Jazmine Massengill back in lineup for Kentucky WBB; Robyn Benton still out

On Sunday, Kentucky Women’s Basketball will be the closest to full strength as it has been in weeks.

Ahead of today’s noon tipoff against the Texas A&M Aggies, the Wildcats will have all but one of its rotational players available to play. Point guard Jazmine Massengill will return to the lineup after sitting out last weekend’s contest against LSU due to a concussion, UK announced. However, shooting guard Robyn Benton will miss her fifth consecutive game with a lingering ankle issue.

Kentucky wing Blair Green is also unavailable, as she suffered a ruptured Achilles prior to the beginning of the season and has not played.

BREAKING: All Kentucky WBB players will be available today except Robyn Benton.

Benton is still recovering from an ankle injury she suffered against Florida on Jan. 20.

Today will be the first time UK has had nine healthy players since Jan. 16 against Tennessee.

— Grant Grubbs (@grant_grubbs_) February 6, 2022

Getting Massengill back in the lineup will bring some added juice to the backcourt. Kentucky freshman Jada Walker performed incredibly well in her extended point guard duties against LSU, but Massengill is a proven floor general who impacts the game on both ends. The 6-foot senior is averaging 7.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.5 steals per outing on 44.1 percent shooting.

Sophomore guard Treasure Hunt also appears to be ready to roll again as she’s been dealing with a minor injury that kept her off the floor two games ago against Vanderbilt. Additionally, Dre’Ena Edwards will play her second straight game after missing the previous four due to an in-house suspension where she did not travel with the team.

While not having Benton back still hurts Kentucky, the timing of everyone else getting healthy is crucial. UK is currently not projected to make the 2022 NCAA Tournament and needs a run down the stretch here to establish a case. Beating a disappointing Texas A&M squad at home would be a good start. The back-end of the SEC schedule for the ‘Cats is not nearly as intimidating as the front-end. Benton should come back at some point, too. All hope is certainly not lost.

Tipoff against Texas A&M is scheduled for noon at Memorial Coliseum and will be broadcast on ESPN2.

[UPDATE: UK announces that freshman walk-on Kristen Crenshaw-Gill will sit out Sunday’s game with an ankle injury.]