brings energy on the bench, endlessly cheering on his teammates. His fellow Wildcats don’t take his enthusiasm for granted.

In January, Kriisa’s teammates snuck into his apartment to surprise him on his birthday. Pope believes moments of camaraderie like that are part of the reason his team has found so much success this season.

“All of my guys snuck into Kerr Kriisa’s apartment after celebrating his birthday to go scare him and surprise him,” Pope said. “My guy that is struggling right now because he can’t play right now and it’s killing him. They all snuck into his apartment like little kids, to go surprise him.

“I actually think those runs come from a group like that. I really do. I think it comes from being together and these guys are working so hard to be together as much as they can. I think that’s probably the most important ingredient.”

Kentucky will need to be more tight-knit than ever as it begins its postseason run. On Friday, the 3-seed Wildcats will square off against 14-seed Troy at 7:10 p.m. ET. The game will air live on CBS.