Kerr Kriisa is working his way back in practice following rehab from injury

Kriisa will use a medical redshirt for another season of college basketball.

Jan 4, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Kerr Kriisa celebrates from the bench during the second half against the Florida Gators at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Kentucky basketball is getting set to begin their journey in the NCAA Tournament against Troy on Friday, and will be a fully-healthy squad minus the injuries to Jaxson Robinson and Kerr Kriisa, which has them out for the remainder of the season. Mark Pope shared an encouraging update on Kriisa's progress with his rehab on his foot, which he injured on Dec. 7.

During his call-in show on Monday night, where he previewed Kentucky's first round NCAA Tournament matchup, but he also shared an update on Kriisa, who he says has now begun on-court warm-up drills in practice, inching his way. back to being full-go on the court.

"Kerr is doing tremendous. He actually, for the first time, today, was in our warm-up drills. Our warm-up drills don't involve a lot, but he was actually on the floor. He wasn't clear for bucks yet, which is just a non-contact shooting drill. ...We're hoping next week, maybe, he can get to some activity where he's doing light full-court jogging and actually getting some shots up that way. If he can meet benchmarks, he can be full-speed here in the next six weeks, which would be a terrific deal for us."

Pope on Kriisa's progress.

As Kentucky gears up for their NCAA Tournament run, there will be no bigger cheerleader on the sidelines than Kerr Kriisa. As much as the players miss Kriisa's energy on the court, it has been said many times since how valuable he is at giving the team a spark even from the bench.

That energy is going to be really valuable in the big dance. Outside of his impact on the bench, it's certainly good to see him progressing well after having some setbacks during his rehab earlier this year.