BEATDOWN!! Kentucky dominates Louisville, 78-63, renames arena "Kentucky Fried Cardinal … YUM!" Center

photo credit:  Mark Cornelison, Lexington Herald Leader

All the hand wringing by the UK pundits.  All the worrying about the “massive crowd” at the new arena.  All the fretting about the Louisville 3-point attack.  It was all for naught as John Calipari and his Kentucky Wildcats went into enemy territory and dominated their in state rivals to the tune of 78-63 and for the better part of the game, it was surprisingly drama free.

The game started like a heavyweight prize fight however  with both teams feeling each other out.  The Cardinals had three 3-pointers in the first 7:30 of the game, and Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones started out cold.  To top things off, Doron Lamb picked up a quick four points, but also two quick fouls and it was looked like things were playing into Louisville’s game plan.

Kentucky countered with an early dose of Josh Harrellson who had 5 points and 3 rebounds in the early going and the Wildcats flexed their defensive muscle to block four shots. Louisville opened up an early 6 point lead both both teams started with 5-17 shooting starts.  Brandon Knight then hit a three to know the score up at 12  with about 11:00 remaining.

Darius Miller then sparked the Wildcats with 5 points in a 9-0 streak that gave Kentucky a 21-12 lead and some breathing room.  Brandon Knight then added five quick points to cap a 20-4 UK run and put UK ahead at 26-16 at the 6:49 mark.  The Cards tried to fight back and closed the gap to 28-22 but Miller hit another jumper to keep the Cardinals at bay.  After a Chris Smith basket, Kentucky closed the half with a 5-0 run to take a healthy 35-24 lead after the first twenty minutes.

The Cardinals started cold in the second half and Kentucky kept up the defensive pressure.  Back to Back three pointers by Brandon Knight and Josh Harrellson put Kentucky up 44-26 and threatened to make the game a full fledged blowout.  Louisville finally got hot and started nailing three pointers to promptly cut the lead to 48-36.  To give them credit, the Cardinals unleashed one of the most ferocious runs you will see as they made nine shots in a row, including four three pointers in that span.  But when all the dust was cleared, Kentucky withstood that barrage and still led 61-49 with 7:57 remaining.

The thing is that Knights and Harrellson’s 3-pointers started a string of 11 straight shots made by Kentucky which ended with a Brandon Knight miss at the 4:18 mark and Kentucky up 69-53.  And at that point, i was all over but the mass evacuation of red shirted Louisville fans from the Yum! Center as Kentucky rolled to the win.  Our very own Corey Price passes along the stat that Kentucky is 15-1 against the Dirty Birds since 1983 when the Cards are held under 70 points.

For this game, the impact of Josh Harrellson can not be understated.  Jorts had career highs of 23 points and 14 rebounds on 10-12 shooting. Harrellson was a beast going after the rebounds and he grabbed 6 offensive rebounds which allowed Kentucky to work more time off the clock and set the pace they wanted to play. Kudos go to Josh who had his third double double of the season.  And to be honest, Terrence Jones had a lot to do with Josh’s numbers.  Jones was double teamed on many occasions and he flipped the ball to Harrellson for an easy dunk or layup.  Jones started to rack up the points late, and he finished with 12 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 blocks.  Brandon Knight also had a stellar Knight, scoring 25 points, and hit 4-6 treys and he had 4 assists.

And now we come to DeAndre Liggins.  Liggin’s stat line is at first glance, unimpressive, with 2 points on 1-7 shooting, but DeAndre’s defense set the tone of the game and impacted the Cardinal’s game plan.  Liggins was not allowing his man to breathe all day.  Calipari referred to him as “ridiculous” and for the game, Liggins had 4 boards, 4 steals, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.

I have to tell you that the more I see this team, the more impressed I am.  They are so fundamentally sound and once they grab on to a lead, they hold onto it like a pit bull locking in on a bone.  And even with everything that has gone on this year, it’s good to open and end it with a win over little brother in basketball with a football win to boot.

Have a happy and safe New Year’s Eve and thanks for following us all year.

For complete game stats, go here. 

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