Ten questions facing the 2021-22 Kentucky women’s basketball team

One of the most anticipated seasons in Kentucky women’s basketball history is fast approaching.

Led by second-year head coach Kyra Elzy and star senior guard Rhyne Howard, the Wildcats are looking to post a fourth-straight season of at least 18 wins, with an eye on reaching the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016.

The Wildcats were ranked No. 13 in the country in the preseason Associated Press poll.

In its pursuit of these goals, Kentucky will use a new-look starting lineup to take on a high-profile non-conference schedule, before testing itself against a 16-game Southeastern Conference schedule.

With the season just days away, here are 10 questions that will determine the fate of the 2021-22 UK women’s basketball season.

1. What else can Rhyne Howard accomplish during her senior season?

Through her first three seasons as a Wildcat, few players around the country have been as impressive as Howard. The senior guard has per game career averages of 19.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists.

Howard has 17 career double-doubles and is seventh in UK history in points scored with 1,655 career points.

Howard was the National Freshman of the Year in 2019 and an All-American each of the last two seasons. A gold medalist from playing with the United States as well, one of the lone accomplishments not on Howard’s resume is a deep NCAA Tournament run.

With Howard on the roster, Kentucky has advanced only as far as the second round of the NCAA Tournament, in 2019 and 2021, in addition to the canceled 2020 tournament.

Howard has been named the SEC Player of the Year by the league’s coaches two straight seasons.

2. How will new starters adapt to their roles?

Kentucky loses five players from last season’s team, including three end-of-season starters in guard Chasity Patterson, an SEC All-Defensive Team selection in 2021, and forwards KeKe McKinney and Tatyana Wyatt.

In the frontcourt, candidates to slide into starting spots include redshirt junior forward Dre’una Edwards, who started 11 of 27 games a season ago, and redshirt junior center Olivia Owens, who started five games last season. UK only has three players on its roster — Edwards, Owens and sophomore forward Nyah Leveretter — who are listed as frontcourt players.

In the backcourt, Elzy said senior guard Robyn Benton — who appeared in 26 games off the bench for UK last season after transferring from Auburn — should be more comfortable and confident now that she’s better acclimated to the Wildcats’ program.

3. How will the Wildcats fare against a high-profile non-conference schedule?

Non-conference scheduling had a different look to it last season as teams tried to find games to play during the coronavirus pandemic. After playing just eight non-conference games last season, Kentucky has 11 non-conference contests this season.

This includes two rivalry games on the road against teams that reached the Elite Eight last season and are ranked in the top 10 of the preseason AP poll: Indiana and Louisville.

Both games will be broadcast on ESPN, with the game at Louisville on Sunday, Dec. 12 at 1 p.m. and the game at Indiana on Sunday, Nov. 14. at 5 p.m.

4. How will a complete offseason help Kyra Elzy as head coach?

Kyra Elzy, in her words, was baptized by fire last season.

She was named Kentucky’s interim head coach last season less than two weeks before the season opener, before later being officially named head coach in mid-December. Between then and now, Elzy has had a complete offseason to put her mark on the Wildcats program, touching on everything from offseason conditioning to preseason practices.

Kentucky lost five players from last season’s team and has added two new ones: Freshman guards Kristen Crenshaw-Gill, a walk-on, and Jada Walker.

5. How will Kentucky overcome the loss of Blair Green?

Elzy told the Herald-Leader this summer that she was counting on senior guard Blair Green to average at least 10 points per game this season.

That notion had to be set aside 11 days before the season was to begin when Green suffered a torn Achilles tendon during a preseason closed scrimmage against Eastern Kentucky on Oct. 30.

The Harlan County native had steadily increased her production during her first three seasons as a Wildcat, going from a bench role in 2018-19 to becoming a spot-starter in 2019-20 to starting 18 of 27 games a season ago. She never averaged more than six points per game in any season, though.

Green’s shot diet relied heavily on three-pointers, and she was a necessary weapon for Kentucky’s offense in terms of creating space for players like Howard and Edwards around the basket. Massengill proved to be a dependable outside shooter when called upon last season, making 13 of 35 attempts (37.1 percent). More could also be asked on the perimeter of Treasure Hunt (10-for-32, 31.3 percent).

6. Is there room for Jada Walker to be a contributor on this Kentucky team?

Ranked a four-star guard as a recruit by ESPN, Jada Walker’s high school performances were defined by her abilities to create her own shot and distribute as a floor general.

It’s unclear how much she will get the chance to display either skill during her freshman season in Lexington, given UK’s backcourt depth and experience.

“A freshman has always played at Kentucky, and you do not back down,” Elzy said. “So far she has not done that.”

