Kentucky Ranks No. 22 in USA Today Preseason Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky women’s basketball team has been ranked 22nd in the USA Today Preseason Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll, it was announced by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association on Thursday.
The No. 22 Wildcats will begin their season in just 11 days, playing host to USC Upstate on Monday, Nov. 4 at 5 p.m. ET in Historic Memorial Coliseum. Single-game tickets are on sale now, while the program will feature several giveaways in celebration of the $82 million renovated soft opening, including commemorative tickets, court replica rally towels and clear bags.
The USA Today Preseason Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll announcement comes nine days after being pegged 22nd in the Preseason Associated Press Top 25.
Like the AP poll, this, too, will mark the 11th time in the past 15 seasons that the UK women’s basketball team has earned a preseason ranking from the coaches, missing out on early nods in the falls of 2017, 2018, 2022 and 2023.
The Wildcats feature two returners in Cassidy Rowe and Saniah Tyler, and 11 newcomers, including All-American, graduate-student point guard Georgia Amoore. Amoore, the Virginia Tech transfer, recently earned the seventh-most votes in the AP Preseason All-America women’s basketball poll, while she also was named to the Preseason All-Southeastern Conference First Team by both media and coaches.
The Cats boast a balanced yet experienced roster, consisting of three freshmen, three sophomores, four juniors, a redshirt senior and two graduate students.
Three players, including Amoore (1,853), Dazia Lawrence (1,170) and Jordan Obi (1,142), are 1,000-point scorers, while Amelia Hassett, who played two seasons at Eastern Florida State College and was named a National Junior College Athletic Association Division I All-American in 2023-24, is close behind with 919 career points.
Obi and sophomore transfer Dominika Paurová are out indefinitely because of lower-leg injuries sustained over the summer.
Brooks also signed a couple of freshmen with lots of potential, including unanimous four-star guard Lexi Blue and 6-7 center from Portugal Clara Silva, who will tie Anna Cole (2010) as the program’s tallest player on record. In November 2023, Shane Laflin from ESPN said this about Silva, “If she was a player in the U.S., she’d safely land in the top 10 in the recruiting rankings.”
This is Kentucky’s tallest team in program history and Brooks’ tallest team in his 22 seasons as a head coach. Eight of UK’s players, more than half of the team, are 6’1 or taller, including four players that are 6’3 or taller.
The Wildcats also boast one of the oldest backcourts in the country in graduate student Amoore and redshirt senior Lawrence, who are both 23-years-old. Combined, they have 217 career games, 185 career starts and three conference championships. Amoore (1,853) and Lawrence (1,170) also are 1,000-point scorers, while they’re coming off their most productive seasons yet, scoring 602- and 565-points last season, respectively.
In addition to being ranked 22nd in both national polls to begin the season, UK also is projected as a six-seed in Charlie Creme’s latest bracketology report.
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
