Thursday Headlines: Koby Brea and Kerr Kriisa Edition

If you are a fan of the Kentucky Wildcats, then Wednesday was an awesome day as the basketball program landed two more commitments for the 2024-25 season.

Dayton transfer Koby Brea was the first addition to the roster on Wednesday as he announced he would be taking his talents to Kentucky.

Brea was a 3-point shooting machine last season, averaging 11.1 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists while shooting 49% from 3.

In an interview with ESPN, Brea said it was always his dream to be a Wildcat.

“Growing up, I was told I was dreaming too big whenever I’d say my dream was to play for the University of Kentucky,” Brea said. “I feel like God does everything for a reason, and He has put me in a position where I’m able to play for my dream school in my last year of college, while playing for something bigger than myself.”

A perfect fit for Mark Pope’s system and a massive get for the Wildcats heading into next season.

The second domino that fell on Wednesday was former Arizona and West Virginia guard Kerr Kriisa committing to the Cats.

Kriisa is another sharpshooting guard, as he averaged 11 points, 4.7 assists, and 2.5 rebounds last season while shooting 42% from 3.

The biggest blemish on Kriisa’s game is the 2.9 turnovers per game, but hopefully we see that number drop back to the 1.3 range we saw his freshman year.

While at BYU, Pope actually recruited Kriisa twice. The first was in 2020 when Pope flew to Lithuania to try and secure his commitment out of high school. The second was when he was looking for a new home after leaving Arizona. The third time proved to be the charm for Pope.

Pope’s roster now sits at eight with these two additions, and he is now just a couple of pieces away from putting together a very good roster in year one as the Kentucky head coach.

Tweet(s) of the Day

Good times.

Headlines

Koby Brea, Nation’s 3-Point Leader, Joins Wildcats – UK Athletics
Led the country in 3-point percentage at 49.8% with a minimum of 2.5 makes per game.

Film Room: Kerr Kriisa – On3
Kentucky landed their second commitment of the day, and sixth in six days, in West Virginia’s Kerr Kriisa on Wednesday afternoon.

Kenny Brooks Has Hired Ciara Gregory as an Assistant Coach, Director of Recruiting Operations – UK Athletics
Gregory spent the last five seasons at Charlotte.

Dayton transfer Koby Brea brings 3-point prowess to Kentucky – ESPN
Dayton transfer Koby Brea has committed to Kentucky, picking the Wildcats over a list of schools that included Duke, North Carolina, Kansas and UConn.

Dan Hurley says ‘no way’ he would have left UConn for Kentucky to replace John Calipari – CBSSports
Hurley addressed the rumors of him being a top candidate for the Kentucky job

Laney Frye Selected to All-SEC First Team, Marissa Wenzler Named to SEC Community Service Team – UK Athletics
Frye owns a 70.7 stroke average through 26 rounds thus far.

Film Room: Koby Brea – On3
Dayton’s Koby Brea, the best shooter in college basketball, became Kentucky’s fifth commitment in six days on Wednesday afternoon.

West Virginia transfer Kerr Kriisa commits to Kentucky – ESPN
West Virginia transfer Kerr Kriisa has committed to Kentucky, he told ESPN on Wednesday.

LeBron James should leave Lakers and sign with 76ers if his primary goal is a fifth championship – CBSSports
The Lakers are no longer LeBron’s best chance at winning

Former Florida Atlantic star Johnell Davis commits to Arkansas – ESPN
Former Florida Atlantic star guard Johnell Davis, one of the best players in the transfer portal, announced his commitment to Arkansas on Wednesday.

Kenny Brooks hires Charlotte’s Ciara Gregory as Assistant Coach, Director of Recruiting Operations
Kenny Brooks continues to fill out his debut coaching staff at Kentucky, this time bringing in Charlotte’s Ciara Gregory.

MBB recruiting – Meet the new No. 1s in the 2025, 2026 and 2027 classes – ESPN
Paul Biancardi introduces the new No. 1 prospects in the next three recruiting classes.

USC, UCLA set for two games each at Big Ten’s easternmost schools – ESPN
The USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins men’s basketball programs will play two road games apiece against the Big Ten’s easternmost schools.

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark says league’s coaches are in favor of NCAA Tournament expansion – CBSSports
The Big 12 leader is just the latest college basketball power broker to advocate for a larger NCAA Tournament field. Booooo.