Malachi Moreno, come on down. You are officially the first signing for Mark Pope and the Kentucky Wildcats in the class of 2025.
The 6-foot-11 center from Georgetown put pen to paper on an agreement with the home-state Wildcats to open the early signing period on Wednesday.
“I believe that Malachi Moreno is the best center in the country in this class,” Pope said of the program’s newest addition. “He is an elite-level passer with incredible tracking vision. He has a ferocity around the rim in terms of ball protection and he is willing to engage physically. He is going to grow into an elite-level shooter. And, more important than all of those incredible things, is that he gets a little teary-eyed when he walks into Rupp Arena because he knows what this place is.”
“Growing up in Kentucky, you always wanted to put on that Kentucky uniform,” Moreno said of his commitment. “Just being able to go there and wear ‘Kentucky’ across my chest means the world to me.”
Moreno is ranked as a top-three center in the senior class by all major recruiting services, coming in at No. 29 overall and No. 2 at his position in the On3 Industry Ranking. The future Wildcat attends Great Crossing High School, just a half hour from the UK campus. He helped lead the Warhawks to the Sweet 16 KHSAA state tournament for the first time in school history as a junior, averaging 16 points, 13.3 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game
Moreno posted a double-double in all three of his games in the 2024 state tournament, averaging 17.3 points and 16 rebounds during the run to the semifinals. Ahead of his senior season in 2024-25, Moreno is considered the preseason favorite to win Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball award.
On the AAU circuit, Moreno has been a part of Indiana Elite, the same program that was home to current UK freshman, Travis Perry. The squad reached the Adidas 3SSB circuit championship game this past summer.