7. What impact will a full capacity Memorial Coliseum have on Kentucky’s home performances?

Last season with reduced capacity crowds inside Memorial Coliseum and Rupp Arena, the Wildcats posted an 11-2 record in home games. This continued a larger trend of home dominance for Kentucky.

Since the 2018-19 season — Rhyne Howard’s freshman season at UK — the Wildcats are 40-8 in games played in Lexington.

UK Athletics plans to operate both Memorial Coliseum and Rupp Arena at full capacity this season, and with more members of Big Blue Nation in the stands, Kentucky will expect to continue its strong home form.

“Our goal is to sell 5,000 season tickets and when we open the doors of Memorial Coliseum, we want it to be packed out with people that are proud of Kentucky women’s basketball,” Elzy said.

8. Can Kentucky challenge for a double bye in the SEC Tournament?

After receiving a double bye in the SEC Tournament — meaning the Wildcats’ first SEC Tournament game was a quarterfinal — in 2019 and 2020, UK missed out last season, finishing the 2020-21 season tied for fifth in the SEC regular-season standings.

The Wildcats will hope to crack the top four in the SEC again this season to regain the double bye and boost their chances of reaching the tournament title game, which Kentucky hasn’t played in since 2014.

League media this preseason voted Kentucky fourth in the SEC standings, behind preseason AP No. 1 South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas A&M, both of whom also appeared in the preseason AP top 25.

9. How will having a smaller roster impact Kentucky this season?

After Green’s injury, Kentucky’s roster features only nine active scholarship players.

The Wildcats’ roster took a hit in early October following the dismissal of sophomore guard Erin Toller, before freshman walk-on guard Kristen Crenshaw-Gill was added.

Elzy’s decision to go with a smaller roster this season means more-defined roles for most players on the team, but also allows for potential depth limitations in both game and practice scenarios if injuries or suspensions occur.

10. What does Kentucky’s starting lineup look like?

Given the departure of Chasity Patterson, who was the only UK player to start all 27 games a season ago, it will be impossible for the Wildcats to replicate a starting lineup this season.

As such, the question becomes which players will Kyra Elzy insert into the new-look lineup. Robyn Benton seems a near lock to make her first start as a Wildcat, while Elzy referred to Jazmine Massengill this summer as the team’s “starting point guard” after Massengill started eight games last season after transferring to UK from Tennessee.

Dre’una Edwards and Olivia Owens also have big opportunities in front of them to claim frontcourt starting spots.

Rhyne Howard and Blair Green are the only returning UK players who started more than half of last season’s 27 games, and Green has been lost to injury.

2021-22 UK women’s basketball schedule

(Home games in all capital letters)

Nov. 9: PRESBYTERIAN, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Nov. 11: NORTH ALABAMA, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Nov. 14: At Indiana, 5 p.m. (ESPN)

Nov. 21: WINTHROP, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Nov. 27: LA SALLE, 8:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Dec. 1: 2-WEST VIRGINIA, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

Dec. 5: MERRIMACK, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Dec. 9: 1-DEPAUL, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

Dec. 12: 3-At Louisville, 1 p.m. (ESPN)

Dec. 17: MORGAN STATE, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Dec. 19: USC UPSTATE, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Dec. 30: At Auburn, 8 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Jan. 3: MISSISSIPPI STATE, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

Jan. 6: GEORGIA, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Jan. 9: At South Carolina, 1 p.m. (ESPN)

Jan. 16: At Tennessee, TBA

Jan. 20: FLORIDA, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

Jan. 23: 1-OLE MISS, Noon (SEC Network)

Jan. 27: At Vanderbilt, 8 p.m. (TBA)

Jan. 30: At LSU, 2 p.m. (SEC Network)

Feb. 6: TEXAS A&M, Noon (ESPN2)

Feb. 10: SOUTH CAROLINA, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

Feb. 13: At Alabama, 2 p.m. (SEC Network)

Feb. 17: VANDERBILT, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Feb. 20: At Arkansas, 2 p.m. (SEC Network)

Feb. 24: At Missouri, 8 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

Feb. 27: AUBURN, 4 p.m. (SEC Network)

Mar. 2-6: 4-SEC Tournament

1-At Rupp Arena; 2-SEC-Big 12 Challenge; 3-Jimmy V Classic; 4-At Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.; x-Exhibition game.

This story was originally published November 7, 2021 at 6:30 AM.

Cameron Drummond

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-242-5257

Cameron Drummond works as a sports reporter for the Lexington Herald-Leader with a focus on Kentucky men’s basketball recruiting and the UK men’s basketball team, horse racing, soccer and other sports in Central Kentucky. Drummond is a second-generation American who was born and raised in Texas, before graduating from Indiana University. He is a fluent Spanish speaker who previously worked as a community news reporter in Austin, Texas. Support my work with a digital subscription