Louisville Coach Rick Pitino warned his team that the same open looks that had been available against Western Kentucky and Morgan State would not be there Friday against the length and athleticism of 11th-ranked Kentucky. He was proven right in Kentucky’s 78-63 win in the KFC Yum Center, but the coach said his team’s lack of execution was more of a factor. Thanks in large part to a second-half hot streak by Preston Knowles, U of L’s field goal (46.3) and three-point (40.0) percentages were respectable. But the Cardinals had to work…
Pitino: Failure to follow game plan killed the Cards
Enes who? Harrellson stars as UK rolls
Throughout November and December, even as their young team was making impressive strides in a difficult nonconference schedule, Kentucky fans had a singular refrain: “Free Enes.” After Friday’s resounding win at Louisville, perhaps Big Blue Nation should adopt a new slogan for their arena signs, T-shirts and message board signatures: “Enes who?” As Kentucky waited for word in the inexorable NCAA eligibility case of highly rated Turkish prospect Enes Kanter, Josh Harrellson — Kentucky’s occasionally maligned would-be backup center — proved that maybe the Wildcats don’t need Enes after all.
Brandon Knight, Josh Harrellson power Kentucky’s rout of Louisville
Brandon Knight scored 25 points and Josh Harrellson added a career-high 23 points and 14 rebounds as Kentucky (No. 12 ESPN/USA Today, No. 11 AP) defeated Louisville (No. 20 ESPN/USA Today, No. 22 AP) 78-63 on Friday. The Wildcats (11-2) used their size to improve to 2-0 against their rivals since John Calipari became coach. Kentucky dominated the smaller Cardinals (11-2) in the lane behind the stellar play of Harrellson, who took advantage while Louisville focused on Terrence Jones.
Boxscore and Game Notes: Kentucky vs. Louisville
Boxscore and Game Notes: Kentucky vs. Louisville
Tom Leach’s top 10 Kentucky-Louisville basketball games
When Kentucky and Louisville square off Friday on the final day of 2010, it will mark the third time these two rivals have played on New Year’s Eve. The Cats won in 1996 while the Cards prevailed in 1988. That’s just one of many historical footnotes to the game on both teams’ schedules that means the most to their fans — outside of the NCAA Tournament, of course. With that in mind, here’s one man’s opinion on the top 10 games in the Battle of Bluegrass, which has been an annual affair since the 1983-84 season.
Kenny Payne returns to Louisville in Wildcat blue
Kenny Payne’s visits to Louisville in the two decades since he played for the Cardinals have typically been celebrations, a chance for the former small forward and his teammates on the 1986 national championship team to be cheered one more time. Things will likely be different on Friday. Very…
Kenny Payne is already nervous about the Kentucky-Louisville game
Kentucky assistant coach Kenny Payne knows the NCAA championship he helped win at Louisville looks good on his resume, but he knows his NBA experience brings him “instant credibility” that is even more important in recruiting. “What is instant credibility for kids? I want to be a NBA player. The moment you have been in the NBA and are coaching and talking to a kid, you have got his ear,” said Payne. “That’s what they want to hear and be associated with.
Kentucky winning another recruiting battle over Louisville recruit
Louisville lost an epic recruiting battle to Kentucky when Marquis Teague, the No. 1-ranked point guard in the 2011 class, turned down Louisville and committed to the Wildcats. History might very well repeat itself in the recruitment of Michael Chandler. The center already decommitted from Louisville earlier this spring, and now it looks like Kentucky…
Another Louisville basketball player in trouble
Louisville basketball player Preston Knowles supposedly beat down on his girlfriend’s stepdad this past Sunday. According to a police report, Bullitt County sheriff’s deputies were called to a Shepherdsville home Sunday around 9 p.m. after a verbal argument between Knowles and his girlfriend escalated. Police said the girl’s stepfather intervened in that verbal altercation and…
Extortion trial involving Rick Pitino will not be moved
A federal judge has denied a request to move the trial of a woman charged with trying to extort $10 million from University of Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino. U.S. District Judge Charles R. Simpson III ruled Monday that Karen Cunagin Sypher couldn’t show that pretrial publicity warrants the unusual step of relocating the case.