UK men’s basketball is recruiting the top high school scorer in Kentucky
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- UK basketball is hosting Martin County guard Braxton Keathley on an unofficial visit.
- Keathley is a 6-foot-5 junior point guard who is part of the 2027 recruiting class.
- Last season, Keathley averaged 34.3 points per game while playing at Prestonsburg.
Kentucky basketball is starting to recruit one of the best high school basketball players in the commonwealth.
On Tuesday, the Wildcats will host Martin County junior guard Braxton Keathley on an unofficial visit for their home game against North Carolina Central at Rupp Arena.
A 6-foot-5 point guard, Keathley has already developed a reputation as a high-scoring, do-it-all prep player. Last season as a sophomore at Prestonsburg, Keathley was the top scorer in Kentucky high school basketball at 34.3 points per game. He was also one of the state’s top rebounders (10.0 boards per contest).
Perhaps most impressively, Keathley made a state-best 92.2% of his free-throw attempts as a sophomore.
“You see a lot of stuff on social media for years of just how hard he works in the gym,” Martin County coach Jason James told the Herald-Leader. “He’s constantly in the gym, just shooting or doing his drills... He’s just a terrific kid, and he has a terrific work ethic.”
Now, Mark Pope’s UK basketball program is taking an interest in Keathley. Thus far in his recruitment, Keathley has reported several Division I scholarship offers, all from mid-major programs: Bowling Green, East Carolina, Eastern Kentucky, Ohio, Pacific, Southeast Missouri State, Tennessee-Martin and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
Additionally, some of the sport’s elite programs are keeping tabs on him. Keathley has been on trips to Florida State, Louisville, LSU and Purdue, among others.
Last month, Keathley came in ninth in the Herald-Leader’s preseason Top 25 ranking of Kentucky high school boys basketball players. (The ranking is the result of a statewide survey of coaches conducted by the Herald-Leader).
As part of that survey, four coaches voted Keathley as the best high school boys basketball player in the commonwealth.
“Now you’re seeing double teams and triple teams, just make everybody on your team better,” James said of his challenge to Keathley this season. “... He’s blessed to be a 6-4, 6-5 point guard. (When) he sees two people on him, he’s able to make passes with his size that a lot of other guards can’t, to hit open guys for open 3s or open layups.”
As a result of his high-scoring sophomore campaign at Prestonsburg, Keathley received second-team all-state honors. Prestonsburg struggled, though, finishing 13-15 overall and losing in the first round of the 15th Region Tournament. As a freshman in the 2023-24 season, Keathley averaged 21.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game for a Prestonsburg team that went 17-15 overall and lost in the second round of the 15th Region Tournament.
Keathley — whose older sister, Kaitlyn, played Division I basketball at Presbyterian and Morehead State — also played on Prestonsburg’s varsity team as an eighth grader during the 2022-23 season. He had per-game averages of 14.1 points and 2.9 rebounds that season. Across his three-plus seasons of prep basketball, Keathley is a 31.2% (141 for 452) shooter from 3-point range.
Keathley’s junior season will be one of change. He’s now at Martin County, which led the state in scoring last season with an average of 79.9 points. The Cardinals, who also play in the 15th Region, last made the Sweet 16 state tournament in 2023.
It’s been so far, so good for Martin County with Keathley in the fold. The Cardinals are off to a 3-0 start with wins by double-digit margins over Floyd Central (10), Perry County Central (26) and Oneida Baptist Institute (37).
Across those three games, Keathley is averaging 29.7 points and has made nearly 41% of his 3-point tries.
“When he got here, I was like, ‘Man, this kid can flat shoot the basketball,’” James said. “I didn’t know that he could shoot it as good as he could shoot it. So that’s another thing that I’ve been preaching to him, is to get his 3-point attempts up. I’d like to see him shoot seven, eight, nine 3s a game. He’s starting to do that. He’s a sniper. I did not know that he shot the ball as well as he does.”
On Wednesday night, Martin County will get a showcase matchup when it hosts Huntington Expression Prep of West Virginia, a nationally-known prep program. Current Kentucky freshman Braydon Hawthorne played high school basketball at Huntington Prep.
“The one thing he does so well is he’s such a great communicator. He’s constantly talking, constantly getting himself in the right position,” James added about Keathley’s defensive skills. “Get as quick and as athletic as he can get, to just stay down and use your length and make people shoot over the top of you... He rebounds the ball so well for his position, as well.”
Recent UK basketball teams have featured plenty of in-state talent
Pope’s tenure as the head coach in Lexington has featured a sizable amount of basketball talent staying home to play for the Wildcats.
Pope’s first UK squad last season featured two scholarship native Kentuckians on the roster: Trent Noah (Harlan County) and 2024 Kentucky Mr. Basketball award winner Travis Perry (Lyon County), who transferred to Ole Miss during the offseason.
That number grew to four scholarship native Kentuckians this season with Noah, 2025 Kentucky Mr. Basketball award winner Malachi Moreno (Great Crossing), Jasper Johnson (Woodford County) and Reece Potter (Lexington Catholic).
All told, this is the first time in 20 years that a UK men’s basketball roster includes four recruited, scholarship Kentuckians on the same team. (Potter intends to redshirt the 2025-26 season).
Kentucky’s recruitment of Keathley — who is a member of the 2027 recruiting class — is still in its infant stages. But getting him on campus and hosting him for Tuesday’s game is a sign the Wildcats have taken an interest in the Eastern Kentucky basketball star.
“I think (Keathley) can play at any program in the country, if he continues to show improvements on defense, continues to get as athletic as he can get,” James said. “There couldn’t be a more skilled player in the country than him. The way he handles the ball, shoots it and how hard he works. He is so skilled.”
Pope’s program has extended seven scholarship offers to players in the high school junior class. The Wildcats still don’t have any commitments from either the 2026 or 2027 recruiting groups.
This story was originally published December 9, 2025 at 5:30 AM.
