College basketball just means more in Kentucky. Louisville is the 27th largest city in the United States by population, and Lexington is also in the top-60. With no major pro sports teams in the state, college sports have always been a religion, and the lines are truly drawn in men’s hoops. The Kentucky Wildcats are the bluest of blue bloods with a illustrious history and more national championships than any program but UCLA. The Louisville Cardinals might seem like the little brother from afar, but they also have wealthy donors, an NBA arena, and three national championships of their own since 1980, even if the NCAA tried to click the “Men In Black” pen to erase one of them.
Kentucky vs. Louisville delivers even when one of the teams is having a down year. This seasona, both of the teams are very, very good, and they put on a thrilling showcase of everything that makes this rivalry great on Tuesday night.
Louisville beat Kentucky, 96-88, in a game that featured dynamic pace and shot-making, future NBA talent, and rosters that cost tens of millions of dollars. Both of these teams are going to be around deep in March, and this will be a game to remember when the NCAA tournament rolls around.
Kentucky has the most expensive roster in college basketball history. The Wildcats allegedly spent $22 million in NIL to construct their roster, and it’s left them with deep team with size and experience at every position. Somehow, Louisville looked even better with their own expensive roster, and it’s enough to stamp the Cardinals as a national championship contender already.
Louisville went on its own spending spree in college basketball’s free agent market, and it was immediately apparent that they came away with an epic haul. I wrote that Louisville won the transfer portal window after landing Ryan Conwell, Adrian Wooley Jr., and Isaac McNeely. With five-star freshman point guard Mikel Brown — a projected top-10 NBA Draft pick — rounding out the offseason additions, it was clear the Cardinals were going to have an explosive offense.
Louisville’s offense looked incredible against what should be one of college basketball’s better defenses in Kentucky. The Cards scored 1.25 points per possession, which is typically good enough to lead DI over a full season. The shooting on this roster is just overwhelming even on a night where they only made 32.5 percent from beyond the arc. Louisville will have better shooting nights, but the real key is the volume: generating 40 three-point attempts against a good defense is so impressive. The spacing and shot-making on this team is fantastic, and when they’re on, the Cardinals will be able to run teams off the floor.
Conwell and McNeely are absolutely elite shooters, and they are a wonderful fit in head coach Pat Kelsey’s whirling offensive system. Both players are able to bend opposing defenses with their off-ball gravity, and hit shots off movement. When they get an open catch-and-shoot look, it’s cash. Look at the way Kentucky has to sprint out to cover the threat of Conwell’s three-point shot and how it opens up an easy cutting lane for a paint bucket:
The other key there is the assist from big man Aly Khalifa, and it was another dominant theme in Louisville’s win. The Cardinals’ bigs can really pass: Khalifa and Sananda Fru combined for seven assists on the night. Delegating playmaking duties to the bigs when you have this much shooting is a tantalizing proposition, and Louisville can actually pull it off.
Brown is the player with the potential to take this team to the next level, and he’s already hitting the ground running. Brown is an old freshman who would turn 20 years old during the Final Four if Louisville can make it that far. He’s 6.5 months older than Jeremiah Fears, last year’s breakout point guard prospect to go in the lottery. While Brown’s age might be a knock come draft time, it’s certainly an asset for Louisville right now. He doesn’t look overwhelmed going against college competition, and his talent jumps off the screen.
Brown is an awesome shooter in his own right. He’s going to punish the defense when they get caught going under on a screen and the big fails to get up to the level. The fact that he’s a particularly good pull-up shooter surrounded with great catch-and-shoot threats makes him even more deadly.
Brown can get a bit overconfident as a shooter, so it’s important to see that he can make plays off the bounce, too. He was particularly impressive in that regard in the second half against Kentucky, showing the quickness of his first step and a willingness to take on contact at the basket. Brown’s frame is so thin that he can get swallowed up by bigs in the paint, but that didn’t happen against Kentucky.
On this possession, Brown has Kentucky five-star freshman center Malachi Moreno on a switch, and punishes him with a drive to the basket. The low man gets a nice vertical contest, but it doesn’t matter: Brown can hang in the air and finish with his (dominant) left hand.
I’m a bit worried about Brown’s shot selection and defense. I want to see him tap into his playmaking more, especially off a live dribble. Ultimately, those are small potato concerns this early in the season for an instant impact freshman. He’s very good already, and he’s going to make Louisville extremely difficult to stop.
I did not include Louisville on my preseason list of national championship contenders because I was skeptical of their defense and their bigs. Their bigs looked really good against Kentucky, but the defense could still be an issue. The Wildcats scored 1.14 points per possession, and it’s hard to win that way late in the season. At the same time, Kentucky is an elite team in its own right with a fantastic coach. Mark Pope is still figuring out his rotation (more Kam Williams, please), but Kentucky will be around late in the season, especially if Jayden Quaintance can hit the floor running as he returns from injury. I am now confident Louisville will be, too.
The college basketball season is young, but Louisville just might have the most offensive firepower of any team in America. Great offense has a way of beating great defense when it really matters in basketball. The Cards may live and die by the jump shot, but their shooting potential will be so significant that it’s going to open the paint even when it’s not falling.
It’s jarring how quickly Louisville has turned this thing around from the depths of hell that the Kenny Payne era put them in. With that now fully in the rearview mirror, the Cards are looking like college hoops royalty in their own right once again.
