KSR Today: Final Four, transfer portal movement, and the Bat Cats

Good morning, folks! Get ready for another rainy day across the Bluegrass. We’ve got Kentucky baseball and softball action to sneak in this afternoon before some possible thunderstorms make their way through the Lexington area.

That will lead us into tonight’s men’s Final Four action, where four No. 1 seeds will look to play in Monday night’s championship. No matter what, we’ll have one SEC team competing for the title.

• 6:09 p.m. ET (CBS) | No. 1 Florida (-2.5) vs. No. 1 Auburn
• 8:49 p.m. ET (CBS) | No. 1 Houston vs. No. 1 Duke (-5.5)

We already know the championship matchup for the women’s championship after (1) South Carolina and (2) UConn cruised in the Final Four last night. That title game is set for Sunday at 3:00 p.m. ET (ABC/ESPN). By the end of the night, we’ll know the men’s matchup, too.

Two MBB targets commit elsewhere

Kentucky portal targets Taylor Bol Bowen (Florida State) and Yaxel Lendeborg (UAB) will not suit up for the Wildcats in 2025-26. Bol Bowen committed to Alabama yesterday afternoon while Lendeborg made his pledge to Michigan earlier this morning. Two more names off the Big Board.

It’s possible Lendeborg, who is trending as a projected first-round NBA Draft, ends up going pro this offseason anyway, but Bol Bowen is someone Mark Pope and company wanted on the roster. There are still plenty of talented players in the portal though and more than enough time for Pope to lock them down.

Kentucky Basketball 2025-26 Roster Tracker

Here is a running list of who’s coming, going, or being contacted by the staff as the 2025-26 roster comes together.

PORTAL TARGETS (16)

• Mouhamed Dioubate – Alabama – 7.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 1.1 APG, 61.7% FG, 46.2% 3PT
• Alvaro Folgueiras – Robert Morris – 13.8 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 3.1 APG, 54.4 FG%, 41.5 3PT%
• Mackenzie Mgbako – F – Indiana – 12.2 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 1.1 APG, 43.7% FG, 32.9% 3PT
• Jaron Pierre Jr. – Jacksonville State – 21.6 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 3.8 APG, 42.4 FG%, 38.2 3PT%
• Vyctorius Miller – G – LSU – 8.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 1.2 APG, 44.7 FG%, 31.8 3PT
• Reed Bailey – Davidson – 18.8 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 3.8 APG, 47.7 FG%, 41.5 3PT%
• Rodney Rice – Maryland – 13.8 PGG, 2.2 RPG, 1.2 APG, 43.4 FG%, 37.4 3PT%
• Abdi Bashir Jr. – G – Monmouth – 20.1 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 2.2 APG, 37.7% FG, 38.3% 3PT
• Elijah Moore – G – Syracuse – 5.2 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 6.4 APG, 39.1% FG, 31.5% 3PT
• Elyjah Freeman – F – Lincoln Memorial (DII) – 19.3 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 2.4 APG, 57.8% FG, 46.3% 3PT
• Frankie Collins – G – TCU – 11.2 PGG, 4.4 RPG, 4.4 APG, 42.2% FG, 26.1% 3PT
• Lamar Wilkerson – G – Sam Houston – 20.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.1 APG, 47.7% FG, 44.5% 3PT
• Alex Steen – F – Florida Southern (DII) – 17.9 PPG, 10.6 RPG, 2.5 BPG, 56.2 FG%, 28.6 3PT
• Jaland Lowe – G – Pittsburgh – 16.8 PPG, 5.5 APG, 4.2 RPG, 37.6% FG, 26.6% 3PT
• Tyrone Riley IV – G – San Francisco – 9.6 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.0 APG, 50.2 FG%, 32.2 3PT%
• Xaivian Lee – G – Princeton – 16.9 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 5.5 APG, 43.9 FG%, 36.6 3PT%

COMMITS (1)

• Kam Williams – G – Tulane – 9.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 48.5% FG, 41.2% 3PT | Committed 3/28

RETURNING / INCOMING (8)

