‘You are no longer a freshman.’ Kentucky newcomer shines on big stage of SEC tourney.
Jada Walker strode down the court at Bridgestone Arena, tugging at the clear, protective face mask that now adorned her face and searching for comfort.
Walker — who played Thursday night with a broken nose sustained in UK’s final regular-season game last Sunday — had taken a bump while playing defense, and Kentucky’s freshman guard struggled to rejoin the Cats on the offensive end.
It was a brief moment of discomfort for Walker in a season filled with them. Such is life as a freshman guard in Southeastern Conference women’s basketball.
But like the moments that came before, and the ones still to come, Walker responded.
Seconds after settling in place on the wing, Walker caught the ball and drilled a shot from distance, scoring three of the career-best tying 21 points she poured in during Kentucky’s SEC Tournament second-round win over Mississippi State on Thursday night.
It was fitting that a win that will likely confirm Kentucky’s spot in the NCAA Tournament was defined by one of the best performances of Walker’s young career: 21 points, eight rebounds, a perfect 6-of-6 from the foul line and just one turnover in 33 minutes of action.
Kentucky has asked a lot from the freshman from Richmond, Virginia, this season.
Time and time again she’s delivered.
“She’s grown up. . . . I told her before we left Lexington, ‘You are no longer a freshman. You have played enough minutes to be a veteran point guard,’” Kentucky head coach Kyra Elzy said after Thursday night’s 83-67 win. “She’s had to learn, but she’s been baptized by fire, but she has answered the challenge.”
Walker came to UK ‘beyond her years’
Last summer, one of Walker’s former high school coaches predicted all of this.
Sure, Sam Caldwell — who coached Walker during her sophomore season at New Hope Academy in Landover Hills, Maryland — didn’t spell out Walker’s postseason poise or her recently awarded spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team.
But Caldwell told the Herald-Leader last summer all about Walker’s professionalism and how it would translate immediately to the college game.
“Jada will not play like a freshman. She was already beyond her years with respect to her work ethic, and again her basketball IQ,” Caldwell said. “You’re not going to find anybody that’s going to outwork her. I believe the kid is going to be a pro. I think she’ll be unlike any other freshman Kentucky’s had in a long time.”
He was almost right about that last part.
Walker’s scintillating SEC Tournament debut Thursday night drew parallels to that of star Kentucky guard Rhyne Howard, who recorded a stat line of 25 points, six rebounds and only one turnover in her first SEC Tournament game in March 2019, a two-point loss to Missouri.
“I had pretty much the same numbers when I was a freshman in my first SEC game, too. Jada has done this before, so it’s not a surprise to me,” Howard said Thursday night. “I know that she can continue to play like this, and it’s great to have a freshman as confident as she is.”
Walker has already established herself as a constant and dependable presence for Kentucky women’s basketball.
Only Howard and Walker have played in all 27 games for UK this season, with the freshman starting in every game since late January.
Where has Elzy seen Walker grow the most this season?
“The game has slowed down for her. Her confidence wavered early on,” Elzy said, noting that Walker was playing with guards like Howard, Robyn Benton and Jazmine Massengill, who are each in their fourth college season.
“She’s had some freshman moments, and she had to cry about it, and we had to go back and watch film,” Elzy continued. “She knows when to push now and when to bring it out, what’s a good shot, what’s a bad shot . . . just learning the intricate details of your offensive system and your defensive system.”
The self-control needed to thrive in Kentucky’s offensive and defensive systems — in a season that has been anything but straightforward — was also clear to Caldwell three years ago.
“It’s the ability to have that discipline to work at the things that you need to get better at and you need to perfect it. She would do that,” Caldwell said. “I mean (she) could literally come in the gym and work and do one thing for 15, 20 minutes at a time or make nine, 10 shots in a row before moving to the next spot. Stuff like that. Very meticulous.”
With preparation this focused, it would take more than just the introduction of a face mask to bother Walker.
“I don’t think it affected my play, but it was an adjustment for me just because I’m not used to wearing something on my face while playing,” Walker said of the broken nose and face mask.
When it came to explaining her confidence and comfort on the court, Walker thought back to the start of SEC play.
Her first SEC game was a 15-point outing at home against Georgia in one of Kentucky’s most significant NCAA Tournament résumé wins of the season.
“I feel like (Georgia) was a good test, but after I got through that I felt like I got more comfortable with the different types of teams and physicality,” Walker said.
Last offseason, a story-line question for Kentucky was if there was enough room for Walker to be able to make an instant impact in her first college season.
Injuries, suspensions and other availability issues gave Walker the opportunity to contribute and possibly become an indispensable part of the UK team if she performed well enough.
She has.
“We put pressure on her early. We put put her in tough situations so she would be ready for this moment,” Elzy said. “She is a student of the game. She wants to learn. She wants to get better, and it has helped her prepare her for now.”
Friday
Kentucky vs. LSU
What: SEC women’s basketball tournament quarterfinals
When: 7 p.m. EST
Where: Bridgestone Arena in Nashville
TV: SEC Network
Radio: WLAP-AM 630
Seeding: UK No. 7, LSU No. 2
Records: UK 16-11, LSU 25-4
Last meeting: LSU beat Kentucky, 78-69, on Jan. 30, 2022, in Baton Rouge, La.
