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KSR Today: Baseball hosts Arkansas, Pope visited the NBA Combine, and lots more

Drew Franklinby: Drew Franklin05/14/26DrewFranklinKSR

Hello, friends. We have a massive baseball series starting today at Kentucky Proud Park, while basketball eyes are on Chicago this week. The chase for an NCAA Baseball Tournament invite and a couple more basketball players are our headlines, with plenty more to know on this Thursday morning, too. Go Cats.

Kentucky Baseball hosts Arkansas to wrap up the regular season

Kentucky Baseball has three games remaining on the regular season schedule, three opportunities to solidify a place in the NCAA Tournament. Starting today, the Wildcats host No. 10 Arkansas in one last SEC series to wrap up the year. Game 1 begins at 6:30 p.m. tonight, and can be viewed digitally on SEC Network+ if you’re unable to make it.

Nick Mingione will send out Nate Harris (4-2, 5.72 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 39.1 IP, 36 K) for today’s start. Tomorrow, Ben Cleaver, and then stud ace Jaxon Jelkin is scheduled for the finale. Go Cats.

Wildcats on the bubble before the last series

The Wildcats need at least one win over the Razorbacks to feel comfortable about a postseason invite. Earlier this week, D1Baseball.com named Kentucky one of the Last Four In, but a 0-3 record against Arkansas could knock Kentucky out of the field. Baseball America wrote that Kentucky would avoid the bubble entirely with at least one more at Kentucky Proud Park before the trip to Hoover, Alabama, for the SEC Tournament. Just win, baby.

Mark Pope at the NBA Combine

It’s desperation time for Mark Pope and the final phase of his roster-building for next season. Instead of sitting back in Lexington as it all plays out, Pope flew to Chicago to meet with Malachi Moreno face-to-face at the NBA Combine. Of course, Otega Oweh and Jayden Quaintance, too.

Tomorrow, Pope will head to Memphis for high school recruiting at the second EYBL session of the year. KSR will have boots on the ground in Memphis, too.

Malachi Moreno met with more NBA teams

Moreno met with New York before the NBA Combine. He has since added the Lakers, Celtics, Heat, and Blazers to that list while in Chicago. “It’s been going pretty well,” Moreno said.

He also said in his combine interviews that it’s about “finding the right opportunity” and “making sure that I’m in the best place to grow as a player.”

He has two weeks to make that decision, and it’s getting uneasy for Big Blue Nation.

[Malachi Moreno Meets With Four More NBA Teams After Knicks Workout]

The latest on Milan Momcilovic from Milan Momcilovic

Former Iowa State sharpshooter Milan Momcilovic is the dream for Kentucky fans. However, Momcilovic’s dream is to stay in the draft as long as he gets the proper feedback this week. If he doesn’t, Momcilovic wants to contend for an NCAA championship, and his next landing spot in college will need a talented roster that he believes in.

Yesterday, he told Isaac Trotter of CBS Sports that he hopes to hear of a guaranteed contract, even if it’s not a first-round guarantee. If not, Kentucky is in the mix for his services, along with Louisville and St. John’s, according to Trotter. Kyle Tucker added that he is hearing Louisville is a serious threat. Wouldn’t that suck? Anywhere but Louisville if it’s not UK.

Other NBA Combine and Kentucky roster news

Here are other news items and nuggets from Chicago:

  • Allen Graves isn’t a name to watch anymore. The former Santa Clara forward hopes to stay in the draft, but if he returns to school, LSU is the heavy, heavy favorite to land him, with Duke also in the mix. Graves, who is from Louisiana, confirmed that Kentucky reached out, but said he will only consider LSU or Duke if he doesn’t get the NBA feedback he seeks.
  • You can probably remove Tounde Yessoufou from your watch list, too. The Baylor freshman said he is fully focused on the draft and doesn’t plan to return to school. If that changes, UCLA is the place to watch for his second NCAA season.
  • Jayden Quaintance detailed his recovery journey at Kentucky during his NBA Draft Combine interview. Quaintance said he was only allowed to practice with the team, not on his own, and wasn’t able to get a full practice in all year. “Everything was kind of team-mandated, just 15 practices and lifts, so I wasn’t able to do as much as I wanted to in that aspect.” (More)
  • Otega Oweh scored 20 points in his first 5-on-5 scrimmage on Wednesday.

Take advantage of the new flash sale at KSR+

Want to join the conversation over at KSBoard/House of Blue? Unlock KSR+ stories? Get access to The Athletic? New members can join for only $1 and then it’s 50% off for your first year. Take advantage of the flash sale as we wait for basketball roster moves and lots more. Get signed up here.

UK Women’s Golf advanced in the NCAA Tournament

Congratulations to Kentucky Women’s Golf for advancing from the NCAA Tallahassee Regional. Kentucky claimed one of the five spots up for grabs by going low in the third and final round on Wednesday. The Wildcats entered the last day two spots out of the top five, but shot a 9-under-par to leap two teams and earn a bid in the NCAA Women’s Golf Championship in California. Lexington’s own C.A. Carter put the team on her back with four straight birdies to finish her round, a career-best and course record.

Up next, Kentucky will play at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California, from May 22-27.

The 108th PGA Tournament started this morning

More golf. The second major of the year started this morning at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, just outside Philadelphia. Defending champ Scottie Scheffler is the betting favorite at +450, with Rory McIlroy (+800), Cam Young (+1200), Jon Rahm (+1600), Bryson DeChambeau (+1800) and Xander Schauffele (+1800) behind Scheffler on the odds board. It’s Aronimink’s first PGA since 1962, and you can follow along starting today at noon on ESPN.

Watch KSR’s Happy Hour later today

It’s Thursday, which means KSR will go live on YouTube from 4-5 p.m. for another Happy Hour presented by Country Boy Brewing. This week, a panel of KSR personalities will discuss the latest news from the NBA Draft Combine and Mark Pope’s final roster efforts, as well as baseball’s last push and whatever else comes up between now and then. Tune in, bring a cold beer if you’re able, and leave comments if you want to interact with the live stream. Subscribe to KSR on YouTube here.

Another KSR with Matt and me coming up at 10 a.m.

Ryan Lemond is away for a little while, so the Matt & Drew show continues today, with Shannon The Dude joining the fun and producing the show out of Louisville. Tune in at 10 a.m.

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2026-05-20