Kenny Brooks’ revitalization of Kentucky women’s basketball is his career-defining decision’s latest byproduct

Kentucky women’s basketball has been a surprise success his season, and it all stems from a decision made by coach Kenny Brooks back in 2002.

At the time, Brooks was the top assistant coach for James Madison men’s basketball when he decided to become an assistant coach on the women’s team. Almost everyone he knew told him he was taking a step backward in his career. 

“All the way down to my family,” Brooks told CBS Sports. “Everyone, especially on the men’s (basketball) side, they were like, ‘Are you sure?’ My mom was dead set against it. She was like, ‘Don’t do it, you are going to be a head coach on the men’s side.'”

Brooks was sure because this was his second chance to make the switch. The first opportunity presented itself two years earlier, but he declined and regretted it immediately.

Brooks took over as James Madison’s women’s head coach a year later, and eventually led the Dukes to six NCAA Tournament appearances before getting hired by Virginia Tech in 2016. Fast forward to 2023, and Brooks had guided the Hokies to their first Final Four in program history while collecting a program-record 31 wins.

That decision Brooks made in 2002 still gets him a lot of praise from his peers, including NC State men’s basketball coach Kevin Keatts, Texas’ Rodney Terry and Clemson’s Brad Brownell.

“They all look at me and say, ‘You are a genius,'” Brooks said. “‘You knew something.'”

But last year, Brooks made another big decision. Just a year after the Virginia Tech Final Four run, Brooks accepted an offer to become the head coach at Kentucky — a program coming off back-to-back losing seasons.

Despite his “quarterback” Georgia Amoore following him from Virginia Tech, there were a lot of unknowns regarding how the Wildcats would fare this season. The most important questions being whether Teonni Key and Clara Strack could step up after transferring from North Carolina and Virginia Tech, respectively. 

There were even questions regarding how Amoore would do in a completely different roster and environment.

“She’s an All-American, but I took her out of her comfort zone and she comes to a brand-new situation with a brand-new team in a brand-new conference,” Brooks said of Amoore. “So, there were a lot of unknowns, but what I did know is they were going to work hard.”

So far everything, has worked out quite well: The Wildcats are No. 8 in the AP Top 25 poll with a 19-2 record.

The Wildcats are fresh off consecutive wins over ranked opponents Alabama and Oklahoma. Amoore leads the team with 19.4 points per game and a Division I-best 7.5 assists per contest. Meanwhile, Strack averages 15.5 points along with a team-best 9.6 rebounding average and a total of 49 blocks.

Amoore and Strack are constantly being recognized by fans and media, but Brooks explained how other pieces of the team have been crucial for the success.

“Those two grab a lot of the headlines, but we don’t go if Teonni Key is not playing well. Pun intended, she is the key to our team,” Brooks said. “But it’s also Amelia Hassett. Amelia Hassett will do whatever we need her to do. She’ll do the dirty work, she’ll step up and she always quietly has a double-double. She almost averages 10 rebounds from the guard position.

“… And you have Dazia Lawrence, who came from UNC-Charlotte where she was the No. 1 option, the go-to person averaging 18 points a game, and she’s had to adjust her game to play off of Georgia to be a catch-and-shoot, but also creating. Her versatility allows us to switch her to the point so Georgia can get a rest.”

The Wildcats have length and athleticism, and the fact that all five starters are averaging double figures makes this a difficult team to scout. However, Brooks wanted to highlight a different aspect of their game.

“I there was a King of the Hill or Queen of the Hill 1-on-1 tournament — none of my kids would win because individually they are not good defenders, but collectively as a group they are really good,” Brooks said. “They play off of each other, they communicate well with each other, they help each other.

“I think our offense is so good sometimes our defense gets overlooked.”

The Wildcats are currently No. 4 in the SEC standings with an 8-1 conference record. Their lone conference loss was a 61-55 defeat by the hands of Texas A&M. Despite their success so far, the next month will be tough for Kentucky as it faces four ranked opponents: No. 3 Texas, No. 5 LSU, No. 15 Tennessee and No. 4 South Carolina, the reigning national champion. 

“This league is very very tough. This league presents so many challenges for you,” Brooks said. “You can throw out the record of the team that you are playing — it’s all about matchup. How you match up with that next group because everyone is going to be physical, but some teams present different challenges for you, and you just have to be ready for it.”