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

A game that needs no introduction, it’s the Cats vs. the Cards to open a new era of the best rivalry in college basketball. Mark Pope has taken over as the head coach at Kentucky while Pat Kelsey leads a Louisville program that was in desperate need of a fresh start. At long last, it’s finally here, the two sides set to tip off inside Rupp Arena at 5:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.

What do you need to know about the head-to-head matchup between good and evil? KSR’s got you covered.

Kentucky vs. Louisville: How to Watch, Listen

• Time: 5:15 p.m. ET
• Television: ESPN
• Home Radio: UK Sports Network – 630 WLAP, iHeart Radio (Tom Leach, Goose Givens)
• Online Radio: iHeart
• Satellite Radio: Sirius
• Live Stats: StatBroadcast

You can also follow the game via our new LIVE BLOG on the website, which will begin an hour before tipoff, or join the conversation on KSBoard.

Join KSR Plus! With a KSR Plus membership, you get access to bonus content and KSBoard, KSR’s message board, to chat with fellow Cats fans and get exclusive scoop.

Early season rewind

Kentucky: KenPom 10

• 11/4: 103-62 W vs. Wright State
• 11/9: 100-72 W vs. Bucknell
• 11/12: 77-72 W vs. No. 6 Duke
• 11/19: 97-68 W vs. Lipscomb
• 11/22: 108-59 W vs. Jackson State
• 11/26: 87-68 W vs. Western Kentucky
• 11/29: 105-76 W vs. Georgia State
• 12/3: 70-66 L at Clemson
• 12/7: 90-89 W OT vs. Gonzaga
• 12/11: 78-67 W vs. Colgate

Louisville: KenPom 60

• 11/4: 93-45 W vs. Morehead State
• 11/9: 77-55 L vs. Tennessee
• 11/19: 100-68 W vs. Bellarmine
• 11/22: 76-61 W vs. Winthrop
• 11/27: 89-61 W vs. Indiana
• 11/28: 79-70 W OT vs. West Virginia
• 11/29: 69-64 L vs. Oklahoma
• 12/3: 86-63 L vs. Ole Miss
• 12/8: 76-65 L vs. Duke
• 12/11: 77-74 W vs. UTEP

Series History

Kentucky leads the all-time series vs. Louisville 39-17 with a home record of 21-5 in that span with no losses inside Rupp Arena since 2008. The Wildcats lead the modern series (since 1982-83) 30-14 — including wins in 16 of the last 21. As individual coaches, Mark Pope is 0-1 against the Cards during his time at Utah Valley while Pat Kelsey is 0-1 against the Cats during his time at Winthrop.

We can also include Pope’s record against UofL as a player, splitting a pair of games (1-1) from 1994-96. He went for nine points on 4-10 shooting with ten rebounds, one assist and one steal in an 88-86 loss on Jan. 1, 1995, then two points on 1-3 shooting with three rebounds, one assist and one block in an 89-66 win on Dec. 23, 1995.

Kentucky vs. Louisville Odds via Circa Sports

Spread: Kentucky -10
Total: 159.5

Kentucky covered the spread in its first five games of the season before falling just short of that mark in back-to-back matchups vs. WKU and Georgia State. The Wildcats then lost outright as slight favorites at Clemson before winning outright against Gonzaga in Seattle as solid underdogs. They did not cover the spread vs. Colgate. KenPom projects an 83-72 victory for the Wildcats while Bart Torvik sees the home team coming away with an 84-73 win inside Rupp Arena.

Kentucky Potential Starters

#1 – Lamont Butler
6-2 – 208 – GUARD – GRADUATE STUDENT
12.9 PPG, 3.9 APG, 3.1 RPG

#00 – Otega Oweh
6-4 – 215 – GUARD – JUNIOR
15.6 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.3 SPG

#2 – Jaxson Robinson
6-6 – 192 – GUARD – GRADUATE STUDENT
12.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 1.9 APG

#7 – Andrew Carr
6-11 – 235 – FORWARD – GRADUATE STUDENT
11.0 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.2 APG

#22 – Amari Williams
7-0 – 262 – CENTER – GRADUATE STUDENT
10.6 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 1.8 BPG

Louisville Projected Starters

#24 – Chucky Hepburn
6-2 – 190 – GUARD – SENIOR
14.1 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 4.8 APG

#6 – Reyne Smith
6-2 – 190 – GUARD – SENIOR
12.1 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 0.4 APG

