KSR Today: Kentucky WBB returns and the transfer portal closes

Good morning, folks! We’ll finally have some Kentucky basketball back on our TV screens today. Kenny Brooks and the women’s basketball team are on a similarly long Christmas break hiatus compared to the men’s team. After last playing on Dec. 20 in a win over Belmont, Kentucky WBB returns to action to host the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. The men’s team, which hasn’t played since Dec. 21 in the loss to Ohio State, is still another few days away from hosting Brown on New Year’s Eve.

But we’re here to talk about the ladies this morning. Kentucky WBB (10-1) is still ranked 16th in the country going into today’s matchup against WKU, which is set for 4:00 p.m. EST on the SEC Network+ inside Memorial Coliseum. It will mark the final non-conference matchup for the Wildcats before SEC play begins in the new year.

Oddly enough, Kentucky and WKU haven’t played each other all that often lately. The all-time series is tied at 14-14, and the Hilltoppers have won the last two (2007, 2008). UK hasn’t won in this series since 2003. We hope to see that change today. Today’s theme is “game night”, as well. UK notes there will be board-game inspired games on the concourse and during timeouts.

For a full preview of this afternoon’s in-state matchup, check out Phoenix Stevens’ preview here. Once you do that, join me as we dive into the rest of this morning’s news and notes.

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Transfer portal news dump

Today is the final day that the transfer portal will be open until the spring. New portal entries can still be accepted throughout the day, but the proper paperwork must be filed by the end of the day in order for it to be accepted (unless you’re on a team still in the postseason). Will another Wildcat go into the portal at the last second? We’ll be on watch throughout the day.

With the winter portal window closing, Kentucky has emerged as a candidate for a couple of notable transfers. Mi’Quise Grace, a 6-foot-4, 255-pound defensive end who starred for South Dakota, is one of them. In 2024, the redshirt sophomore had 64 tackles, 18.5 TFLs, 9.5 sacks, three PBUs, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries, returning one for a touchdown. He was a First-Team FCS All-American. UK is also in touch with Utah State running back Rahsul Faison, who rushed for 1,109 yards as a senior in 2024.

Kentucky has been one of the busiest schools in the portal so far this offseason. UK has seen 20 pieces leave through the portal but has added 14 during that time. That incoming group ranks 23rd in the country according to On3. The portal will re-open again from April 16-25. The 11 Personnel guys were in the lab yesterday to provide another in-depth look at Kentucky’s portal situation.

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Kentucky Football 2025 Transfer Portal Class

Player	Position	Former School	Year
Sam Greene	EDGE (6-1, 255)	USC	Redshirt Sophomore
Landyn Watson	LB (6-1, 239)	TCU/Marshall	Redshirt Senior
Joshua Braun	iOL (6-6, 338)	Florida/Arkansas	Super Senior
Alex Wollschlaeger	T (6-7, 305)	Bowling Green	Super Senior
Wallace Unamba	G/T (6-4, 330)	Florida Atlantic/New Mexico	Redshirt Senior
J.J. Hester	WR (6-4, 203)	Missouri/Oklahoma	Super Senior
Zach Calzada	QB (6-4, 200)	Texas A&M/Auburn/Incarnate Word	Super Senior
Henry Boyer	TE (6-6, 270)	Illinois	Redshirt Junior
Kendrick Law	WR (5-11, 201)	Alabama	Senior
Dante Dowdell	RB (6-2, 225)	Oregon/Nebraska	Junior
Jaden Williams	iDL (6-4, 290)	Wyoming	Redshirt Junior
Kevis Thomas	CB (5-11, 179)	Maryland	Junior
Evan Wibberley	iOL (6-5, 296)	WKU	Redshirt Junior
Kameron Olds	EDGE (6-4, 240)	Buffalo/Kent State	Senior

KSR’s top moments of 2024

The year 2024 certainly had its ups and downs when it came to UK Athletics. Two new basketball coaches came in while the football coach produced arguably his most disappointing season yet. But there were also long postseason runs for baseball and volleyball. “Ups and downs” is probably the nicest way to describe 2024.

But to recap the year, we here at KSR focused on nothing but the fun stuff. We provided a timeline of our favorite moments from 2024, including Justin Edwards’ perfect game against Alabama, Mark Pope’s introductory press conference, La Familia vs. The Ville, Rick Pitino’s Big Blue Madness appearance, and much more. Click the link below to view all 13 of our favorite memories from this year.

KSR’s Top Moments of 2024

Fun sports day ahead

Kentucky women’s basketball won’t be the only game on your TV today. We’ve got nine college bowl games and three NFL games on the docket throughout the day. On the hardwood, the game to watch will be No. 22 UCLA going up against No. 14 Gonzaga at 4:00 p.m. EST on FOX.

CFB Bowl Games

• 11:00 AM (ESPN) | UConn vs. North Carolina – Wasabi Fenway Bowl
• 12:00 PM (ABC) | Boston College vs. Nebraska – Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl
• 2:15 PM (ESPN) | Louisiana vs. TCU – Isleta New Mexico Bowl
• 3:30 PM (ABC) | No. 18 Iowa State vs. No. 13 Miami (FL) – Pop-Tarts Bowl
• 4:20 PM (The CW Network) | Miami (OH) vs. Colorado State – Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl
• 5:45 PM (ESPN) | East Carolina vs. NC State – Go Bowling Military Bowl
• 7:30 PM (ABC) | No. 17 BYU vs. No. 23 Colorado – Valero Alamo Bowl
• 9:15 PM (ESPN) | Louisiana Tech vs. No. 22 Army – Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl

NFL Week 17

• 1:00 PM (NFL Network) | Charges @ Patriots
• 4:30 PM (NFL Network) | Broncos @ Bengals
• 8:00 PM (NFL Network) | Cardinals @ Rams

RIP Greg Gumbel

We lost a sports broadcasting legend on Friday. The voice/face of March Madness, Greg Gumbel, passed away at the age of 78 after a professional career that spanned three-plus decades. Gumbel spent time as the NFL play-by-play broadcaster for CBS and was on the call for multiple Super Bowls. He also called the Olympics, College World Series, MLB, and NBA games during his legendary career.

I have fond memories of listening to Greg Gumbel call some of my favorite sporting events over the years. I also thoroughly enjoyed Family Guy’s random “Gumbel to Gumbel” bits. RIP to a master of his craft.