The Louisville Cardinals traveled down to Lexington, Kentucky to face their in-state rival at Rupp Arena on Saturday Night.
The Louisville Cardinals had the honor of seeing the Kentucky Wildcats in another sport this weekend, this time for basketball. The Cards fought tremendously, never letting the Wildcats get the chance to pull away.
It seemed that the Cats could never miss a shot throughout the entire game. Kentucky shot 58.2% from the field and 52.4% from the three-point line. The one positive statistic in the Cardinals’ favor was winning the turnover battle. The Cardinals had seven turnovers compared to Wildcat’s 11.
The referees did not do particularly well. From an unbiased standpoint, yes, even though I write in favor of the Cardinals I do consider myself unbiased. I thought the refs were giving Kentucky a bit of home cooking. Even though the fouls were merely similar, 20 for Louisville, 18 for Kentucky. The Wildcats shot double the amount of free throws than Louisville did, with 28 free throws for the Cats compared to 14 free throws for the Cardinals. Louisville also had two players foul out of this game, nobody from Kentucky fouled out.
The Cats won the rebounding category in this one out-rebounding Louisville 41-31. Fast break points were a point of emphasis coming into the game because of the lack of depth that Louisville had. The worry was the Wildcats would wear down Louisville with pace. The Cats had 24 fast break points compared to the Cardinals’ four.
Quite a few notables, the Cardinals had five players score in double figures and had one guy complete a double-double.
Chucky Hepburn is, of course, my MVP again. Hepburn had 26 points, five rebounds, five assists, and one steal while shooting 50% from the field. Incredible night for Hepburn, he showed why he’s one of the top point guards in the country.
Our guy Terrence Edwards Jr. is next up, he had 23 points and one rebound but shot 57% from the field. He played well and was a huge spark off the bench.
Our only double-double man played terrific on Saturday night, it’s his second double-double for the year. Noah Waterman, come on down! Waterman had 12 points and 12 rebounds. He led the rebounding category for the Cards. He also shot the ball better than his standards lately, shooting 33% from behind the arc.
J’Vonne Hadley also had a solid game. He has become Mr. Consistency for the Cards over the last month. Hadley finished with 10 points, six rebounds, and one assist.
Last but certainly not least is Reyne Smith. Reyne didn’t have a spectacular game by his shooting standards as of late. However, he did cash in 10 points and three rebounds.
Let’s take a positive Pat Kelsey break here for a second to give this team a round of applause for the effort this Louisville team put in. I predicted the Cards to lose this game by 13 and although the total wasn’t far off (8), this team fought until the very end and even cut it to a six-point game with a little over three minutes left.
I’m not huge on moral victories. However, in this circumstance, I feel like the odds were very stacked against us. Vegas opened up as a 10.5 for the Wildcats, and at one point the line reached up to 12.5. To compete with a top-five powerhouse at Rupp is a victory in itself.
The Cards will get a little lay off before having to travel to Tuscaloosa to take on the Florida State Seminoles. The next game is on Saturday, December 21st at 2pm.
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to our newsletter here. Check out Stadium Rant Original shows on our Youtube channel and subscribe! Give our socials Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok a follow for more great content!
