Kentucky Basketball: 3 Keys to victory vs Louisville

Attacking in transition

It’s not much of a stretch to say that the Cardinals are less dangerous of a team with Padgett as the coach than Pitino. Say what you will about Rick, but the man is a defensive wizard. He implements numerous different defensive strategies and tactics, proving unpredictable at times. Even with Padgett at the helm, the Cards will still be a tough defensive team. Kentucky has struggled early in the season vs quality defense, so I expect the Cats to try to score early in transition vs Louisville. Once the Cards are able to get their defense setup, the young Cats will struggle to score.  If Kentucky gets the ball up the floor and attacks early, their chances of easy buckets are much better. Louisville will mix and match man and zone defense, switching and rotating, and it will confuse the freshmen-heavy Wildcats. But the athleticism of Knox, Diallo, and Gilgeous-Alexander should be able to produce easy transition baskets for the Cats.

Following the game, we will re-visit these 3 keys to victory for the Cats. This is an important game for Kentucky, there’s no understating this. Louisville is a quality opponent that would be a quality win, and UK needs one of these. A victory over arch-rival Louisville would be a much needed boost in confidence as the Cats begin conference play.