2018–19 Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball team

The 2018–19 Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball team represents the University of Kentucky in the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The team plays its home games in Lexington, Kentucky at Memorial Coliseum with two home games being played at Rupp Arena. The team is led by Matthew Mitchell in his twelfth season as head coach. They were a member of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the season 25–8, 11–5 in SEC play to finish in fourth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the SEC Women's Tournament to Missouri. They received an at-large to the NCAA Women's Tournament where they defeated Princeton in the first round before losing to NC State in the second round.

2018–19 Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball
Paradise Jam Island Division Champions
NCAA Women's Tournament, Second Round
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 21
APNo. 17
2018–19 record25–8 (11–5 SEC)
Head coach
Associate head coachKyra Elzy
Assistant coaches
Home arenaMemorial Coliseum
Rupp Arena
2018–19 SEC women's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
No. 4 Mississippi State †15–1 .938  33–3  .917
No. 15 South Carolina13–3 .813  23–9  .719
No. 14 Texas A&M12–4 .750  26–7  .788
No. 17 Kentucky11–5 .688  25–8  .758
Missouri10–6 .625  24–11  .686
Auburn9–7 .563  22–10  .688
Georgia9–7 .563  18–12  .600
Tennessee7–9 .438  19–13  .594
LSU7–9 .438  16–13  .552
Arkansas6–10 .375  22–15  .595
Alabama5–11 .313  14–17  .452
Ole Miss3–13 .188  9–22  .290
Florida3–13 .188  8–23  .258
Vanderbilt2–14 .125  7–23  .233
† 2019 SEC Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2018–19 season opened up with a 10-day trip to Italy, where the team won two out of three games against international competition.[1] The non-conference regular season also featured a trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands, where the team participated in and won the Paradise Jam Tournament.

Previous Season

The 2017–18 team finished the season 15-17, 6-10 for ninth place in SEC play. They defeated Alabama in the second round of the SEC Tournament before losing to the #1 seed Mississippi State in the quarterfinals. The Wildcats failed to make a postseason appearance for the first time in eight seasons.

Offseason

Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Notes
Alyssa Rice 45 C 6'3" Senior Reynoldsburg, OH Graduated
Jessica Hardin 15 G 5'8" RS-Senior Monticello, KY Graduated
Makenzie Cann 22 G 6'1" Senior Lawrenceburg, KY Graduated;

Transferred to Southeastern University

Incoming Transfers
Name Pos. Height Year Hometown Previous School
Nae Nae Cole C 6'3" Senior Gainesville, VA Transferred from NC State. Will sit out a year due to NCAA transfer rules.
Sabrina Haines G 5'10" Senior Phoenix, AZ Transferred from Arizona State. Will sit out a year due to NCAA transfer rules.
Chasity

Patterson

 G 5'5" Sophomore Houston,TX Transferred from Texas. Will sit out a year due to NCAA transfer rules.

Newcomers
US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Rhyne Howard
G		 Cleveland, TN Bradley Central 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 97
Blair Green
W		 Middlesboro, KY Harlan County 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) N/A  
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 95
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2018 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.

    Roster
    2018–19 Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball team
    PlayersCoaches
    Pos.#NameHeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
    F 0 Lashae Halsel 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) SrWarren Central Bowling Green, KY
    G 1 Sabrina Haines  5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) RS JrDesert Vista
    Arizona State    		 Phoenix, AZ
    G 2 Paige Poffenberger 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) SrMorgantown Morgantown, WV
    F 3 KeKe McKinney 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) SoFulton (TN) Knoxville, TN
    G 4 Maci Morris 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) SrBell County Pineville, KY
    G 5 Blair Green 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) FrHarlan County Harlan, KY
    G 10 Rhyne Howard 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) FrBradley Central Cleveland, TN
    G 12 Amanda Paschal 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) RS JrChipley
    Gulf Coast State    		 Brooklyn, NY
    F 14 Tatyana Wyatt 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) SoColumbus Columbus, GA
    G 15 Chasity Patterson  5 ft 5 in (1.65 m) SoNorth Shore
    Texas    		 Houston, TX
    C 20 Dorie Harrison  6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) SoHillsboro Nashville, TN
    F 21 Ogechi Anyagaligbo 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) RS JrMiami County Day
    Stony Brook    		 Miami, FL
    G 23 Kameron Roach 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) SoLower Richland Hopkins, SC
    G 24 Taylor Murray 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) SrAnnapolis Area Christian Odenton, MD
    G 32 Jaida Roper 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) JrHouston Memphis, TN
    C 44 Nae Nae Cole  6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) RS JrPaul VI
    NC State    		 Gainesville, VA
    Head coach
    Assistant coach(es)
    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster
    Last update: September 15, 2018