#1 – J’Vonne Hadley
6-6 – 215 – GUARD – SENIOR
9.8 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 1.8 APG

#93 – Noah Waterman
6-11 – 230 – FORWARD – SENIOR
6.2 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 0.4 APG

#0 – James Scott
6-11 – 220 – FORWARD – SOPHOMORE
7.0 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.1 APG

Statistical Comparison

(via Kentucky’s game notes)

Fun stats from UK’s game notes:

• Kentucky and Louisville have combined for more than 4,000 wins, 11 on-court national championships and 27 Final Fours — including a combined six since 2011. UK owns the all-time record of 39-17 against UofL
• The Cats lead the nation in scoring at 91.1 points per game, good for first nationally with four 100-point performances. Their 19.1 assists per game are No. 1 in the SEC and No. 11 nationally
• Kentucky makes 10.2 3-pointers per game, good for No. 2 in the SEC and No. 30 in Division I
• The Wildcats are ranked sixth in the nation in fastbreak points at 19.22 per game

Pregame Storylines

WELCOME TO THE BEST RIVALRY IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL

“We know how big of a rivalry this is, it’s one of the biggest rivalries in history of sports. For us, that’s something that we really want to be a part of,” Koby Brea said of the head-to-head matchup. It’s emotional and angry but also beautiful, both fanbases pouring everything into this one in hopes of earning ultimate bragging rights for the year. Kentucky has won 16 of the last 21, but it’s a new era with two new coaches on opposing benches. Toss history aside and prepare for a bright future that starts today with Mark Pope on one side and Pat Kelsey on the other.

WILL LAMONT BUTLER PLAY?

A game-time decision ahead of the team’s matchup vs. Gonzaga, Butler was ruled out ahead of the opening tip and then sat out again vs. Colgate. Mark Pope previously listed him as ‘day-to-day’ and expected him to return ‘sooner rather than later’ in a ‘matter of days.’ What is his status vs. Louisville? “Lamont was on the court a little (Wednesday). He didn’t do anything with us but he was on the court a little bit (Wednesday) and we’ll kind of see how it goes (Thursday). We’ll try to roll him out there. I’d love to have him. He really helps us. I just don’t know if he’s going to be quite ready.”

SHOT TAKERS OR SHOT MAKERS?

Louisville is one of the best shot-taking teams in college basketball, launching 31.8 attempts per game from deep, good for No. 7 nationally. On the flip side, the Cardinals only hit 27.0 percent of those attempts, which is No. 344 overall — one of the worst efficiency rates in college basketball. As for Kentucky, it is taking 28.7 attempts per game (No. 38) while hitting 35.5 percent of those looks (No. 113) with pretty serious room for growth. Prepare to see shots being taken at a ridiculous clip inside Rupp Arena, but how many will actually fall? That will likely decide the game between the two rivals.

LOUISVILLE’S DEPTH IS A SERIOUS ISSUE

Losing two starters in Aboubacar Traore (broken arm) and Kasean Pryor (torn ACL) along with a key backup guard in Koren Johnson (shoulder surgery), the team is down to just eight available scholarship players going into the 11th game of the season and really sticks to a seven-man rotation. Butler is questionable and Kerr Kriisa is out, but Kentucky will have a significant depth advantage with nine players averaging at least 12.9 minutes per game and another adding 8.2 minutes per contest.

FIRST TRUE ROAD GAME FOR THE CARDS

Louisville has played every game inside the Yum! Center this season besides the team’s trip to the Bahamas over the Thanksgiving holiday to participate in the Battle 4 Atlantis. Of those home games, the Cardinals have not seen a crowd bigger than 16,976 against Tennessee — the game Pat Kelsey begged fans to attend — despite playing in a 22,090-seat venue. Rupp Arena (20,500 seats) has been packed for every home game against mid-major competition, BBN waiting for its first opportunity to make a statement. That comes today against the in-state rival.

Join The Discussion on KSBoard

Want to interact with the KSR crew during tonight’s game? Consider joining the conversation on KSBoard, where we’ll be sharing live updates as your eyes and ears inside Rupp Arena while also answering questions and providing real-time analysis (and probably complaining about the officiating).

New members can get KSR+ for seven days for just $1.

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Rapid Reaction on the KSR YouTube Channel

Miss the game? KSR’s got you covered with a Rapid Reaction live on the KSR YouTube Channel. We’ll also have wall-to-wall postgame coverage on the website, including highlights, comments from Mark Pope and the players, stats, and takeaways.

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