Bahamas Bound: Kentucky Plays No. 14/14 Virginia Tech, Dayton in Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The University of Kentucky women’s basketball program is Bahama bound, competing in the Baha Mar Hoops Pink Flamingo Championship this week. The Wildcats will face their first ranked opponent of the season, commencing the slate of games against No. 14/14 Virginia Tech on Monday at noon ET before playing Dayton on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. ET.

Both matchups will be hosted in the Baha Mar Grand Ballroom.

The game will be streamed live at FloHoops.com. Darren Headrick will also have the call on the UK Sports Network on 630AM WLAP on Monday and 98.5 FM on Wednesday. Free live audio will be available online at UKathletics.com and live stats will be available online at KentuckyStats.com.

WE IN THE BAHAMAS. 🏝#BigBlueBahamas pic.twitter.com/vSH5eulzXx

— Kentucky Women’s Basketball (@KentuckyWBB) November 20, 2022

The Wildcats brought a 4-0 overall record to their tropical trip, while they have held two of four of those opponents to under 50 points. Kentucky is coming off a win against Bellarmine, 63-45, at Memorial Coliseum last Thursday, as three players scored in double digits for the third straight game of the season.

Robyn Benton is leading the team in scoring with 14.5 points per game, while the graduate guard has scored in double digits in all four games. Jada Walker (14.0) and Blair Green (11.8) are also averaging double-digit scoring.

Kentucky, who is averaging 74.3 points per game on 43.6 percent shooting, has knocked down 115 field goals and dished out 76 assists in 2022-23. Maddie Scherr, a transfer junior from Florence, Kentucky, is responsible for a bulk of the work, ranking second in the Southeastern Conference and 11th in the nation with 25 assists through four games.

In fact, UK has several players pacing the conference in categories.

Walker, who has made five steals in the last two straight games, leads the conference with 15 steals. Even more remarkable, right behind her, Benton is second in the conference with 13 steals.

That is a testament to Kentucky’s ability to wreak havoc on defense, as the Wildcats lead the SEC and ranked 14th in the nation in turnovers forced with 26.5 per game. The Cats have forced more than 27 turnovers in their last three straight games.

A special message from @UKCoachLZ 🤩!

Welcome @KentuckyWBB to @BahaMarResorts 🏝🏀 #GoWildcats pic.twitter.com/DSN5idIVKi

— Baha Mar Hoops (@BahaMarHoops) November 19, 2022

Kentucky will have a big test when it plays No. 14/14 Virginia Tech, its first ranked opponent of the season. The two teams haven’t met in 33 years, while they are tied at 1-1 in all-time meetings.

The Hokies (3-0) were selected to finish second in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season, while it returns the 2022 ACC Player of the Year in Elizabeth Kitley. Ashley Owusu and Taylor Soule, along with Kitley, were all named to the 2022-23 Preseason ACC All-Conference Team. Tech puts up 82.3 points per game, while it has five players that average double-digit scoring in Kitley (17.7), Cayla King (16.7), Kayana Traylor (12.3), Georgia Amoore (11.0) and Soule (10.0).­­ In fact, Kitley also averages 10.7 rebounds per game.

Kentucky will face Dayton for the 18th time in series history Wednesday, as UK leads the all-time meetings, 13-4.

The Flyers (0-4) are under the guidance of Tamika Williams-Jeter, who is in her second season as a head coach and her first season leading Dayton. Despite the Flyers’ 0-4 start to the season, they have come close on several occasions. Three of their four losses have been by just nine points or less, while two of their four losses have been by exactly four points. Dayton is putting up 77.5 points per game, while three players are averaging double-digit scoring in Destiny Bohanon (17.8), Anyssa Jones (10.5) and Nayo Lear (10.0).

The Wildcats will make their first trip away from the stateside since going to the U.S. Virgin Islands in November 2018 and their first international trip since going to Italy in August 2018. Despite the Pink Flamingo Championship not awarding a tournament winner, it will mark the Cats’ first tournament in the regular season since winning the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands in November 2018.

The Cats are 90-37 all-time in regular season tournaments.

For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.