Kentucky WBB embracing in-state talent; 3 Miss KY Basketball winners now on roster

Three of the last four Miss Kentucky Basketball winners will suit up for the home-state Wildcats this fall.

2020 winner Maddie Scherr (Ryle) will headline this season’s roster for Kentucky after a strong finish in 2022-23. 2022 winner Amiya Jenkins (Anderson County) should expect a larger role after showing flashes of potential as a freshman. And now, 2021 winner Brookylnn Miles (Franklin County) joins the party after transferring to the ‘Cats on Monday following a two-year stint at Tennessee.

That doesn’t even take into account the other two Bluegrass natives roaming the roster in fifth-year senior Emma King (Lincoln County) and sophomore Cassidy Rowe (Shelby Valley). Kentucky will feature five Kentucky girls on the 2023-24 team as head coach Kyra Elzy, who is also from the Commonwealth, is embracing homegrown talent.

“The coaching staff and I couldn’t be more excited to welcome Brooklynn back home. She is a proud hometown girl, who understands the responsibility of wearing Kentucky across her chest. Not to mention, she’ll join Amiya and Maddie as a trio of Miss Kentucky Basketball honorees on one team!” Elzy said in UK’s press release about Miles transferring to the program. “On the court, Brooklynn is an explosive guard, which will fit our up-tempo style of play, and she is a tenacious defender. Brooklynn has a competitive mindset, and she is ready to get to work for the upcoming season.”

Kentucky WBB has had plenty of recent success with former Miss Basketball winners. 2009 winner A’dia Mathies (Louisville Iroquois) scored over 2,000 points during her four-year career in Lexington, being named an All-American in 2012 and 2013. A few years later, 2013 winner Makayla Epps (Marion County) made her own mark on the program, totaling nearly 1,800 points during her four seasons, making three All-SEC teams along the way. 2015 winner Maci Morris (Bell County) contributed just under 1,700 points in her four years at UK, also making multiple All-SEC teams.

Elzy will hope that her trio of Miss Kentucky Basketball winners can replicate a similar level of success from the past. But she might need more than hope. Elzy will need to see some significant development from at least two of the three in order for her team to make a leap this fall.

Scherr is the most reliable of the three. After starting her college career at Oregon before returning home ahead of last season, she steadily improved her on-court play as the year toiled along. Even though Kentucky finished with a disappointing record of 12-19, the 5-foot-10 point guard was one of the lone bright spots for the future. Scherr possesses All-SEC talent and could even hear her name called during the 2024 WNBA Draft if she continues at this rate. She will be relied upon to do plenty of heavy lifting for Kentucky in ’23-24.

But while Scherr is a do-it-all type of player on both ends and could be in for a massive season, she’ll need some help along the way.

The two mysteries will be Jenkins and Miles, who haven’t played much during the early stages of their college careers but could see much larger roles this season as Kentucky’s overall talent level has taken a dip so far this offseason. Jenkins averaged just 8.9 minutes per game as a freshman at UK while Miles was even lower on the totem pole at Tennessee with a mere 7.2 minutes per game as a sophomore.

One can only assume that Miles came to UK with the intention to play more than she did with the Volunteers. Jenkins might need to play more just out of necessity following the transfer portal losses of backcourt players Jada Walker (Baylor) and Kennedy Cambridge (undecided) and the graduations of Robyn Benton and Blair Green (also a KY native). King, Rowe, sophomore point guard Saniah Tyler, and senior point guard Eniya Russell will also contend for guard minutes. Incoming four-star freshman Jordy Griggs will be in the mix, too.

There could be a bit of a logjam in the Kentucky backcourt but with only one proven contributor in Scherr. Elzy could use some breakout seasons from the other two former Miss Basketball winners to bounce back this coming season.