KSR Today: Final Four Friday

The college basketball season will come to an end over the next four days. The men’s tournament will begin on Saturday when Purdue-NC State and UConn-Alabama hook horns in the national semifinals. But we won’t have to wait long for some high-leverage basketball this weekend.

On Friday night in Cleveland, the women’s Final Four will begin in Cleveland. This one might be the most anticipated one of all time. Superstar Caitlin Clark will go head-to-head against Paige Bueckers. Dawn Staley’s South Carolina squad will continue to chase perfection.

We’ve got some good hoops coming up.

• No. 1 South Carolina (36-0) vs. No. 3 NC State (31-6) | 7:00 p.m. ET | ESPN
• No. 1 Iowa (33-4) vs. No. 3 UConn (33-5) | 9:30 p.m. ET | ESPN

We will get a title game on Sunday. A final weekend of college basketball has arrived. Before soaking that all in, KSR Today is setting the table for the weekend. We’ve got some roster news to catch up on. But, first, a message from our good friends at Lou City.

Kentucky Sports Radio has teamed up with Louisville City and Racing Louisville to provide you discounted tickets in 2024! April 6th is a HUGE day for Lou City! They host a game at 4 p.m. that will air on CBS. It’s the first game in their league’s history on national network TV. Make sure to take advantage of the discounted tickets for KSR fans!

Both clubs play at beautiful Lynn Family Stadium, the perfect place to spend an evening while the Cats aren’t in action. LouCity is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, while Racing is the city’s only top-tier pro sports team newly featuring UK Hall of Famer Arin (Gilliand) Wright.

Justin Edwards becomes Kentucky’s next one-and-done

We were waiting a few days for Kentucky’s next big roster domino to fall after sophomore forward Adou Thiero entered the transfer portal. The next big move occurred on Tuesday night when freshman win Justin Edwards declared for the 2024 NBA Draft with a statement that indicated that the former five-star recruit would not maintain his eligibility through the process.

“This season, my experience in Lexington, thanks to my coaches, my teammates, and you the fans, has been everything I dreamed it would be,” he announced. “I am so grateful to have been a part of the legendary Kentucky program, getting to represent the blue and white with everything I have. Thank you to the Wildcat community for embracing me from my arrival and making Kentucky feel like home.

Edwards averaged 8.8 points and 3.4 rebounds with 30 starting assignments in 32 games. The one-and-done owned .486/.365/.776 shooting splits and scored a career-high 28 points on 10 field goal attempts in a 117-95 win over Alabama on Feb. 24.

Justin Edwards does not appear to be a lock for the first round but is ready to begin his professional basketball journey. The move leaves Kentucky with eight scholarship players remaining on the roster not counting the incoming freshmen.

Kenny Brooks loads up

New Kentucky women’s basketball head coach Kenny Brooks got busy roster-building on Thursday night. The Virginia Tech roster that earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament is now pivoting to Lexington.

The Wildcats added transfers Georgia Amoore and Clara Strack to the roster. Kentucky also flipped junior college transfer Amelia Hassett from Virginia Tech. These were some significant personnel additions.

Amoore was an All-American in Blacksburg with one year of eligibility remaining. The veteran guard averaged 18.8 points and 6.8 assists per game last season. Stack is a 6-foot-5 center who put up 35 total points in two NCAA Tournament games. The transfer will be a sophomore with three years of eligibility remaining.

Brooks has gotten off to a hot start in the beginning of his Kentucky tenure.

College basketball news cycle heats up

The entire college basketball world will spend time in Phoenix this weekend for the sport’s biggest event of the year. In bars, restaurants, and hotels in the city, college basketball business will take place. Programs are working the transfer portal, and coaching changes are being made.

We saw some big moves on Thursday.

Eric Musselman has left Arkansas after five seasons to become the next head coach at USC. Louisville transfers Skyy Clark (UCLA) and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (NC State) have each found news. Both will be on their third school.

Elsewhere, new Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey is making a big push for Florida Atlantic transfer Johnell Davis, and Ole Miss head coach Chris Beard is a name to watch in the Arkansas search.

Do not expect the news to slow down anytime soon. It’s head-on-a-swivel season.

Kentucky football recruiting heats up

Over at the Joe Craft Football Training Facility, spring practice is over halfway done. The spring game is right around the corner. Kentucky’s 2024 squad is working on improving, but some important roster-building work is ongoing.

The Wildcats are busy getting 2025 prospects on campus for unofficial visits during spring ball and are currently getting numerous official visits locked in. On Thursday, the Wildcats hosted a handful of prospects highlighted by Frankfort (Ky.) Western Hills defensive lineman Javeon Campbell. Kentucky also got official visits locked in with four-star wide receiver Cameron Miller and four-star defensive back Dalen Penson.

The spring transfer portal window also opens up in 11 days. Recruiting is heating up. Stay locked in with KSR as we keep you up to speed regarding all the action on the trail.