KSR GAMEDAY: Kentucky faces Central Michigan in first home game in nearly a month

Kentucky women’s basketball is 9-1 on the season and 4-0 at home. On Sunday, the Cats will look to move to 5-0 in Historic Memorial Coliseum this season when they take on Central Michigan in the third-ever game between these two teams (Kentucky leads 2-0).

Below is everything you need to know ahead of Kentucky’s 11th game of the 2025-26 campaign.

Bio Blast

Central Michigan is 5-3 on the year, and all three of their losses have come on the road. In their season opener, they fell to Georgia Southern and since then, they’ve taken Ls at No. 18 Notre Dame and at No. 6 Michigan. They beat Purdue — a common opponent between Central Michigan and Kentucky — 57-55. The Cats beat the Boilermakers by 41.

Sophomore forward Ayanna-Sarai Darrington is actually a Lexington, KY native. She attended Frederick Douglass and was a star there. Her senior year, she was a finalist for Miss Kentucky Basketball and was named the Region 11 Player of the Year. Last season, she recorded 21 rebounds in a game against Ball State, which was actually the most among all freshmen in any game across the country.

Last season, the Chippewas went 14-17 (9-9 MAC) in Kristin Haynie’s second season leading the program. That was a big step up from her first season in Mount Pleasant when her team went 6-22 (4-14 MAC). The expectation is that her program will continue to improve under her leadership in year three.

Scouting Report

Central Michigan likes to work the ball inside offensively, so naturally, their bigs do most of their work. However, their most prolific scorer is Madi Morson, a 5-foot-8 guard. Morson is averaging 15 points per game on 35.5% shooting from three-point range.

Darrington averages 12.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, and she’s very efficient when it comes to putting the ball in the hoop. She’s shooting 54.7% from the field on the year. However, fellow forward Demetria Prewitt, who puts up 7.3 points per contest, is shooting 61.9% from the field. But that’s about it as far as gifted scorers goes on this team.

Nekhu Mitchell is the last real threat that Central Michigan can pose to Kentucky, averaging 8.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

Central Michigan Chippewas roster

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Projected Kentucky Starters

#5 – Tonie Morgan

5-FOOT-8 – GUARD – SENIOR

12.4 PPG – 8.2 APG – 2.9 RPG

#0 – Jordan Obi

6-FOOT-1 – GUARD – GRADUATE STUDENT

12 PPG – 6.6 RPG – 0.8 APG

#32 – Amelia Hassett

6-FOOT-4 – FORWARD – SENIOR

9.9 PPG – 6.3 RPG – 2 BPG

#7 – Teonni Key

6-FOOT-5 – FORWARD – SENIOR

11 PPG – 5.2 RPG – 1.6 BPG

#13 – Clara Strack

6-FOOT-5 – CENTER – JUNIOR

15.3 PPG – 10.8 RPG – 2.7 BPG

Phoenix’s Prediction

Score: 84-39, Kentucky

MVP: Clara Strack

Central Michigan can be a good mid-major squad, but it’s a whole new world when taking on a school like Kentucky. The Chippewas don’t love to shoot the three. Instead, they like to try to get looks at the rim, which should bode well for Kentucky defensively considering they’re the best shot-blocking team in the country. I think Clara Strack should have a massive outing in this one.

How to Watch/Listen

Location	Tipoff	TV	Radio	Live Stats
Historic Memorial Coliseum (Lexington, KY)	Noon ET	SEC Network+ (Noah Frary and Christi Thomas)	630 WLAP, 790 WKRD, SiriusXM channel 390 (Darren Headrick)	StatBroadcast

Follow Along with KSR’s LIVE BLOG

Unable to watch the game? Don’t worry — we’ll be providing real-time updates throughout to keep you informed on the action. Follow along with KSR’s LIVE BLOG, which will get rolling on the website an hour before the game starts.

Join The Discussion on KSBoard

Want to interact with the KSR crew during tonight’s game? Consider joining the conversation on KSBoard, where we’ll be sharing live updates while also answering questions and providing real-time analysis (and probably complaining about the officiating).