Jim Dabbelt, a blogger from Dayton, Ohio, is reporting thst former UConn forward Samarie Walker is transferring to Kentucky and will enroll in classes at the university next week.

Although there is no confirmation from either UConn or Kentucky, I would be willing to believe the report since Dabbelt was the first to report that Walker committed to UConn during a visit to Storrs and as the quotes from Samarie just six days before she left the program indicated, she did not talk like a kid tiring of basketball.

Walker was left behind when UConn went to play at North Carolina because UConn coaches wanted more out of her from practice. Walker tweeted "lesson learned" leading to speculation that she would return to the court when UConn practiced on Thursday. Instead, UConn announced that Walker was leaving the Connecticut program with the intention of transferring.

Walker, who averaged 6.3 points and 5.8 rebounds in 17 games as a freshman, will have a mininum of three years of eligibility remaining. Since she was enrolled and attended class on the first day of the spring semester, it is uncertain whether she will be eligible to play at Kentucky in the spring of 2012 or whether she will need to wait until the fall of 2012 to suit up for the Wildcats.

UConn coach Geno Auriemma said that Walker told him that she had been struggling with her commitment to basketball since the 10th grade. However, I would be more likely to believe the story was closer to what Walker's high school coach told the Dayton Daily News that he saw signs of homesickness as Kentucky is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Dayton. The biggest issue, however, is likely that Walker didn't feel like she could fully handle Auriemma's coaching style. He is extremely demanding and obviously took issue with Walker's practice habits otherwise he would never have left her behind when the team headed to North Carolina.

Auriemma's style does not fit everybody as 15 players have transferred since the end of the 1993-94 season. Even a Connecticut icon like Rebecca Lobo admitted at a recent function that she told her mom she wanted to transfer. Obviously she had second thoughts and the rest is history. Auriemma's dealing with Walker is not too different from his pattern with other young post players. He usually pushes them during the first semester and if the prodding to up their effort at practice doesn't do the trick, he usually turns up the heat when the team reconvenes after the holidays.