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Former UConn women’s basketball player headed to the Southeastern Conference
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- Former UConn women’s basketball player headed to the Southeastern Conference
After four years with the UConn women's basketball team, Ayanna Patterson is headed to the Southeastern Conference.
Patterson entered the transfer portal when it opened on April 6, and she announced her commitment to play for Kentucky in 2026-27 on Saturday via a post on Instagram . The 6-foot-2 forward graduated from UConn this year and walked during the Huskies' Senior Day ceremony , but she joins the Wildcats as a redshirt sophomore with two seasons of eligibility remaining after injuries plagued her career with the Huskies. Patterson redshirted the 2023-24 season to undergo surgery for patellar tendonitis, and she was also sidelined for all of 2024-25 by a shoulder injury that eventually required season-ending surgery.
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Patterson returned to the court in 2025-26 and played in 30 games averaging five minutes. She also averaged 10 minutes in 30 appearances as a freshman in 2022-23. Patterson, a Fort Wayne, Indiana native, signed with the Huskies as the No. 4 recruit in the Class of 2022.
After walking on Senior Day, UConn's Ayanna Patterson has 'more years of basketball to play'
Patterson joins a Kentucky squad that went 25-11 in 2025-26, finishing sixth in the SEC regular season and reaching the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. It was the Wildcats' deepest run in the tournament since 2015-16 and their first trip to the regional rounds under second-year head coach Kenny Brooks. Kentucky has made the tournament in both seasons since Brooks was hired in 2024 after eight seasons leading Virginia Tech.
Patterson is one of two transfers out of UConn this offseason, joined by classmate Ice Brady . Brady, a 6-3 forward from San Diego, was the No. 5 recruit in the 2022 class and entered the portal as a redshirt junior. Brady redshirted her freshman season in 2022-23 after dislocating her right patella during preseason practice, and she appeared in just two games this year before she began dealing with "inflammation" in her right knee. She underwent season-ending surgery for the knee injury on Feb. 16.
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Just eight scholarship players have left the Huskies since the portal was established in 2019, and the program has never lost a starter during the portal era. UConn has yet to sign a transfer for 2026-27, but the Huskies have up to three scholarship spots available for potential portal additions. Coach Geno Auriemma has only signed five transfers since the portal was established, and all have been immediate contributors.
