Kentucky
ANALYSIS: Kentucky women’s basketball is struggling, how did it get here?
Simply put, times have been very dark for Kyra Elzy and Kentucky women’s basketball.
With loss after loss piling up and a prior 62-point defeat to No. 1 South Carolina, it seems that the once proud program has reached a new low.
With another loss in what has been a very hectic last two seasons, serious questions about the future of Elzy’s job are starting to be asked once again.
This is not the first time the status of Elzy’s position in Lexington has been under fire and, to provide a bit of context, the Kernel decided to take a step back in time and see where it all went wrong for the Kentucky native and former Lady Volunteer.
Elzy, while being from La Grange, Kentucky, played her college basketball down in Knoxville under legendary head coach Pat Summitt, where she would go on to win two of Summitt’s eight national championship victories.
After her playing days came to an end, Elzy was an assistant coach at Western Kentucky from 2002-04 where she would help the Hilltoppers to a Sun Belt Tournament triumph in 2003 before heading to Kansas for four seasons.
In 2008, Elzy would return to her home state of Kentucky as an assistant for her first stint in Lexington under Matthew Mitchell.
After two years in Lexington, Elzy would become the assistant head coach and would reach the Elite Eight in 2010 and 2012.
Elzy, however, in 2012, would travel back down 150 miles south to Knoxville as an assistant coach under Holly Warlick, reaching two Elite Eights before becoming an assistant head coach in 2015 and reaching another Elite Eight.
Following the end of the 2015-16 season, Elzy would come back north for her second stint in Lexington as an assistant head coach once again under Mitchell.
After four years, Coach Mitchell would retire after 13 seasons with the Wildcats in November 2020 following months of recovery after suffering a brain injury from an accident that happened in March of that year during a family vacation in Mexico, which put Elzy in as interim head coach.
Things would start smoothly for Elzy, starting the season 6-0 and having a top-ten AP ranking.
This would lead to Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart announcing that he would remove the “interim” tag and name Elzy as the program’s 20th head coach. Kentucky would finish that season 18-9 and tied for fifth in the SEC and would be knocked out of the NCAA Tournament, losing to Iowa in the second round.
The next season, led by Dre’una Edwards and Kentucky legend Rhyne Howard, would be a very memorable one.
While the Cats finished the regular season at an underwhelming 15-11 record, going 8-8 in the SEC, Kentucky would defeat Mississippi State, No. 6 LSU and No. 18 Tennessee on the way to defeating No.1 South Carolina 64-62 in the SEC Tournament off an Edwards’ game winner to win the competition for just the second time in program history and first time in 40 years.
This success would largely cover up the disappointments of the season including Louisville native Erin Toller being dismissed from the team, which was done due to the former Sacred Heart star allegedly not meeting standards set by the program.
The next season, however, wouldn’t be so kind to Elzy.
After losing Howard to the WNBA, where she went first overall to the Atlanta Dream – the first women’s basketball player at UK to ever go No. 1 overall – Elzy would also lose Edwards to the transfer portal to Baylor. This would serve to be the first controversy for Elzy.
Edwards had already transferred in her college career as she came to Kentucky from Utah so she needed Elzy to sign a “No Participation Opportunity Form.” The problem was Edwards claimed in a social media post that Elzy – who had suspended Edwards the season prior – had refused to sign the waiver.
“I was hopeful Kentucky would sign off to let me compete this season, as they have told me before that they hope nothing but the best for me,” Edwards wrote. “But instead, they will not sign the waiver.”
Elzy would respond by explaining that Edwards would have been eligible if she had graduated from Kentucky and started her time at Baylor as a grad transfer, but this would not help her image as many would take the side of Edwards.
On the court, Kentucky would struggle as the Cats would win just two games in conference play as well as losing to the likes of Murray State for the first time since the 1970s, Florida Gulf Coast and South Carolina by nearly 30 before the SEC Tournament.
In the first round of the tournament with hopes of defending the SEC crown, Kentucky would upset Florida, but the victory would become overshadowed by a brawl that saw eight players ejected.
The Cats, however, would go on to surprise everyone by defeating Alabama by a convincing score of 71-58, but would fall to Tennessee in the quarterfinals.
To make matters worse for Elzy, Kentucky would lose an important piece in starting point guard Jada Walker to, you guessed it, Baylor.
This did not look good for Elzy at all as a key factor for the program would follow another huge piece to the same school, not to mention the previous controversy surrounding that star player’s transfer.
Now to this season, yet another departure has been announced from the program as Zennia Thomas was dismissed. The reason being? The same reason that Toller was dismissed: “not meeting standards.”
To the present day, in a season that has seen Kentucky without a true home venue, it might be safe to say the rest of the program hasn’t reached those standards recently either as the Cats currently find themselves 9-15 and 2-8 in the SEC with multiple blowout losses in that time.
With success being hard to find on the court in large part due to troubles off the court, serious questions have started to be asked of whether or not Elzy is the right answer for this program both in the present as well as into the future.
