Kentucky WBB beats No. 18 Louisville 71-61 in overtime in Battle of the Bluegrass

In the first big game of the Kenny Brooks era, the No. 18 Louisville Cardinals looked to give Kentucky their first loss of the season while making it eight consecutive wins against the Cats. Kentucky, however, came out on top 71-61, moving to 4-0 on the season.

The game started off back-and-forth, as expected. Both teams were trading blow after blow as the Memorial crows erupted after each stop on defense and each conversion on offense for the Cats. Kentucky went to their frontcourt for offensive production, setting the trend for the rest of the game.

As for the second quarter of play, it was the same. Louisville stretched the lead to five, but quickly cut it down. Georgia Amoore had 19 points and nine assists on the night. Louisville led 30-27 through two quarters of play.

It was a sloppy first two quarters for the Cats. 12 turnovers just wasn’t going to cut it. Of course, at the half, Kentucky had a chance to make an adjustment to their gameplan. Teonni Key and Clara Strack had 14 combined points at the half, and they would finish the game combining for 29 total points.

In the third quarter, Kentucky fought their way back to taking a 38-36 lead over the Cardinals, so clearly, there was an adjustment made. Amelia Hassett, who had nine points on the night, hit the lead-taking basket. Still, the Cardinals hung around. They would head into the last quarter of play with a four-point, 46-42 lead over Kentucky.

The fourth quarter was, like the rest of the game, an emotional roller coaster. Hassett would, again, give Kentucky a lead, making it 58-58 Cats with 1:18 to go. Teonni Key would put up 17 points of her own. Dazia Lawrence did everything in her power to will Kentucky to a win, putting up 14 points on the night. She would miss two crucial free throws at the end of regulation, and that sent the game to overtime knotted at 58 apiece.

In overtime, Kentucky hit several big free throws to go up 62-58. Then, it was all Cats.

It just wasn’t enough to get the job done.

Next, Kentucky will take on Purdue Fort Wayne inside of Historic Memorial Coliseum at 6 p.m. EST on SEC Network+.