KSR Today: Florida wins, Mo Dioubate is a Cat, Kentucky Baseball vs. Louisville

Good morning, friends. The sun is back out in the Bluegrass, and we have a new national champion. The Florida Gators outlasted the Houston Cougars to win the NCAA Tournament last night, asserting the SEC’s dominance in the sport this season.

It was a back-and-forth battle, with Houston largely dictating the style of play and pace. For the third straight game, Florida overcame a large second-half deficit. Down 12 with 16:24 to go, the Gators went on a 12-3 run to make it a one-possession game. From there, the two teams traded buckets. In the end, it was Florida’s defense, not Houston’s, that won out, pushing the Gators to their third national title.

The final play will haunt Cougars fans for a while. With 4.9 seconds on the clock, Houston guard Emanuel Sharp was poised to hit the game-winning three, but Walter Clayton Jr. came out to contest. As Clayton put his hand out to block the shot, Sharp dropped the ball and had to leave it on the floor to avoid turning it over. He waited for a teammate to come pick it up, but after a few agonizing seconds, it was Florida forward Alex Condon who dove onto it, passing it to Clayton as time expired.

At 39 years old, Todd Golden becomes the youngest coach since NC State’s Jim Valvano (37) in 1983 to win the national championship. It’s the Gators’ first since Billy Donovan led them to back-to-back championships in 2006 and 2007. Does it make you feel any better that Kentucky won the only matchup with Florida this season? If not, maybe seeing Otega Oweh dunk 30 seconds into “One Shining Moment” will (although the Cats are on the sad end of a few Tennessee clips as well).

Now, the college basketball season is officially over. We’ve had our sights trained on next season for a while and it could be another big day on that front.

Mo Dioubate becomes Kentucky’s third Transfer Portal addition

The biggest news on Monday for Kentucky fans, of course, was Mo Dioubate‘s commitment. The former Alabama forward announced on Monday evening that he’s bringing his talents to Kentucky after two seasons at Alabama. The 6’7″ 215 lbs. forward averaged 7.2 points and 5.9 rebounds for the Crimson Tide this past season, coming off the bench and playing an integral part in their postseason run. He was very good against Kentucky, putting up 13 points and eight rebounds in the SEC Tournament win over the Cats and 8 points and 8 rebounds in Alabama’s regular-season win on Jan. 18.

A physical forward with a knack for rebounding and defense, Mo brings mo’ toughness to next year’s squad. He won Alabama’s Hard Hat Award — given to the player who scored the most “blue-collar points” — nine times last season, three times more than the next highest recipient. Fifty-fifty balls plagued the Cats last season; Dioubate is the type of player who will be first on the floor to go after them. Fellow Queens, NY native Hamidou Diallo approves.

Queens to Lex Show Him Love BBN! https://t.co/1hcDpTy9VG

— Hamidou Diallo (@hamidoudiallo) April 8, 2025

Dioubate has two seasons of eligibility remaining. He’s the third player to commit to Kentucky from the transfer portal so far this offseason, joining Kam Williams (Tulane) and Jaland Lowe (Pitt). Learn more about him in our coverage and then watch the basketball boys Rapidly React to the news:

Mo Dioubate to Kentucky

• Commitment Story
• Transfer Portal Bio Blast
• What Mo Dioubate’s commitment means for Kentucky
• Three Things to Know About Mo (KSR+)

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Who’s Next?

Who will be the next transfer to commit to Kentucky? The Cats are still pursuing a shooter, and they may also take a chance on a familiar name.

There is some new steam with Arizona State transfer forward Jayden Quaintance, who was committed to Kentucky out of high school but changed course when John Calipari went to Arkansas. There’s now mutual interest between Quaintance’s camp and Kentucky as he explores his options in the portal. The 6’10” 225 lbs. power forward is recovering from ACL surgery and is expected to be cleared for contact in September. He’s projected to be a top-10 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, still just 17 years old.

Jack Pilgrim had an encouraging update on Quaintance on KSBoard late last night. Remember that Quaintance considered staying with Kentucky even after John Calipari left last spring. Is a Big Blue reunion in the works?

Make sure you are LOCKED IN for Transfer Portal SZN. Join KSR+ to get bonus coverage of the Cats, including the latest recruiting and roster intel. Just $1 for a week.

Kentucky Baseball heads to Louisville

It’s a big day on the diamond for the Kentucky Baseball team, which heads west for a showdown with No. 14 Louisville (7 p.m. ET, ACC Network). The Bat Cats are coming off a series loss vs. No. 9 Ole Miss, which took their record to 18-11 overall, 5-7 in SEC play. A win over a top-15 Louisville team would be an excellent way to get back on track. The Cards are 24-7 this season, 8-4 in ACC play. They just swept Boston College at home.

This is the first of two games against Louisville this season. The Cards have won the last 13 of 17 vs. the Cats, but Kentucky won two of the last three in Jim Patterson Stadium, including last year’s, 17-13. First pitch at Jim Patterson Stadium was originally scheduled for 8 p.m. ET but was moved up an hour to 7 p.m. ET. You can watch the gam live on the ACC Network or listen on 630 AM in Lexington.

Football got a commit, too

Shortly after Mo Dioubate committed to the basketball team, the football team reeled in a commitment as well. Knoxville (Tenn.) Bearden quarterback DJ Hunter became Kentucky’s first commitment in the 2027 class.

Hunter is unranked, but he threw for over 1,400 yards in his first season in Tennessee high school football last fall. He took spring visits to Clemson, Virginia Tech, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia in March and April and decided he liked Lexington best, committing just over a week after his trip to campus. For the second time in the last three recruiting cycles, Kentucky’s first pledge is a quarterback, giving Stoops and staff an early piece to build around.

Drewapalooza Day 2

Drew Franklin is running the radio show this week while the rest of the crew is on vacation. On Monday, he and Billy Rutledge talked about national championships and transfer portal developments. Today, the show moves to KSBar and Grille, where Drew will be joined by Jack Pilgrim and Steven Peake to talk men’s basketball and Phoenix Stevens and Kentucky WBB returner Teonni Key to talk women’s basketball. The fun starts one hour from now, or on the KSR Preshow if you’re ready to get it rolling.