• Otega Oweh – G – Rising Senior – 16.2 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 1.7 APG, 49.2% FG, 35.5% 3PT
• Brandon Garrison – C – Rising Junior – 5.9 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 1.9 APG, 50.9%
• Collin Chandler – C- Rising Sophomore – 2.7 PPG, 1.0 RPG, 0.7 APG, 36.1% FG, 34.7% 3PT
• Travis Perry – PG – Rising Sophomore – 2.7 PPG, 0.8 RPG, 0.6 APG, 31.3% FG, 32.1% 3PT
• Trent Noah – F – Rising Sophomore – 2.7 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 0.4 APG, 45.1% FG, 33.3% 3PT
• Malachi Moreno – C – Incoming Freshman – Great Crossing (Georgetown, KY)
• Jasper Johnson – SG – Incoming Freshman – Overtime Elite (Lexington, KY)
• Acaden Lewis – PG – Incoming Freshman – Sidwell Friends (Washington DC)

DEPARTURES (1)

• Kerr Kriisa – G – Senior – 4.4 PPG, 3.8 APG, 2.4 RPG, 27.9% FG | Entered Portal 3/31

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Kenny Brooks land in-state transfer

There was some good news on the portal front yesterday though. WKU transfer Josie Gilvin, a native of Louisville and Sacred Heart Academy grad, announced her commitment to Kentucky women’s basketball.

Gilvin, a 6-foot rising senior, recently took a visit to Kentucky. She averaged 13.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.6 steals per game this past season at WKU, and maybe even more importantly, knocked down 41.3 percent of her three-point attempts as a junior. She was also named to the All-CUSA Second Team and CUSA All-Defensive Team in 2024-25. Gilvin will have one year of eligibility remaining at UK.

To learn about what Gilvin brings to UK, what happened with Cassidy Rowe, the latest on Kenny Brooks‘ portal targets, and much more, dive into yesterday’s episode of the Memorial Memo below.

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Kentucky Football Announces Details for “Spring Showcase”

Kentucky will host an open practice at Kroger Field on Saturday, April 12, at 10:00 AM ET. Tickets are free and the public is invited. Based on previous practices and similar events, you can expect about an hour of individual and small-group work, including 7-on-7, followed by a scrimmage that lasts approximately an hour. It’s unclear if that scrimmage will include live tackling.

If you’re wondering why Kentucky chose to host its Spring Showcase at 10 in the morning, the Bat Cats are hosting a three-game series across the street at Kentucky Proud Park. Kentucky will face Texas at noon. This allows fans to double-dip with some football in the morning, followed by Kentucky baseball in the afternoon.

Also keep in mind that, due to preparations for the “Tyler Childers – On The Road” performance later in the month, the East and West concourses at Kroger Field will be closed. Access to Gate 3 from the south side of the stadium will only be from walking the exterior.

Bat Cats split first two vs. No. 9 Ole Miss

Speaking of Nick Mingione’s program, Kentucky fought off the rain long enough to sneak in two nine-inning games yesterday. The Wildcats beat No. 9 Ole Miss 5-4 in walk-off fashion to open the double-header but came up short in game two immediately after in a 3-1 loss. Devin Burkes nailed a single in the 10th inning of the first game to pick up the upset win.

With more bad weather expected today, the series finale has been moved to this afternoon. First pitch at Kentucky Proud Park is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network+.

Softball also looks to win SEC series

Thanks to a go-ahead two-run triple from Lauryn Borzilleri in the bottom of the sixth inning, Kentucky softball was able to knot the series against Auburn 1-1 yesterday. The Wildcats dropped game one 2-1 Friday due to too many errors but bounced back in game two of the doubleheader to steal a 4-3 victory. The series finale at John Cropp Stadium is set for 1:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network+.

Amari Williams finally got his Weetabix sponsorship

It sure did take them long enough too. But better late than never, I suppose. Amari Williams‘ face has finally been plastered on boxes of Weetabix, the British cereal he accidentally made famous during the NCAA Tournament. Time to go buy another box!

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A post shared by Amari Williams (@amariwillixms)

Rick Pitino coming to Rupp for an exhibition?

It’s been unlikely that Kentucky would be able to squeeze in a regular season game against Rick Pitino and St. John’s in the 2025-26 season, but what about an exhibition?

“We may be going to Kentucky for an exhibition game,” Pitino told reporters, per C.L. Brown of the Courier-Journal. “We were hoping to go there for a regular game, but they can’t; they can’t get it done, unfortunately. We were hoping to do a home-and-home (series) with them.”

Pitino also says he wants to schedule a home-and-home series with Louisville, which would be hilarious. Kentucky’s schedule is already jam-packed for next season, making it difficult to get St. John’s in the mix, but an exhibition game at Rupp would be plenty exciting.

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