The rivalry renews on Saturday as the Kentucky Wildcats host the Louisville Cardinals at 5:15 pm ET on ESPN. The Wildcats head into the clash as confident as ever after a wild 18-point comeback to beat Gonzaga 90-89 in overtime a week ago. The 'Cats struggled early in their latest game against Colgate but were able to pull away later in the second half to preserve the 11-point win.
Louisville is in need of a signature win. It's been tough sledding for Pat Kelsey's team as of late. The Cardinals have lost three of four, with the lone win of that stretch coming in a narrow 77-74 win over UTEP on Wednesday.
Here are 3 keys for the Wildcats to secure the victory.
1. Balance of scoring
All five starters scored in double figures for the WIldcats against Colgate. Jaxson Robinson got the start and assumed the primary ball handling role with the injuries to Lamont Butler and Kerr Kriisa. It's still up in the air whether or not Butler can return after sustaining an ankle injury in the loss to Clemson. Whether he plays or not, the Wildcats will need others to rise to the occasion, especially with Louisville's Chucky Hepburn primed to pressure whoever is handling the ball. Guys like Koby Brea and Otega Oweh will need to get the offense humming early and work get the rest of the lineup involved.
2. Limit the turnovers
Kentucky did a much better job against Colgate at taking care of the ball. Despite missing their experienced guards, the 'Cats surrendered only six turnovers compared to go with15 total assists. That said, It's one thing to take care of the ball in a buy-game against a clearly inferior Colgate team, but can Mark Pope's team do it on the road in a heated rivalry game?
Louisville's done a good job making offenses uncomfortable. To this point, the Cardinals are forcing 15.5 turnovers per game, the 40th best mark in the country. Chucky Hepburn is the tone setter with his savvy play on-ball play. His seven steals against Indiana and six against Tennessee are proof that if the Wildcats are lazy with the rock, Hepburn and the Cardinals will make them pay for it.
3. Force Louisville's poor three-point shooting to continue
One of Kentucky's biggest strengths has been defending the three-point shot. One of the most glaring weaknesses for Pat Kelsey's team is making them. Simply put, make it business as usual defensively against the Cards.
Louisville's three-point shooting has been rough so far. The Cardinals are showing a mere 27% from deep. That's the seventh worst percentage in all of college basketball. Kentucky's defense has held opponents to an even lower average at 26.3% per game. It's a clear disparity that strongly falls in favor of the WIldcats and to me, will be an early indicator as to how this game looks going into the second half and down the stretch.
Notably, Louisville has struggled to score against all but one of its four ranked opponents, scoring 89 in the win against Indiana. In the other three matchups against Duke, Ole Miss, and Tennessee, the Cards haven't surpassed 65 points.