Kentucky vs. Louisville: Preview, Odds, How to Watch

This edition of the Kentucky vs. Louisville rivalry may not look the same and the circumstances are certainly different, but the emotions are finally ramping up ahead of the head-to-head battle. It’ll be Cats vs. Cards inside the KFC Yum! Center on Thursday, tip-off scheduled for 6 p.m. ET.

There’s a lot on the line for both programs, albeit on separate ends of the spectrum. For UK, it’s a chance to continue its momentum following a top-10 win over North Carolina — and avoid another ugly loss just a few weeks following the UNCW game. For UofL, it’s a must-win for Kenny Payne as he looks to save his job and earn the first statement victory of his head coaching career.

How To Watch

No. 9 Kentucky (8-2) vs. Louisville (5-6)
6 p.m. ET | Thursday, December 21 | KFC Yum! Center

TV: ESPN (Wes Durham, Jimmy Dykes)
Streaming: Fubo (Try for free) – For a limited time, new subscribers can save $20 on Fubo’s Pro, Elite and Premier plans for the first month
Home Radio: UK Sports Network – 630 WLAP, iHeart Radio (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
Online Radio: iHeart
Satellite Radio: Sirius 119 or 190
Live Stats: StatBroadcast

Team Records

No. 9 Kentucky: 8-2 (KenPom: 21)

11/6: 86-46 W vs. New Mexico State
11/10: 81-61 W vs. Texas A&M-Commerce (Wildcat Challenge)
11/14: 89-84 L vs. No. 1 Kansas
11/17: 101-67 W vs. Stonehill (Wildcat Challenge)
11/20: 96-88 OT W vs. Saint Joseph’s (Wildcat Challenge)
11/24: 118-82 W vs. Marshall
11/28: 95-73 W vs. No. 8 Miami (FL)
12/2: 80-73 L vs. UNC-Wilmington
12/9: 81-66 W vs. Penn
12/16: 87-83 W vs. No. 9 North Carolina

Louisville: 5-6 (KenPom: 175)

11/6: 94-93 W vs. UMBC
11/10: 81-71 L vs. Chattanooga
11/15: 61-41 W vs. Coppin State
11/19: 81-89 L vs. Texas
11/20: 74-66 L vs. Indiana
11/26: 90-84 W (OT) vs. New Mexico State
11/29: 73-68 W vs. Bellarmine
12/3: 75-68 L at Virginia Tech
12/9: 75-68 L at DePaul
12/13: 75-63 L vs. Arkansas State
12/17: 85-63 W vs. Pepperdine

Series History

Kentucky leads the all-time series 38-17, including 12-3 under John Calipari. The in-state rivalry began back in 1913 and has been an annual tradition dating back to 1983 with just one break — a COVID cancellation in 2021. It’s widely seen as a top rivalry in college basketball with Duke and North Carolina being the only real competitor atop the list.

Kentucky vs. Louisville Odds

Spread: Kentucky -13.5
Total: 157.5 points

Kentucky Projected Starters

(Starting lineup based on the last game)

#21 – DJ Wagner
6-4 • 192 • GUARD • FRESHMAN
12.8 PPG, 3.9 APG

#12 – Antonio Reeves
6-6 • 195 • GUARD • SENIOR
17.1 PPG, 4.5 RPG

#1 – Justin Edwards
6-8 • 203 • FORWARD • FRESHMAN
9.6 PPG, 4.4 RPG

#4 – Tre Mitchell
6-9 • 231 • FORWARD • GRADUATE STUDENT
12.7 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 3.7 APG

#2 – Aaron Bradshaw
7-1 • 226 • FORWARD • FRESHMAN
10.7 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.3 BPG

Head Coach: John Calipari (32nd season, 15th at UK) – 840-255 overall, 395-115 at UK

North Carolina Projected Starters

(Starting lineup based on the last game)

#55 – Skyy Clark
6-3 • 205 • GUARD • SOPHOMORE
15.4 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 2.5 APG

#4 – Ty-Laur Johnson
6-0 • 160 • GUARD • FRESHMAN
8.8 PPG, 3.5 APG, 1.6 RPG

#0 – Mike James
6-5 • 200 • GUARD • SOPHOMORE
12.4 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 1.4 APG

#22 – Tre White
6-7 • 205 • GUARD • SOPHOMORE
12.8 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 1.7 APG

#5 – Brandon Huntley-Hatfield
6-10 • 240 • FORWARD • JUNIOR
9.2 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 1.0 BPG

Head Coach: Kenny Payne (2nd season at UofL, 2nd overall): 9-34

Statistical Comparison

(via Kentucky’s game notes)

Fun stats from UK’s game notes:

A win would move Kentucky to 133-36 all-time in games played in Louisville
John Calipari is 19-1 all-time in games coached against former assistants.
UK has outrebounded each of its last two opponents by 10 boards. The Wildcats also generated 18 offensive rebounds against UNC which resulted in a 15-6 edge in second-chance points.
Reed Sheppard ranks ninth in the country with 2.90 steals per game. He has induced at least two swipes in every game this season.

Pregame Storylines

JOHN CALIPARI VS. KENNY PAYNE PT. 2

Is this the final head-to-head battle between Coach Cal and KP? Louisville appears to be headed toward a breakup with the former Kentucky assistant, potentially as early as the clock striking zero with a loss. The Cats won round one a year ago inside Rupp Arena by a final score of 86-63. Can the Cards win at home this time around? “If we do what we’re supposed to do, we’ve got a fighting chance,” Payne said Wednesday.

The Wildcats went a combined 295-73 during Payne’s decade with the program from 2010-20, reaching six NCAA Elite Eights and four Final Fours while winning the 2012 national championship.

Top 10

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SKYY CLARK FACES OFF AGAINST HIS FORMER SCHOOL

The former five-star recruit committed to Kentucky back on October 22, 2020. Three years later, he’s set to face off against the program he once expected to call home, now as a bitter rival. Clark has been the Cardinals’ top producer, averaging 15.4 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per contest while leading the team in scoring in four games. He previously signed with the Wildcats before backing out in March 2022 and later signing with Illinois. After leaving the program mid-season due to family health reasons, he later entered the transfer portal and signed with Louisville.

DJ WAGNER VS. MILT WAGNER

Louisville pushed to land the five-star guard out of high school, going as far as hiring his grandfather, Milt Wagner, onto the staff as the program’s Director of Player Development. His grandson instead decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and play for John Calipari at Kentucky while the top-10 career scorer in UL history remains on Payne’s staff with the Cardinals. DJ Wagner is now the Wildcats’ fourth-leading scorer at 12.8 points per game.

Join The Discussion on KSBoard

For the first time in over a decade, KSR will be without its in-game live blogs, a longtime tradition here on the blog. Unfortunately, the company that hosted the KSR live blogs no longer exists, so we are without the machine that made it all possible.

If you still want to interact with the KSR crew, consider joining the conversation on KSBoard. New members can try 1 month for $1.

Rapid Reaction on the KSR YouTube Channel

Miss the game? KSR’s got you covered with Rapid Reactions inside the Yum! Center on the KSR YouTube Channel. We’ll also have wall-to-wall postgame coverage on the website, including highlights, comments from John Calipari and the players, stats, and takeaways.

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