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Kentucky advances to NCAA title game, beats Louisville 69-61

Louisville Cardinals guard Peyton Siva (3) drives to the net past Kentucky Wildcats forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) and forward Anthony Davis during the first half of their men's NCAA Final Four semi-final college basketball game in New Orleans, Louisiana, March 31, 2012.       REUTERS/Chris Stepping NCAA Photos/POOL   (UNITED STATES  - Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL) coach Rick Pitino showed why he’s a master tactician. It still wasn’t enough to beat .  Relying on offensive rebounding and Pitino’s savvy, Louisville kept it close before fading in a 69-61 loss to in-state rival Kentucky in the Final Four on Saturday night.  Louisville (30-10) got off to a jittery start and had a hard time matching up with Kentucky’s stable of future NBA players. The Cardinals kept clawing, though, turning 19 offensive rebounds into 13 second-chance points to twice rally from double-digit deficits.  Even with one of the game’s best in-game coaches pulling the strings, Louisville couldn’t keep up with the racing Wildcats the entire 40 minutes, allowing Kentucky (37-2) to shoot 57 percent and reach Monday’s championship game against either Kansas or Ohio State.  Peyton Siva had 11 points and added 10 for Louisville.

Walter Cornett, of Glendale, Kentucky, is the owner and operator of Walter’s Wildcat World. He founded WildcatWorld.com in 1998 making it one of the oldest Kentucky basketball fan sites in operation today.

On This Day in UK Basketball History

On May 12, 1997, UK’s director of athletics, C.M. Newton, introduced Orlando “Tubby” Smith as head coach.

 

Wildcats Born on This Date

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