Ciara Byars, a top-40 national prospect from Kentucky, talks recruitment and ACL recovery
When Ciara Byars sustained an ACL injury during George Rogers Clark’s Jan. 6 basketball game against Montgomery County, she thought it might negatively affect her recruitment process. Turns out, it didn’t at all.
“It’s honestly going great,” Byars said. “I mean, you would think after the injury that I’m having, maybe sometimes there’s some fall off. But I’ve been in constant communication, I think even more now that I’m injured. It feels like I’m talking to coaches even more. The free time just opens up a little bit more, but it’s just great and just getting the opportunity to meet and talk to so many different people and just form relationships with all these different programs and coaches and even some players from some schools has been pretty cool.”
Byars, the No. 37 overall ranked recruit in the class of 2025, has played a role on George Rogers Clark since she was a seventh grader and — prior to her injury this year — led the team in scoring since she was a freshman. Through 15 games this season, Byars averaged a team-high 14.1 points while adding 5.3 rebounds per contest.
And, while her recruitment is heating up, Byars said her recovery is progressing well as she works with Dr. Darren Johnson at UK HealthCare.
“It’s going really good,” Byars said. “I’m doing lots and lots of PT, and I’ve been working with UK HealthCare and Dr. Johnson close. So it’s been really good.”
The 6-foot-2 Byars holds more than 20 Division I offers, including from more than a dozen Power Five programs like Cincinnati, Louisville, Maryland, Vanderbilt and West Virginia. Byars said that, prior to her injury, the plan was to commit to a college before the start of her senior season. Now, the timeline isn’t as rigid; Byars said her plan is to take some official visits this summer and go from there.
“I’m kind of playing it out,” Byars said. “But I know also who I talk to the most. That’s a big part to me, communication and keeping in contact and just having that relationship is really important to me. Before my injury, the timeline was to commit before the school year, like before my senior season starts, but when the right time comes also, it’ll come. So whether that’s before or after that, we will see. But I’m excited for that day.”
Though the recruitment process may be overwhelming for some, Byars has the luxury of having watched her older sister, Brianna, go through the process. Former GRC standout Brianna Byars just wrapped up her freshman season at Big 12 member Cincinnati, where she averaged 2.6 points and 2.7 rebounds in 14.7 minutes per contest over 32 games.
The Byars family went to Cincinnati to watch the Bearcats’ final game of the season, a second-round WNIT loss to Purdue Fort-Wayne.
“She’s doing great,” Byars said. “We were able to get up there and watch her one more time for her freshman year. And I mean, she absolutely loved it and everything about it. So I’m excited to keep watching her. ... It was just good to get up there and see her.”
In addition to Cincinnati, UK was one of the schools chasing Byars’ commitment under former head coach Kyra Elzy and her staff, with whom Byars said she had “a really good relationship.” Following the hiring of new head coach Kenny Brooks, Byars said she thinks Brooks was “a great hire.”
“I was just looking, and I was like, ‘Wow, like that’s a great hire,’” Byars said. “Because I mean, I had a really good relationship with the past staff. And just to see them come in with a coach that’s, I mean, he did so much at Virginia Tech. And I mean, you really didn’t hear much about Virginia Tech women’s basketball till he got there and had some really great players and developed some really good players. So I mean, it’ll definitely be exciting to see, and I think it’s a really great hire. And, by the looks of all the comments, BBN is pretty excited about it too.”
Byars said she hadn’t heard from Brooks since his hiring — which UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart had announced just hours before the Herald-Leader’s phone interview with Byars — but that she’d enjoyed conversations with one of his assistants when Brooks was still at Virginia Tech. Byars confirmed that she did not hold an offer from Virginia Tech.
Byars is one of three in-state recruits ranked among the class of 2025’s top 40 national prospects. She is joined on the list by Sacred Heart Academy guard and Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year ZaKiyah Johnson (No. 5) and Bethlehem forward Leah Macy (No. 8).
