LEXINGTON — Since the first battle between the
Kentucky and
Louisville women's basketball programs, the former has held the upper hand. The
Wildcats won the first two meetings, both during the 1975-76 season. UK also captured six of the first seven matchups. And
Kentucky leads the all-time series , 34-24. But the
Cardinals are aiming for history of their own this evening. A victory tonight would be their eighth straight over the Wildcats. That would tie the longest run of success by either team in the rivalry; UK also won eight in a row from 1979 through 1984. Can UK and first-year coach
Kenny Brooks spoil U of L's record-tying attempt? Or will longtime Louisville coach
Jeff Walz notch yet another win over the Wildcats?
After Ja'Leah Williams blocked a last-second shot attempt from Georgia Amoore, the Cardinals and Wildcats are headed to overtime. It's the first bonus basketball in the rivalry since 2016.
The Cardinals had a stellar third period, knocking down 66.7% (6 for 9) of their shots, including all three 3-pointers. The Wildcats, on the other hand, were 5 of 11 from the field. Georgia Amoore is up to 15 points for UK, while Imari Berry and Ja'Leah Williams have nine apiece to pace U of L.
Six different Cardinals scored in the second quarter to give U of L the lead over UK at halftime. Ja'Leah Williams leads Louisville with 8 points (shooting 4 for 8 or 50%), while Georgia Amoore's 9 points (shooting 4 for 7 or 57.1%) lead Kentucky.
Wildcats are 8 for 12 (67%) from the field, well ahead of the Cardinals' 35% (6 for 17). But UK has committed seven turnovers to U of L's four.
Ja'Leah Williams, Tajianna Roberts, Nyla Harris, Mackenly Randolph and Olivia Cochran will start for the Cards, per live stats. Georgia Amoore, Dazia Lawrence, Teonni Key, Amelia Hassett and Clara Strack will start for the Wildcats.
Kentucky announced a sellout at 6,200-plus seat Memorial Coliseum for its top-20 matchup against in-state rival Louisville Saturday. It's the first time both the Cardinals and Wildcats are ranked at the same time since the final AP Top 25 poll of the 2021-22 season.
The contest between the Cardinals and Wildcats will not air on a traditional TV channel. Instead, it will stream live on SEC Network+. Noah Frary (play by play) and Bria Goss (analyst) will be on the call. Authenticated subscribers to SEC Network+ can watch the contest on
WatchESPN.com , the WatchESPN app or ESPN+. Those without access to SEC Network+ can access coverage via a subscription to ESPN+. (To sign up for ESPN+, click
here .)
Nick Curran (play-by-play) and Cortnee Walton (analyst) will have the U of L call on the Cardinal Sports Network (WLCL 93.9-FM and WGTK 970-AM in Louisville). You can also listen online via
GoCards.com . Darren Headrick (play-by-play) will have the UK radio network call on 1080 AM in Louisville and 98.5 FM in Lexington. You can also listen online via
UKAthletics.com .
The Kentucky women's basketball team is 3-0 this season, topping
USC Upstate ,
Northern Kentucky and
Wofford in its first three outings.
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