Kentucky vs Louisville: 5 storylines for 2020-21 rivalry matchup

Identity on offense

At its most basic point and when all else goes wrong, defense can be played and be effective based solely on effort. The offense, on the other hand, needs to be in sync, it is a delicate dance that all five members of a team must execute together. There is a reason why coaches practice the primary fastbreak and the secondary fastbreak, it is all organized. Baseline to baseline the scoring opportunities are orchestrated and options are known.

With the tenth-ranked strength of schedule among ACC teams, the Cardinals current;y average 63.4 points per game. That average is good for just seventh in the ACC, despite hitting 49 percent from the field.

Thankfully, Louisville has Radford transfer Carlik Jones (17.3 ppg) to lead them while they wait for San Francisco transfer Charles Minlnend (14.4 ppg) who is expected to play his first game for Louisville in early January after spraining an MCL in his right knee. As well, Louisville will be gaining the services of team captain Malik Williams (8.5 ppg) in mid-February. Expect the Louisville offense to have their true identity by the time the Madness begins.

Kentucky’s struggles stem from the fact that the No.1 recruitment class in the nation has not had the normal pre-season schedule in order to learn about each other and learn about Coach Calipari. With just six percent of their scoring returning from the previous season Coach Calipari essentially has four high school players (who had their season cut short) and a transfer in Olivier Sarr playing over 20 minutes a game, with virtually no practice time.

This storyline will continue far beyond this game but heading into SEC play with three winnable games to start, Louisville would be a great time to start to find their identity as a team.