Top 2026 recruit Emily McDonald commits to Kentucky

Highly-recruited 2026 prospect Emily McDonald has committed to Kentucky, she announced on Wednesday. The 6-0 guard from Brookville (NY) Long Island Lutheran previously talked to Rivals about important factors in her decision. 

“Academics comes first,” McDonald said. “I’m very big on the academic side and possibly want to go to med school. I definitely want a staff and a team that’s going to help balance practice and stuff around my academics and take academics as seriously as I do. The other thing is player development, because I have aspirations of going pro one day.” 

She also previously broke down her strengths as a player. 

“I’d say I’m pretty unselfish,” McDonald said of her game. “I used to not score the ball at all and only pass, but now I’m getting more confident and having a good mix.” 

Kentucky now has one of the top 2026 classes in the country, adding McDonald to point guard Maddyn Greenway and wing Savvy Swords.