Big Blue Preview: No. 7/9 Kentucky Women’s Basketball Plays at Mississippi State
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 7/9 University of Kentucky women’s basketball program (17-2, 4-1 Southeastern Conference), who also is 11th in the latest NET rankings, will play Mississippi State (14-5, 1-4 SEC) at The Hump in Starkville, Mississippi, on Sunday, Jan. 18 at 3 p.m. ET. It will mark the first game in a two-game road stretch that includes the Bulldogs on Sunday and the No. 20/20 Lady Vols on Thursday.
Fans in the Starkville area can purchase tickets to the game here.
Darren Headrick will have the radio call for UK Sports Network on 630 AM WLAP in Lexington and on 790 AM WKRD in Louisville. It also will be carried on SiriusXM channel 162 or 192 and on the SiriusXM App.
Big Blue Nation also can watch the game on SEC Network+, with Will Kollmeyer and Brittany Lange on the call.
Kentucky is coming off a late-game triumph over Florida on Thursday, 94-89, in Historic Memorial Coliseum. Despite trailing by as much as six points in the fourth quarter and one point under three minutes, UK used a 28-16 scoring advantage in the final period to outlast the Gators.
Tonie Morgan led all scorers with a season-high 26 points on 8-of-9 from the field. She also added 13 assists for her fifth double-double on points and assists this season. She is the first player in program history and the first SEC player since at least 2002-03 to put up 26 points and 13 assists in a single game.
Leaving this here. ™️😮💨 pic.twitter.com/8LhJTyFbid
— Kentucky Women’s Basketball (@KentuckyWBB) January 16, 2026
Clara Strack added 21 points, including going 3-of-4 from downtown. She paired that with five rebounds, three blocks and two assists.
Following the triumphal outcome, head coach Kenny Brooks earned the most wins through a head coach’s first 50 games in program history (40).
The Wildcats drained 12 3s in that game, which marked the ninth game this season the Cats have put up double-digit 3s. They’re 8-1 this season and 18-1 under Brooks with as many trios.
They’re averaging 9.1 3s per game, ranking 19th nationwide and third in the league. They’re in the top 20 in the nation in eight categories overall, including second in blocks per game (7.4), seventh in assist-turnover ratio (1.6), eighth in the turnovers per game (11.2), 11th in field-goal percentage defense (34.5), 13th in scoring margin (24.2), 17th in scoring defense (54.9) and 20th in assists per game (18.3).
Sunday will mark the 57th all-meeting between Kentucky and Mississippi State. Kentucky leads Mississippi State, 33-24, in the series. UK narrowly leads MSU, 12-11, in Starkville.
The Wildcats have won two straight, including in Starkville in 2024 and in Lexington in 2025.
The last time the Cats and the Dogs played in Starkville, the Cats were trailing with just six minutes to play in the game before using a 19-0 run to turn a nine-point deficit into a 78-68 triumph at The Hump on Feb. 22, 2024.
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
