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KSR Today: Putting a bow on a big weekend in Lexington

Zack Geogheganby: Zack Geoghegan6 hours agoZGeogheganKSR

Good morning, folks! It’s been a busy weekend in Lexington. Half of the city has been rocking cowboy hats for Railbird, while the other half has been wearing caps and gowns for high school graduations — with some timely summer weather for good measure. For over a dozen Kentucky Wildcats, it was also move-in weekend.

And so far, most of the roster for the 2026-27 roster has arrived on campus. Players made their way to the Wildcat Coal Lodge throughout Friday and Saturday. By the looks of it, the only player yet to settle into his new home is Ousmane N’Diaye. The international prospect will be here soon. But the other 13 players, including new commit Milan Momcilovic, have officially set up shop on UK’s campus.

“I’m going to bring good positivity to the court, and a big personality,” Momcilovic said. “And I’m also going to bring a lot of three-point makes.”

Regulated NCAA practices begin Monday, June 15. The guys will spend the next week getting to know each other on and off the floor before jumping straight into the real stuff. In the meantime, Mark Pope is going to spend some of his time working on building the future of the program.

Pope was recruiting in Mexico

The Kentucky head coach was spotted at the FIBA U18 AmeriCup on Friday, sitting courtside next to Murray State head coach Ryan Miller. Domo de la Feria, Leon, Mexico, is the host of this year’s international contest. You may not recognize Pope right away, either — he put down the clippers and let his hair grow out, along with a summer break beard. 

The members of USA’s U18 team are a blend of players who are preparing for college basketball in the fall and rising seniors in the 2027 recruiting class. Kentucky has extended offers to three players on the roster: Adan Diggs (No. 2, 2027), Darius Wabbington (No. 18, 2027), and Demarcus Henry (No. 10, 2027). UK assistant coach Mo Williams accompanied Pope during his travels. But don’t worry, they made it back to Lexington over the weekend. Not only did they need to greet the new Wildcats arriving on campus, but they also had to entertain top 10 2027 recruit Ryan Hampton, who is in town this weekend for his official visit.

Some good news and bad news for the Bat Cats

Let’s start with the good news. First baseman Hudson Brown is returning to Kentucky for the 2027 campaign. The 6-foot-6 redshirt junior lashed .333/.475/.553 with 12 doubles, seven home runs, 39 RBI, and 44 free passes across 200 plate appearances this season. Hudson was 12-44 (.273) with five home runs and 11 RBI over the final 13 games of the season. This is a massive retention piece for head coach Nick Mingione.

Now for some bad news. The transfer portal window opened on Monday and has already impacted Kentucky’s roster. Bullpen arms Toby Peterson, Tristan Hunter, Bryson Treichel, and Tommy Skelding have all entered the portal. That being said, the pitching in 2026 was a disappointment. Change was needed. UK has now lost 11 players to the portal so far this offseason.

  • RHP Tommy Skelding (RSo.)
  • RHP Bryson Treichel (So.)
  • RHP Tristan Hunter (So.)
  • LHP Toby Peterson (So.)
  • C Tagger Tyson (Jr.)
  • C Owen Jenkins (Fr.)
  • OF Ryan Schwartz (So.)
  • C Alex Duffey (Sr.)
  • RHP Lucas Hail (Fr.)
  • INF Michael Gardner (Fr.)
  • INF Maxime Boies (Fr.)

BIG official visit weekend for Will Stein

While the current basketball team was moving in, potential Kentucky football players were checking out the area. Head coach Will Stein hosted over a dozen of the nation’s top-ranked high school recruits for official visits, which began Friday. Plenty of players already committed to the program came to town, but so did some uncommitted prospects with heavy interest in the ‘Cats.

Uncommitted visitors

Committed visitors

Golden Tempo Wins the Belmont Stakes

The 158th running of the Belmont Stakes was unlike many of its predecessors. Saratoga Race Course was the host site for the third leg of the Triple Crown, which featured a shorter distance than Belmont Park, which is being renovated. After skipping the Preakness, Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo returned to win the Belmont Stakes.

Golden Tempo entered the starting gate at 6-1, an astonishing price for a Derby winner, giving $2 win bettors a $14 payout. Florida Derby winner Commandment finished second ($7.02), with post-time favorite Renegade falling to third. Cherie DeVaux made history as the first woman to train a Kentucky Derby winner. Now, she’s the first woman to win multiple Triple Crown races.

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2026-06-07