KSR Today: Happy Malachi Moreno Day!

Rise and shine, folks. We’ve got a big day ahead of us here in the Commonwealth as the No. 1 center in high school basketball is ready to make his commitment — and he’s one of Kentucky’s own.

Georgetown native Malachi Moreno will announce his decision this morning at Great Crossing High School at 11:30 a.m. ET, choosing between finalists Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, Notre Dame, and Ohio State. It’s a chance for Mark Pope and the Wildcats to add their first commitment in 2025 ahead of the early signing period this fall, but they’ll have to hold off the likes of the Hoosiers and Buckeyes, who have made the 7-foot, 210-pound big man a top priority.

Moreno’s commitment is open to the public with visitors allowed to arrive starting at 10:45 a.m. His ceremony will begin at 11:30, followed by a press conference-style interview at 11:55.

It’s the first major domino to fall, setting the tone for Kentucky’s recruiting class one way or another. Land him, and you have the ultimate frontcourt anchor to build around, allowing Pope and his staff to turn their attention toward top guard and forward targets. Lose him and you’re forced to pivot while taking the PR hit of missing out on a top-25 recruit in your backyard.

What can fans expect going into Moreno’s commitment ceremony? Kentucky holds a 91.8% advantage over Indiana and Ohio State in On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine.

We’ll find out if that holds up here in a couple of hours.

Not so fast on Jasper Johnson?

Today is Malachi Moreno Day, the nation’s No. 1 center shutting down the state as he makes his anticipated decision. Up next? Jasper Johnson Day, initially scheduled for August 21 or 22 — that was in the process of being finalized.

Instead, a slight shift has been made on that timeline for the nation’s No. 11 overall prospect and No. 4 shooting guard out of Lexington, KSR has learned. With Johnson in Los Angeles next week for Mamba Camp on 8/24 — otherwise known as Mamba Day — the five-star prospect has decided to delay his commitment.

That news overlaps with some rumblings that Kentucky may have made a serious push in Johnson’s recruitment after previous chatter suggested the Wildcats were sitting in third behind Alabama and North Carolina. Or maybe that chatter was blown out of proportion to begin with? Those answers and clarity can be found over on KSBoard with intel you simply won’t find anywhere else.

Could the Wildcats add not one, but two in-state standouts? They’ll both be off the board entering September.

Want more Kentucky Basketball roster intel? Join KSR Plus for access to bonus content and KSBoard, KSR’s message board, to chat with fellow Cats fans and get exclusive scoop.

Big Blue Madness confirmed for October 11

Speaking of Moreno, his official visit to Kentucky had been scheduled for the weekend of October 11-13. What’s the significance of those dates? UK Athletics confirmed that will be a pretty important stretch in Lexington, starting with Big Blue Madness on Friday, October 11.

Where will the annual basketball tipoff be held? There was some hope Kentucky would shake things up by hosting it inside the newly-renovated Memorial Coliseum for the coaching debuts of Mark Pope and Kenny Brooks in Lexington. Instead, Mitch Barnhart has decided to keep things as is with #BBM24 being held at Rupp Arena.

Big Blue Madness will take place on Friday, followed by Kentucky football’s home matchup vs. Vanderbilt on Saturday and Keeneland throughout the weekend. Lexington will be the place to be.

Save the date, #BBN! #BBM24 will be Friday, Oct. 11 in Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center 😼 pic.twitter.com/rYIw1I5Fsa

— Kentucky Athletics (@UKAthletics) August 15, 2024

Drink beer for NIL?

Yes, you read that correctly. Drink Kentucky Blue Light beer with Gravely Brewing and all proceeds will go to Club Blue, UK Athletics’ NIL program.

The partnership was announced on Thursday, another opportunity for fans to pitch in and help the program add elite talent in the future. This comes after Mark Pope called Club Blue “the focal point of our whole NIL life right now” and “the most important thing” for Kentucky in the program’s roster-building efforts moving forward.

Now you can have a cold one (or three) to help support the cause.

The beer is listed in the Sporty Spice Suds category on Gravely Brewing’s website alongside the UofL Athletics’ equivalent, the Cardinale.

I just might have to pour one later today if Malachi Moreno commits to Kentucky this morning.

Brad White and Kentucky defense share practice updates

It’s a basketball Friday, but it’s a football month as Mark Stoops and the Wildcats make their season debut on August 31 against Southern Miss at Kroger Field.

For now, all eyes are on fall camp and the team’s progression these last couple of weeks ahead of kickoff. The latest? Brad White and the defense talking after practice on Thursday, the DC joined by DL coach Anwar Stewart and lineman Kendrick Gilbert.

Check out their 19-minute conversation with the media:

Let’s have a day, folks.