As SEC play begins, what can Kentucky women’s basketball expect from a loaded conference?

In the nine months since his hiring, Kenny Brooks has successfully navigated and orchestrated a near-complete overhaul of Kentucky women’s basketball’s roster and staff.

A brand-new starting lineup and an influx of both veteran experience and younger, high-potential talent under Brooks’ unique style of play have led to an undefeated home record in nonconference play for the first time since the 2020-21 season, and more wins (two) against Associated Press women’s college basketball top 25 teams than the majority of UK’s Southeastern Conference foes.

Needless to say, Kentucky’s 11-1 record entering both the new year and league play should give Big Blue Nation a sense of hope going forward as Brooks, his coaching staff and his players work to establish a meaningful foundation to his tenure in Lexington. According to Brooks, he couldn’t ask for much more from his 13-player roster — 11 of which were new to Kentucky for the 2024-25 campaign — and he believes that their character and work ethic have led to an ever-improving product.

“They’re always doing the things you’re supposed to be doing,” Brooks said. “They’re always on time, they’re always respectful, and I think that has accumulated into a really good team. And they’re not always perfect, but they always have perfect intent. They work hard. They’re fun to be around. And I think we’re a lot better after game 12 than we were after game one. And so, we’re going to continue to work and get better.”

Kentucky women’s basketball is a program renewed, but conference play presents new challenges — and opportunities — for a Wildcats roster consistently ranked within the AP Top 25 and the NCAA NET’s top 35. Not only is the SEC deeper and tougher than seasons past, what with the additions of Oklahoma and Texas and the star power featured around the conference, but the league will also demand a more consistent, elevated level of play from a group whose depth is substantially thinner than originally planned, given the delayed debuts of projected contributing transfer guards Jordan Obi and Dominika Paurová.

The Wildcats’ first conference opportunity comes Thursday, when Mississippi State comes to town. The Bulldogs, who split the season series with UK last year, received top 25 votes this week and rank second in the SEC in both points allowed (51.9) and field goal percentage (49.1%) entering the matchup.

“Obviously, with the SEC there’s going to be some very difficult basketball games, and we will adjust as the season goes along,” Brooks said. “But they are fun to be with. They’re fun. When I walk into Joe Craft, it’s fun to get to work with this group of kids. And they’re setting the foundation for, what I think could be, great things to come. You know, not only this year, but for the future but that’s been the joy for me. That’s a coach’s dream, to watch a team develop into something that’s very special and is fun to be around. These are great kids.”

Here’s what you need to know ahead of Thursday’s SEC opener.

Revisiting preseason expectations

Once again, South Carolina (12-1) seems to be the team to beat in the SEC.

Despite sending Kamilla Cardoso, reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year, to the Chicago Sky and losing their first game since April 2023 in a 77-62 upset loss to UCLA on Nov. 24, this reloaded Gamecocks roster is nothing to scoff at. Though its offensive attack — at this point — isn’t as deadly as in recent years, South Carolina is working its way through the growing pains in impressive fashion.

Picked to finish first in the conference by both media and coaches in the league’s preseason polls, South Carolina has since picked up four AP Top 25 wins against then-No. 9 North Carolina State, then-No. 15 Iowa State, then-No. 8 Duke and then-No. 9 TCU. The Gamecocks also beat a now-top 25 program in Michigan, plus worthy wins against both Clemson and South Florida.

Entering conference play, the Gamecocks rank fourth among SEC teams in points allowed (54.5), are tied for third with Texas in blocks per game (5.8) and are tied for fourth with Vanderbilt in rebounding (43.8).

Newcomer Texas, which was picked to finish second in conference play by both league media and coaches, will carry a 13-1 record into SEC play. Like the Gamecocks, the Longhorns’ sole loss this season was against a top-10 team on the road; Texas fell in overtime at then-No. 10 Notre Dame on Dec. 5.

Texas earned nonconference wins over then-No. 12 West Virginia, Richmond and South Dakota State, the latter two of which received top-25 votes at the time of the contests. Among SEC teams, the Longhorns are tied for third with fellow new face Oklahoma in points per game (91.6), first in field goal percentage (50.1%), first in points differential (+37.0), tied for third with South Carolina in blocks per game (5.8) and fifth in points allowed (54.6).

LSU, picked third in both preseason polls, is one of two undefeated SEC teams entering 2025, alongside Tennessee. The Tigers’ 15-0 nonconference slate included a top-25 win over then-No. 20 North Carolina State, plus a hard-fought overtime win against Stanford.

The Tigers rank second in the conference in points per game (92.6), second in rebounding (50.3) and third in field goal percentage (48.9%).

According to the Dec. 31 edition of Bracketology by ESPN’s Charlie Creme, 10 SEC programs are projected to make the NCAA Tournament — first-seeded South Carolina, second-seeded LSU and Texas, third-seeded Oklahoma, fourth-seeded Tennessee and Vanderbilt, sixth-seeded Alabama, seventh-seeded Kentucky and Ole Miss and eighth-seeded Mississippi State.

Outside of Vanderbilt and Mississippi State, each of those above teams projected to receive at-large bids was voted by both the media and league coaches to finish the regular season within the SEC’s top 10. Mississippi State was pegged by the media to finish 11th, while the coaches predicted the Bulldogs would finish 10th. The media picked Vanderbilt to finish 10th, while the coaches predicted the Commodores would finish 12th.

Despite lower expectations entering the season, and the unfortunate absence of impact senior forward Sacha Washington due to a blood clot in her right calf, Vanderbilt (13-1) has continued its gradual rise under Shea Ralph. This season, the Commodores have beat South Florida and Miami (Fla.) on the road, and their sole loss was to a now-ranked Michigan State team at the end of November.

Among SEC teams, the Commodores rate fourth in rebounds per contest (43.8), fifth in points per game (88.6) and fifth in points differential (+33.0).

Ten of the 16 SEC programs have won at least 10 games this season. Only one team, Arkansas (7-8), will enter conference play below .500. The Razorbacks were projected to finish last in the SEC by both media and coaches.

2024-25 Southeastern Conference women’s basketball preseason polls:

Media predicted order of finish: 1. South Carolina, 2. Texas, 3. LSU, 4. Oklahoma, 5. Ole Miss, 6. Alabama, 7. Tennessee, 8. Kentucky, 9. Florida, 10. Vanderbilt, 11. Mississippi State, 12. Auburn, 13. Texas A&M, 14. Georgia, 15. Missouri and 16. Arkansas.

Coaches’ predicted order of finish: 1. South Carolina, 2. Texas, 3. LSU, 4. Oklahoma, 5. Alabama, 6. Ole Miss, 7. Tennessee, 8. Kentucky, 9. Auburn, 10. Mississippi State, 11. Texas A&M, 12. Vanderbilt, 13. Georgia, 14. Florida, 15. Missouri, 16. Arkansas.

National rankings

Due to the consequences of his late arrival, the Wildcats’ nonconference schedule may not have been exactly what Brooks wanted. That said, the 12-game stretch did give Kentucky several chances to earn meaningful victories.

As of Tuesday morning, the Wildcats were No. 16 in the nation according to the Associated Press women’s college basketball top 25, and No. 33 in the NCAA NET rankings.

No other conference in women’s college basketball boasts more teams in the AP Top 25 than the SEC. As of the Week 9 rankings, the SEC has eight — No. 2 South Carolina, No. 5 Texas, No. 6 LSU, No. 9 Oklahoma, No. 15 Tennessee, No. 16 Kentucky, No. 19 Alabama and No. 25 Ole Miss. Vanderbilt and Mississippi State each received top 25 votes.

The NET, updated daily, ranks all 362 Division I programs based on “who you played, where you played, how efficiently you played and the result of the game.” It will be used to help the NCAA Selection Committee determine who will and will not make the NCAA Tournament come March.

During his radio show Monday, Brooks noted that he’s still “trying to learn the NET.”

“But you get rewarded for playing a certain style and having a certain efficiency,” Brooks said. “So you really have to, you know, be a little selective with the teams that you bring in. And it’s unlike what they used to use — they call it the RPI — and it would reward you for playing teams like Western Kentucky, who is a really good basketball team, but it seems to be rewarding you more when you’re playing teams with a lesser record, and if you can beat them by a higher margin.

“And so, it’s something that my staff and I, we dive into it every day. And we get miffed by it because you want the games like we had on Saturday, and, you know, nobody really wants to come and watch a 60- or 70-point blowout. They’d much rather watch a really good basketball game. So that’s something that we definitely have to look at, but it’s a little bit more to it than just playing a name who people want to play. You’re really trying to put yourself in position to better yourself for an NCAA appearance.”

The official 2024-25 NCAAW NET guidelines are as follows:

“The 2024-25 NET rank quadrant ranges are quadrant one (home 1-25, neutral 1-35 and away 1-45); quadrant two (home 26-55, neutral 36-65 and away 46-80); quadrant three (home 56-90, neutral 66-105 and away 81-130) and quadrant four (home 91-plus, neutral 106-plus and away 131-plus).”

For example, any team playing No. 33 Kentucky would be looking to earn a quadrant two victory at home, a quadrant one victory at a neutral site and a quadrant one victory in Lexington.

Per the above NET guidelines, each game played will be classified as either a quadrant one, quadrant two, quadrant three or quadrant four victory. The determining factors of this classification — the rank of an opponent and where the game was played, either home, neutral or away — currently dictate that Kentucky has one quadrant one win, the Wildcats’ neutral-ground victory over Illinois on Nov. 27, one quadrant one loss, the Dec. 5 road trip to North Carolina, and a pair of quadrant two wins in the Nov. 16 home victory over Louisville and the Dec. 20 comeback win over Belmont in Lexington.

Around the SEC

▪ There are currently three SEC teams in the NET’s top 10 — No. 1 Texas, No. 2 South Carolina and No. 9 LSU.

▪ Seven SEC teams are ranked between Nos. 11 and 50 — No. 11 Oklahoma, No. 12 Vanderbilt, No. 15 Alabama, No. 19 Tennessee, No. 21 Ole Miss, No. 27 Mississippi State and No. 33 Kentucky.

▪ Four SEC teams are between Nos. 51 and 100 — No. 52 Auburn, No. 55 Florida, No. 58 Missouri and No. 89 Texas A&M.

▪ Two SEC teams are outside of the NET’s top 100 — No. 142 Georgia and No. 146 Arkansas.

All NET data taken from the morning of Dec. 31.

Best wins

Per the Dec. 31 NET rankings, every SEC team recorded at least one win against a program within the NET’s top 100.

As explained above, not every top-100 win is viewed with the same weight by the NCAA Selection Committee. So, if the goal for the Wildcats is to make it back into the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2022, SEC play will provide many opportunities for Kentucky to keep beefing up its résumé.

Here’s how the SEC stacked up against top competition (as determined by the NET rankings) during nonconference play.

Most quadrant one wins: South Carolina (4), Oklahoma (2), Tennessee (2), Texas (2), Alabama (1), Kentucky (1), LSU (1), Mississippi State (1).

Most top-100 wins: South Carolina (7), LSU (6), Texas (5).

Most top-50 wins: South Carolina (4), Texas (4), Kentucky (3), Oklahoma (3), Alabama (2), LSU (2), Mississippi State (2).

Most top-20 wins: South Carolina (2), Alabama (1), Texas (1).

Best win: South Carolina beat Duke 81-70 on Dec. 5 in Columbia, S.C.

Five players to watch

Talaysia Cooper, Tennessee — Cooper had to take 2023-24 off due to NCAA transfer rules when she opted to move from South Carolina to Tennessee after the window closed. She chose to stay and play under new Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell, and the Lady Vols have benefited.

In just 21.2 minutes per contest, Cooper has averaged a team-high 18.1 points, a team-high 3.3 steals and a team-high 0.8 blocks, plus 5.5 rebounds and 3.3 steals per game during Tennessee’s undefeated season. Against Florida State on Dec. 4, one of the Lady Vols’ two quadrant one victories, Cooper contributed 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks.

Kentucky hosts Tennessee on Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. on the SEC Network.

Zaay Green, Alabama — In her seventh season to take the floor for her fourth Division I college basketball program, Green has proven to be one of the strongest transfer portal pickups this past offseason, both in the SEC and beyond.

The senior guard is averaging 15.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.6 assists in 29.1 minutes per game across 14 contests. Green ranks second in points per game for the Crimson Tide behind preseason All-SEC first-teamer Sarah Ashlee Barker, and serves as an important, versatile part of Alabama’s offense.

Kentucky hosts Alabama on Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. on the SEC Network.

Rori Harmon, Texas — One of the best two-way guards in the country and named an All-SEC second-teamer by both media and coaches, Harmon missed much of Texas’ final season in the Big 12 due to a knee injury sustained in December 2023.

Now showing out in what could be her final season of college basketball, Harmon averaged 9.8 points and 3.5 rebounds during the Longhorns’ 14 nonconference games. Not to mention, she’s the leader of a dynamic Texas offense with plenty of weapons — and Harmon sure knows how to find them. At 6.2 assists per game, Harmon trails only Kentucky’s Georgia Amoore in conference assists per contest, and ranks 11th nationally. She’s also tied for fourth in the conference in steals per game (2.7) alongside LSU’s Aneesah Morrow.

Kentucky hosts Texas on Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.

Aneesah Morrow, LSU — Picked as one of three SEC preseason players of the year by league media, Morrow has only continued her tenure as one of the conference’s best defenders.

Morrow, who spent her first two seasons at DePaul before transferring to LSU, is projected to be a first-round pick in the 2025 WNBA draft. She is leading the nation in rebounds per game (14.3), while also tying for fourth among SEC players in steals (2.7) with Harmon. Morrow averaged 18.4 points on 53% shooting and 1.4 assists in 31.5 minutes per game during the Tigers’ undefeated nonconference slate.

Kentucky hosts LSU for Senior Day on Feb. 23 at 4 p.m. on ESPN.

Khamil Pierre, Vanderbilt — Fact: Pierre is the only player in Division I women’s college basketball ranked in the top 10 in points (22.7), rebounds (11.2) and steals (3.9) per game.

The sophomore forward, who was named to the All-SEC Freshman Team last season, went from making 11 starts as a freshman to being a key figure in the Commodores’ success. Through 13 games this season, Pierre shot 59.4% from the field, and scored at least 21 points in eight separate contests — including a dominant, 42-point, 18-rebound, eight-steal performance in Vanderbilt’s 106-40 win against Evansville.

Kentucky plays at Vanderbilt on Sunday, Jan. 5 at 3 p.m. on SEC Network+.

Next game

Mississippi State at No. 16 Kentucky

When: 7 p.m. Thursday

TV: SEC Network+ (online only)

Radio: WLAP-AM 630

Records: Mississippi State 13-1, Kentucky 11-1

Series: Kentucky leads 32-24

Last meeting: Kentucky won 78-68 on Feb. 22, 2024, in Starkville, Mississippi

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