Points of Emphasis: Louisville vs. Kentucky
(Photo of Kahlil Whitney, Jordan Nwora: Mark Zerof/USA TODAY Sports)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Traveling to Pitt for the second half of a two-game road trip, Louisville was able to overcome some of their own miscues and escape the Steel City with a 64-54 win over the Panthers. Next up for the Cardinals, they return home for their annual Battle of the Bluegrass rivalry matchup with the Kentucky Wildcats. Tipoff is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 26th at 1:00pm EST, and can be viewed on ESPN.
Here are a couple of the more significant storylines to follow ahead of Cardinals' matchup with the Wildcats:
Historically Bad Start
For those who are unaware, Kentucky is currently in the midst of one of their worst starts in program history.
The Wildcats opened up the 2020-21 season with a victory against Morehead State, but it has been downhill since opening day. That was then followed up with losses to Richmond, Kansas, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame and most recently North Carolina for a 1-5 overall record. The last time they started 1-5 was nearly a century ago during the 1926-27 season when Basil Hayden was the head coach.
Out of the 328 Division I programs that are currently active this season, Kentucky has the 271st ranked scoring offense (65.8), 125th ranked scoring defense (67.3), 229th ranked field goal percentage (42.6%) and 300th ranked assist to turnover ratio (0.69).
And that only begins to explains the disarray coming out of Lexington.
In their last game vs. UNC, forward Keion Brooks, who has yet to see any playing time this season due to injury, was sent to speak to the media because his teammates weren't "up to" it following the 75-63 loss.
During that same game, forward Cam'Ron Fletcher was spotted by cameras crying on the bench. He later apologized for the outburst, saying that his "emotions peaked". This past Monday, head coach John Calipari asked Fletcher to "step away from the team" and "do some soul searching to get his priorities in order".
No Threes Allowed
While Kentucky isn't exactly shooting the three ball well themselves, as they are connecting on just 24.3% percent of them (320th in D1), one thing this team does well is limit the other team from doing the same.
The Wildcats are limiting their opponents to just 27.1% on three-point field goal attempts, good for fourth in the SEC and 33rd in the country.
Louisville (5-1, 1-0 ACC) is currently allowing their opponents to shoot 34.8% from beyond the arc (238th in D1), but that stat is a little misleading. Due to being rusty following an 18 game layoff, the Cardinals allowed Wisconsin to connect on 16 of their 25 three pointers (64.0%).
Remove that anomaly from the equation, and Louisville has allowed Evansville, Seton Hall, Prairie View A&M, Western Kentucky and Pitt to shoot just 26.9% on threes. This would be good for 31st in D1, and second-best in the ACC behind Pitt.
Familiar Frontcourt
Coach Calipari has been long known for his recruitment of one-and-done players during his time at Kentucky. As a result, Louisville normally hasn't seen many Wildcats players more than once over the last decade-plus.
However, there is one player that Louisville head coach Chris Mack is very familiar with. After spending his first three years of eligibility with ACC foe Wake Forest, forward Olivier Sarr decided to enter the transfer portal and wound up at Kentucky.
The native of France has had a slight dip in production from his final year with Wake Forest, going from 13.7 points per game as a junior to 10.5 as a senior. In three games against Louisville with the Demon Deacons, Sarr is averaging 7.3 points and 4.7 rebounds, with his best performance coming last season (16 pts, 6 reb, 1 ast).
Between him and fellow big man Isaiah Jackson, Kentucky has actually done a solid job defending the paint. The duo has a combined 24 blocks, and Wildcats as a whole block 5.0 shots a game, good for 34th in the nation.
Combined with the 12.5 offensive boards they get per game, and Louisville's frontcourt players in Jae'Lyn Withers, Quinn Slazinski and JJ Traynor will have their work cut out for them.
Pre-Rivalry Tuneup
While being short guard Carlik Jones certainly hurt the Cardinals in their game vs. Wisconsin, the most aggravating factor in their 37-point blowout to the Badgers was their 18-day layoff due to COVID-19, and the rust that accompanied it.
While Louisville is slowly getting back into playing shape after their game vs. Pitt, head coach Chris Mack says they're not quite there yet.
"I thought our tongues were dragging at the end of the first half, but I didn't feel that way in the second half," he said. "That makes me feel a little bit better than I did at halftime."
Nearly three weeks off unquestionably played a part in the Cardinals' loss to Wisconsin, and was a tad less apparent in their win against the Panthers. Their endurance might not be 100% against Kentucky, but it helps to have a pair of games to get ready for the Wildcats.
Coughing It Up
One recent trend since Louisville returned to play following their program pause due to COVID-19 has been the rate at which they've turned the ball over.
Over their last two games vs. Wisconsin & Pitt, the Cardinals have turned it over an average of 17.5 times. In their first four games of the season, it was just 11.3 times per game.
"They have to become more responsible with the ball, with their decision making, being less casual with the ball," Mack said. "Pittsburgh knocked us back, give them credit. They turned us over and it was a new game at halftime. I was really proud of our team's response, but I think that's where (Pitt's comeback) started.
Fortunately for Louisville, the Wildcats haven't exactly been able to take much better care of the ball. In fact, for the season, Kentucky has turned it over 16.7 times per game (292nd in D1), with an assist/turnover ratio of 0.69, a mark that's among the worst in the nation (302nd in D1).
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