basketball-men-d1 flag

Wayne Staats | NCAA.com | December 29, 2018

Kentucky-Louisville basketball: Prediction, time, TV channel

The Top 36 teams in college basketball, right now

One of college basketball's biggest rivalries adds another episode to the series when Kentucky and Louisville play on Saturday, Dec. 29. Below, find the game time, TV channel and preview information.

While Louisville coach Chris Mack will be coaching in his first Cardinals-Wildcats game, Kentucky coach John Calipari and his team routed Louisville 90-61 last year. This year's game is at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.

Kentucky-Louisville basketball: Time, TV channel

Kentucky and Louisville play at 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, Dec. 29. The game can be watched on ESPN2.

MORE: Top 25 NET rankings | College basketball game times, TV schedule

Kentucky-Louisville: Preview, prediction

Since losing to Duke by 34 points in the first game of the season, Kentucky (9-2) has started to round into form by winning nine of its next 10. Sure, the Wildcats lost to Seton Hall, 84-83, on Dec. 8, but they are coming off an impressive 80-72 win against then-No. 9 North Carolina in Chicago.

The surging Wildcats also have recent series history on their side, as they've defeated the Cardinals in five of the last six games. That includes a win in the Sweet 16 in the 2014 NCAA tournament.

Last year, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 24 points as the 'Cats routed the Cardinals in Lexington, Ky., 90-61. PJ Washington added 16 points.

MORE: College basketball scoreboard

In Kentucky's win against North Carolina on Saturday, Washington scored 11 points and added 10 rebounds to complete the double-double.

As for Louisville, Jordan Nwora is the Cardinals' only double-digit scorer at 17.8 points per game. Nwora has also taken 21 percent of Louisville's shots.

The Cardinals (9-3) are certainly battle tested just like the Wildcats. Louisville lost to ranked teams Tennessee, Marquette and Indiana but also defeated ranked Michigan State.

Louisville will be rocking and ready for the 'Cats. But Kentucky might have just enough late to hold off the Cardinals.

Our prediction: Kentucky 80, Louisville 75.

MORE: Andy Katz's Power 36 rankings

Kentucky-Louisville: Scores, history

The Wildcats lead the series, which dates back to 1913, at 35-16.

Here are the results since 2010, when the series started to hand out a Game MVP award by The Bluegrass Sports Commission. Note that two games since 2010 were in the NCAA tournament, so there is no BSC MVP.

Date Winner Score Loser Site BSC MVP
Dec. 31, 2010 No. 11 Kentucky 78-63 No. 22 Louisville Louisville Josh Harrellson,
Kentucky
Dec. 31, 2011 No. 3 Kentucky 69-62 No. 4 Louisville Lexington Michael Kidd-Gilchrist,
Kentucky
March 31, 2012 No. 1 Kentucky 69-61 No. 17 Louisville New Orleans
(Final Four)
--
Dec. 29, 2012 No. 4 Louisville 80-77 Kentucky Louisville Russ Smith,
Louisville
Dec. 28, 2013 No. 18 Kentucky 73-66 No. 6 Louisville Lexington James Young,
Kentucky
March 28, 2014 Kentucky 74-69 No. 5 Louisville Indianapolis
(Sweet 16)
 
Dec. 27, 2014 No. 1 Kentucky 58-50 No. 4 Louisville Louisville Tyler Ulis,
Kentucky
Dec. 26, 2015 No. 12 Kentucky 75-73 No. 16 Louisville Lexington Tyler Ulis,
Kentucky
Dec. 21, 2016 No. 10 Louisville 73-70 No. 6 Kentucky Louisville Quentin Snider,
Louisville
Dec. 29, 2017 No. 16 Kentucky 90-61 Louisville Lexington Shai Gilgeous-Alexander,
Kentucky

Nobody's safe after an upset-filled weekend in men's basketball

If the past weekend showed anything in college basketball, it’s that nobody is safe.
READ MORE

1 stat to know for each team after another wild Champions Classic

Mike Lopresti breaks down this year's highlights and major moments from the 2023 Champions Classic — featuring Duke-Michigan State and Kentucky-Kansas showdowns.
READ MORE

Stanford volleyball leaps Wisconsin, Kentucky checks into Week 12 Power 10

With multiple top-ranked upsets this week, the Week 12 power rankings saw some major shifts. Stanford, Louisville and Pitt are this week's biggest winners.
READ MORE

Subscribe To Email Updates

Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners