The University of Kentucky’s Women’s Basketball team has had a good reputation the past couple of years and this year is no different. They are currently ranked fifth in the SEC behind Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas. They have had an impressive season so far winning 17 games and only losing three. The loses were against Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament and Alabama and Mississippi State in the regular season. They broke their eight game winning streak with a loss against Alabama last Thursday, January 8. They are ranked No. 7 in the nation they hope to restore their win streak soon.
The game against Alabama was very difficult for the team. They only fell 13 points shy of a victory. Aside from the loss, the team still provided impressive stats. Guard, Tonie Morgan, had the highest number of points for UK which was 14. Center, Clara Strack, had 13 rebounds, and Morgan had 5 assists. Although these numbers are different compared to their normal stats this shows how difficult it was to play against Alabama, who is ranked eighth in the SEC.
The Wildcats’ season is far from over. They have 11 games remaining not including March Madness nor other tournament play. Since the start of the season the teams stats have grown with every win. Junior, Clara Strack is putting an impressive dent on the teams’ stats. She is averaging 16.2 points, 10.1 rebounds, 2 assists per game and is 49.2% from the free throw line. Strack is the team’s leading player in points, rebounds, steals, and blocks per game. Along with her, senior Tonie Morgan is averaging 14.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, 8.5 assists per game and is 48.1% from the free throw line. Morgan is leading the team in assists and will likely continue.
The roster consists of 12 talented players coached by Kenny Brooks. The team has overcome many difficult challenges including winning against LSU and Oklahoma. The game against LSU was a very close game with the final being 80-78. Morgan hit a game winning shot at the buzzer to secure UK the win. Against Oklahoma, UK dominated. At the end of the first quarter Oklahoma ended ahead, but UK took the lead every quarter that followed. They continued to dominate against Florida, this past Thursday, winning 94-89.
The team took their third loss on Sunday against Mississippi State. The final score was 71-59. Their next game will be held at Tennessee on Thursday, January 22. They hope to restart that winning streak with the last nine games they have in the regular season.
Overall, the Kentucky Women’s Basketball team has had a successful season and they hope to continue this momentum for the rest of the season.
