PREVIEW: No. 18 Louisville comes to town to face Kentucky WBB

The biggest game of the Kenny Brooks era to date is here. No. 18 Louisville comes to town to take on the No. 20 Kentucky Wildcats in Historic Memorial Coliseum in what should be a back-and-forth battle between two in-state powerhouses.

Bio Blast

On Saturday, Kenny Brooks’ Wildcats take on Jeff Walz’s Cardinals for the first time ever. While Brooks and Walz have faced off before, it’s never been in such a heated, historic rivalry. At this point in his career, Kenny Brooks is 3-7 against Louisville, but all three victories come in the past three seasons. Those seven victories took place when Louisville was considered one of the juggernauts of women’s college basketball. That’s not to say there isn’t still talent at Louisville, though. There’s plenty.

Projected Starters (lineup used on Nov. 12)

• #2 – Nyla Harris: 6-foot-2 junior forward
• #4 – Mackenly Randolph: 6-foot freshman forward
• #12 – Ja’Leah Williams: 5-foot-9 senior guard
• #22 – Tajianna Roberts: 5-foot-10 freshman guard
• #44 – Olivia Cochran: 6-foot-3 graduate forward

Currently, the Cards are 2-1 after wins over UT Martin and Southern Indiana, and a loss from No. 5 UCLA in Paris, France. Louisville is a young team, about half of the players are underclassman. With two freshman starters and freshman Imari Berry coming first off the bench, its clear that Kentucky has the age-advantage in this matchup.

If the name Imari Berry sounds familiar, that’s because Kenny Brooks originally tried to recruit her to be a Wildcat this season. She’s currently averaging 5.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. Over three games, the 5-foot-10 guard added five assists, three blocks, and two steals.

Louisville also doesn’t have much height. The Cardinals’ tallest active player is freshman Isla Juffermans, standing at 6-foot-4. However, the forward hasn’t seen much playing time this season, playing only 42 minutes over three games.

The Cards’ leading scorers are Tajianna Roberts and Olivia Cochran. While Cochran is a veteran for Louisville, Roberts is not. The freshman guard averages 44.4% from three, making eight of 18 attempts so far this season. Mackenly Randolph, the second freshman starter, is the daughter of 2-time NBA All-Star Zach Randolph. Though the forward only averages 3.7 points and three rebounds per game.

Fortunately, Kentucky has a pretty good chance to come out on top in this historic matchup. Thanks to the size mismatch, the home-court advantage, and a sold out Memorial Coliseum, Saturday’s game should be electric.

Scouting Report

Unlike traditional Louisville teams, this one is led by a talented group of freshmen. In fact, nine of the fifteen players rostered are freshmen. That includes Tajianna Roberts, the leading scorer for Jeff Walz’s team.

Roberts is averaging 15 points per game on 51.4% shooting from the field, but even more impressive, 44.4% from three-point range. Her season high came against UCLA when she put up 21 points against the Bruins.

Last season, fifth-year senior forward Olivia Cochran scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds against Kentucky, and she could certainly have a similar impact this season if Kentucky’s bigs don’t account for her. Nyla Harris, who is averaging 10.3 points per game, is another Louisville forward to keep an eye on.

Projected Kentucky Starters

#3 – Georgia Amoore

5-FOOT-6 – GUARD – GRADUATE STUDENT

11.7 PPG – 8.3 APG – 4.7 RPG

#7 – Teonni Key

6-FOOT-4 – FORWARD – JUNIOR

9.7 PPG – 8.3 RPG – 2.3 APG

#10 – Dazia Lawrence

5-FOOT-8 – GUARD – REDSHIRT SENIOR

12.7 PPG – 1.7 APG – 1 SPG

#13 – Clara Strack

6-FOOT-5 – CENTER – SOPHOMORE

17.7 PPG – 11.3 RPG – 5 APG

#32 – Amelia Hassett

6-FOOT-3 – FORWARD – JUNIOR

8 PPG – 10.3 RPG – 1.7 APG

How to Watch/Listen

Place	Tipoff	TV	Radio	Live Stats
Historic Memorial Coliseum (Lexington, KY)	6 p.m. EST	SEC Network+ (Noah Frary, Bria Goss)	98.5 FM ICONS, Talk Radio 1080 (Darren Headrick)	StatBroadcast

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 Historic Memorial Coliseum while also answering questions and providing real-time analysis (and probably complaining about the officiating).

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