KSR Today: NCAA Championship Monday, Portal Watch, Keeneland, and More
Good morning, everyone. It’s championship Monday in college basketball and the beginning of Masters week in golf, one of the best weeks on the entire sports calendar. Tonight, Florida and Houston will close the book on the college basketball season and then we’ll turn our attention to Augusta National for the next several days through the weekend.
It is also Keeneland season, with a unique Monday and Tuesday of racing after the weather threw off the opening weekend calendar. The weather also wrecked much of Kentucky with Sunday flooding, including severe flooding in Frankfort and mandatory evacuations in Carrollton, Kentucky. Stay safe out there if you’re in an area impacted by the floods.
Now, on a lighter note, join me for a recap of the sports news and then I have to hurry downtown to the KSR studio for today’s show. I’m hosting for the next five days, so I should get going. First, a Monday morning rundown.
Florida vs. Houston for the NCAA Championship
Tonight, college basketball will crown its national champion at the Final Four in San Antonio. Florida and Houston are the two remaining teams in the field, set for a title game at 8:50 p.m. ET in the Astrodome. Follow along on CBS as the Gators play in their first NCAA championship since going back to back in 2006 and 2007. Kelvin Sampson got Houston over the hump and into the championship game for the first time since runner-up finishes in 1983 and 1984. The spread is tight. Florida is a one-point favorite on game day.
I’m for Houston in this one. The Cougars sent Tennessee and Duke home. Give them a trophy.
UConn won the Women’s NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016
On Sunday, UConn destroyed defending champ South Carolina in the championship of the Women’s NCAA Tournament, winning 82-59 for the program’s first title since 2016 and the 12th since 1995. Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd led the Huskies with 24 points apiece in the shocking blowout. Paige Bueckers added 17 to hand South Carolina its first loss in a championship game.
Dawn Staley did not enjoy the beatdown. The broadcast caught her launching an F-bomb in the third quarter:
Kerr Kriisa to Cincinnati for his sixth season
Kerr Kriisa entered the transfer portal last week, leaving Lexington behind for his sixth season of college basketball. After six days as a free agent, Kriisa picked his new school over the weekend. He’s staying nearby at Cincinnati for a return to the Big 12 as a Bearcat. Kriisa’s two other former schools, Arizona and West Virginia, will be conference opponents in his super-duper senior year.
Kriisa played in nine games for the Wildcats in 2024-25 before suffering a season-ending injury in the win over Gonzaga in Seattle in December. Still, he remained engaged throughout the rest of the year and Kentucky’s Sweet Sixteen run, offering vocal support and a fun personality on the bench.
Kriisa thanked his Kentucky coaches, teammates, and the Big Blue Nation when he left:
Other transfer portal news
On Saturday, Kentucky found a new point guard in Jaland Lowe, an All-ACC transfer from Pitt. The addition of Lowe brought the current state of Mark Pope’s Kentucky roster to 10 players: five presumed returners (Oweh, Garrison, Chandler, Noah, Perry), three incoming freshmen (Johnson, Lewis, Moreno), and two transfer portal additions (Williams and Lowe). Pope still needs a shooter and some size. Here are some of the latest updates around his transfer portal shopping:
— Keep a close eye on Wesley Yates as the former Washington (redshirt) and USC sharpshooter seeks a third school. Yates came from the same Texas AAU program as Kentucky’s two portal commits, Kam Williams and Jaland Lowe, and he was recruited by UK assistant Alvin Brooks III in the past. A return to Washington is in the mix, but Kentucky is also considered a contender for Yates, who could fill that shooting spot. More: Transfer Portal Bio Blast: Wesley Yates III
— Jaron Pierre Jr., the high-scoring guard formerly of Jacksonville State, is still a name to watch. Adding to the speculation around his interest in Kentucky, the internet noticed that Pierre Jr. followed several Kentucky accounts over the weekend. [Transfer Portal Bio Blast: Jaron Pierre Jr.]
— Former Indiana Hoosier Mackenzie Mgbako visited Lexington last week and remains a name to watch at forward. [Transfer Portal Bio Blast: Mackenzie Mgbako]
Top 10
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Basketball Top 25 released
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Way-Too-Early Top 25
Looking ahead to 2025-26 hoops
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Nick Saban
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Hailey Van Lith
Stuns as SI Swimsuit cover model
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— Things are quiet around Alvaro Folgueiras, the Spaniard leaving Robert Morris. Still, he was among the first names to pop up in portal season for Pope’s answer for a stretch-four. Folgueiras’ recruitment will pick up when he returns from Spain.
— Tyrone Riley had a weekend Zoom conversation with Kentucky while in the portal, but ultimately decided to stay at San Francisco for another year, removing himself from the transfer list. Maybe next year, Tyrone.
Keeneland racing on a Monday
Keeneland’s race card for Friday’s opening day was moved to today, a rare Monday at the track. The $750,000 Central Bank Ashland (G1) headlines Monday’s races following the shake-up to the opening weekend schedule. Friday and Saturday were postponed until today and tomorrow, the two days that racing typically takes a break. Keeneland is offering free general admission on the make-up dates.
Happy Masters Week
We’ll have to wait a few more days until we start seeing golf shots at Augusta National. The Par-3 Contest on Wednesday makes a good pregame before Thursday’s opening round. Today, we’ll settle for SportsCenter live shots and “Masters On The Range” at noon.
Odds to win the Masters
Scottie Scheffler +400
Rory McIlroy +650
Jon Rahm +1400
Collin Morikawa +1600
Ludvig Aberg +1800
Xander Schauffele +1800
Bryson DeChambeau +2100
Justin Thomas +2400
Hideki Matsuyama +2800
Brooks Koepka +3100
Jordan Spieth +3200
UK Baseball heads to Louisville tomorrow
After losing its home series against No. 9 Ole Miss, Kentucky Baseball (18-11, 5-7) heads on the road to rival Louisville (24-7, 8-4) on Tuesday for a midweek game under the lights. The first pitch in the “Battle of the Bluegrass” at Jim Patterson Stadium is scheduled for 8 p.m. as the Wildcats seek to win the rivalry game for a second straight year after losing six of seven to the Cards from 2018 to 2023.
Later in the week, Texas comes to Lexington for UK’s next SEC series, beginning Friday at Kentucky Proud Park.
I am hosting KSR this week
Everyone left me for their spring vacations, so I will host KSR this week while Matt, Ryan, Shannon, and even Mario spend time away from the show. Today, Billy Rutledge, the only KSR radio personality who didn’t skip town, will join me in studio to recap the news, preview the week ahead, and more. Also, Corey Price will stop by with a history lesson on UK’s eight national championships. So, tune in from 10 a.m. to noon and give us a call if you’re up for it. Tomorrow, the show will be broadcast from KSBar and Grille in Lexington.
Go Cats.
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