    Schedule
    Date
    time, TV    		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Exhibition
    11/02/2018*
    7:00 pm    		 Lincoln Memorial W 101–64 
    		Memorial Coliseum (1,203)
    Lexington, KY
    Non-conference regular season
    11/07/2018*
    7:00 pm    		 Alabama State W 87–35  1–0
    		 Memorial Coliseum (3,676)
    Lexington, KY
    11/11/2018*
    7:00 pm    		 Southern W 91–41  2–0
    		 Memorial Coliseum (3,870)
    Lexington, KY
    11/15/2018*
    7:00 pm, SECN    		 Virginia W 63–51  3–0
    		 Rupp Arena (4,989)
    Lexington, KY
    11/18/2018*
    2:00 pm    		 High Point W 71–49  4–0
    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,064)
    Lexington, KY
    11/22/2018*
    1:00 pm    		 vs. No. 17 South Florida
    Paradise Jam Tournament Island Division    		 W 85–63  5–0
    		 Sports and Fitness Center (874)
    St. Thomas, USVI
    11/23/2018*
    1:00 pm    		 vs. UCLA
    Paradise Jam Tournament Island Division    		 W 75–74 OT 6–0
    		 Sports and Fitness Center 
    St. Thomas, USVI
    11/24/2018*
    1:00 pm    		 vs. North Carolina
    Paradise Jam Tournament Island Division    		 W 85–75  7–0
    		 Sports and Fitness Center (814)
    St. Thomas, USVI
    11/29/2018*
    12:00 pm    		 No. 25 Morehead State W 87–57  8–0
    		 Memorial Coliseum (3,912)
    Lexington, KY
    12/06/2018*
    7:00 pm    		 No. 19 Rhode Island W 75–52  9–0
    		 Memorial Coliseum (3,744)
    Lexington, KY
    12/09/2018*
    2:00 pm    		 No. 19 at No. 5 Louisville
    Battle for the Bluegrass    		 L 75–80  9–1
    		 KFC Yum! Center (13,786)
    Louisville, KY
    12/15/2018*
    1:00 pm    		 No. 18 Middle Tennessee W 72–55  10–1
    		 Memorial Coliseum (5,076)
    Lexington, KY
    12/18/2018*
    7:00 pm    		 No. 18 Western Carolina W 99–39  11–1
    		 Memorial Coliseum (3,903)
    Lexington, KY
    12/21/2018*
    12:00 pm    		 No. 18 Murray State W 88–41  12–1
    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,312)
    Lexington, KY
    12/28/2018*
    11:30 am    		 No. 18 Sacred Heart W 71–43  13–1
    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,079)
    Lexington, KY
    SEC regular season
    01/03/2019
    7:00 pm    		 No. 16 Vanderbilt W 77–55  14–1
    (1–0)    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,030)
    Lexington, KY
    01/06/2019
    5:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 16 at No. 7 Mississippi State L 71–86  14–2
    (1–1)    		 Humphrey Coliseum (8,830)
    Starkville, MS
    01/10/2019
    7:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 16 at No. 13 Tennessee W 73–71  15–2
    (2–1)    		 Thompson–Boling Arena (8,145)
    Knoxville, TN
    01/13/2019
    1:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 16 Ole Miss L 49–55  15–3
    (2–2)    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,577)
    Lexington, KY
    01/17/2019
    7:30 pm    		 No. 16 at LSU W 64–60  16–3
    (3–2)    		 Pete Maravich Assembly Center (1,452)
    Baton Rouge, LA
    01/24/2019
    6:30 pm, SECN    		 No. 15 No. 25 Missouri W 52–41  17–3
    (4–2)    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,174)
    Lexington, KY
    01/27/2019
    5:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 15 at No. 24 Texas A&M L 71–73  17–4
    (4–3)    		 Reed Arena (4,752)
    College Station, TX
    01/31/2019
    6:30 pm, SECN    		 No. 19 No. 16 South Carolina L 70–74  17–5
    (4–4)    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,247)
    Lexington, KY
    02/03/2019
    2:00 pm, ESPNU    		 No. 19 Florida W 62–51  18–5
    (5–4)    		 Rupp Arena (10,031)
    Lexington, KY
    02/07/2019
    7:00 pm    		 No. 19 at Auburn W 78–68  19–5
    (6–4)    		 Auburn Arena (1,604)
    Auburn, AL
    02/11/2019
    7:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 17 at Alabama W 68–53  20–5
    (7–4)    		 Coleman Coliseum (2,102)
    Tuscaloosa, AL
    02/17/2019
    2:00 pm    		 No. 17 Arkansas W 61–59  21–5
    (8–4)    		 Memorial Coliseum (5,680)
    Lexington, KY
    02/21/2019
    7:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 16 at No. 13 South Carolina W 65–57  22–5
    (9–4)    		 Colonial Life Arena (11,887)
    Columbia, SC
    02/24/2019
    2:00 pm    		 No. 16 LSU W 57–52  23–5
    (10–4)    		 Memorial Coliseum (6,911)
    Lexington, KY
    02/28/2019
    7:00 pm    		 No. 11 No. 19 Texas A&M L 55–63  23–6
    (10–5)    		 Memorial Coliseum (4,532)
    Lexington, KY
    03/03/2019
    1:00 pm, SECN    		 No. 11 at Georgia W 58–53  24–6
    (11–5)    		 Stegeman Coliseum (3,461)
    Athens, GA
    SEC Women's Tournament
    03/08/2019
    2:30 pm, SECN    		 (4) No. 13 vs. (5) Missouri
    Quarterfinals    		 L 68–70 OT 24–7
    		 Bon Secours Wellness Arena (4,431)
    Greenville, SC
    NCAA Women's Tournament
    03/23/2019*
    11:00 am, ESPN2    		 (6 G) No. 17 vs. (11 G) Princeton
    First Round    		 W 82–77  25–7
    		 Reynolds Coliseum 
    Raleigh, NC
    03/25/2019*
    7:00 pm, ESPN    		 (6 G) No. 17 at (3 G) No. 10 NC State
    Second Round    		 L 57–72  25–8
    		 Reynolds Coliseum (2,683)
    Raleigh, NC
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. G=Greensboro Region.
    All times are in Eastern Time.
    [2]

    Rankings
    Main article: 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
    Ranking movements
    Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
    NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.
    Week
    Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Final 
    AP NR NR NR 25 19 18 18 18 16 16 16 15 19 19 17 16 11 13 18 Not released 
    Coaches NR NR RV 25 19-T 20 18-T 17 15 16 15 12 15 17 18 17 13 14 17 21

    See also

    References
    1. Morris Scores 24 as Kentucky Rolls Past Marghera Select in Italy Finale
    2. 2018-19 Kentucky Women's Basketball Schedule
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