In order to silence the critics, results need to start swinging in the La Grange native’s favor because the honest truth is while coach Mitchell was leading this program to Elite Eights, Elzy can barely seem to muster a winning record.
13 things more likely to happen than winning the Powerball jackpot
Hoping to win the Powerball jackpot? Here are 13 things more likely to happen than becoming an instant millionaire.
The Kentucky Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at Thursday, June 25, 2026 winning numbers for each game.
Cash Ball
02-08-24-32, Cash Ball: 09
Check Cash Ball payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 3
Evening: 6-3-0
Midday: 9-6-0
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Pick 4
Evening: 5-7-6-0
Midday: 5-2-6-6
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Millionaire for Life
03-13-14-34-45, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Courier Journal digital producer. You can send feedback using this form.
On Thursday, Kentucky’s home and away SEC opponents for the 2026-27 season were revealed and on top of learning the three opponents who they will play twice, there are some very intriguing matchups. In conference play, Kentucky will face six teams who are among the top 25 in many preseason rankings.
In SEC play, Kentucky will play Tennessee, Vandy and Ole Miss all both home and away. The home matchups include Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vandy. As for the road tilts, the Wildcats will face Florida, Georgia, Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee and Vandy. Let’s take a look at some interesting developments from the schedule release.
John Calipari returns to Rupp Arena (again)
In Calipari’s first year with Arkansas, he got the best of Kentucky when he came into Rupp Arena and left with a 10-point victory, a game where you could really feel the tension all game long in the building from Kentucky fans, which translated onto the court with the players. Last season, it was Kentucky who shocked everyone when they stole one on the road against a top 20 Arkansas team after a rough up-and-down season up to that point. Now, the two will face off again as Kentucky will look to get the win in Rupp and make sure Calipari doesn’t get two in a row in the building. It’ll be another highly-anticipated showdown.
Kentucky hits the road at Texas
This is shaping up to be a major challenge for Kentucky next season and may even end up being one of the biggest games of the season. Texas is seen by many as a clear top 10 team, with some even having them within the top five and when you combine that with the fact that the game is on the road, the Wildcats will have their hands full. The Wildcats fell to the longhorns in the 2024-25 season, and it’ll be a much stiffer challenge this time.
Which game could be a trap?
We don’t have the game-by-game dates yet, so it’s hard to say with a lot of confidence, but opponent-wise, Georgia could really give Kentucky fits. In Pope’s first year, his team struggled handling the physicality of the Bulldogs and now, they’ve retained one of their best guards for another year and have added physicality through the portal. Mike White’s teams love to make opponents uncomfortable and they could do that once again down in Athens. Another sneaky team to watch is Oklahoma, who will have very good guard play. Kentucky will face both teams on the road.
Overall, it’s a pretty fair SEC schedule for a Kentucky team who has the capability of a return to being atop the conference once again. Mark Pope has such a system-fit squad and he can do some damage in the SEC.
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Fourth of July festivities to celebrate in Louisville
See the Fourth of July festivities planned in Louisville for America’s 250th birthday celebration.
Fourth of July is almost here, and Kentuckians are getting ready to light up the sky.
Before you plan your fireworks celebrations, it’s important to know what is and isn’t allowed under Kentucky law. Here’s what to know about fireworks laws and safety tips in the Bluegrass State ahead of Independence Day.
Can you set off fireworks in Kentucky?
Yes. As long as you live in a place where local ordinances don’t prohibit it, according to the Kentucky State Fire Marshal’s website.
Are fireworks legal in Louisville?
In Louisville or Jefferson County, larger display fireworks are not legal due to a local law. Some consumer products that don’t leave the ground, such as sparklers, are allowed.
If the cautionary label on the firework has the words “explosive,” “emits flaming pellets,” “flaming balls,” “firecracker,” “report” or “rocket,” it is automatically a no-go, according to the Louisville-Jefferson County Code of Ordinances.
But, smaller ones like sparklers, cylindrical or cone fountains, wheels and ground spinners are legal. Still, don’t let the size fool you − they can burn up to 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
Learn more: Check out these 4th of July events taking place across Kentucky
How to use fireworks safely
The state fire marshal suggests following the following advice when using fireworks:
- Use fireworks outdoors.
- Obey local laws.
- Keep a bucket of water or a working water hose nearby.
- Use fireworks as intended and avoid altering them or combining them.
- Never relight “dud” fireworks. Wait 20 minutes and then soak it in a bucket of water.
- Spectators should keep a safe distance from the person lighting the firework (the individual lighting it should wear safety glasses).
- Alcohol and fireworks do not mix. Have a “designated adult operator.”
- Do not use homemade fireworks or illegal explosives.
- Report illegal explosives to the fire or police department in your community.
- Never allow children to play with or ignite fireworks.
- Read and follow all instructions on the label.
Former Courier Journal reporter Ana Rocío Álvarez Bríñez contributed. Reach Marina Johnson at Marina.Johnson@courier-journal.com.
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