Kentucky Wildcats vs Louisville Cardinals Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 12/21/2023

Game Time: 6:00 pm ET, Thursday, December 21, 2023

Venue:  KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, KY

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Kentucky -11, Louisville +11; Over/Under:  159 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Kentucky -11, Louisville +11; Over/Under:  159 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Kentucky -11, Louisville +11; Over/Under:  159 points

Kentucky Wildcats:  8-2 (0-0) (4th place, SEC)

Louisville Cardinals:  5-6 (0-1) (14th place, ACC)

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Kentucky Wildcats:  4-1  last 5

Louisville Cardinals:  2-3  last 5

Kentucky is entering this game with an 8-2 record overall and they are 0-0 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the North Carolina Tar Heels in their last game. Rob Dillingham led the team in points per game in that game with 17 while Dajuan Wagner was next on the team with 14. Dajuan Wagner led the team in assists with 5 in that game while Justin Edwards, Dajuan Wagner, and Reed Sheppard each led the team in rebounds with 6. They were 41.1% from the field, 34.8% from 3-point range, and 73.1% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 90.2 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 73.5 PPG against them. Kentucky has an ATS record of 6-4 this season and their O/U record is 7-3.

Louisville is entering this game with a 5-6 record overall and they are 5-2 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are coming off a win against the Pepperdine Waves in their last game. Brandon Huntley-Hatfield led the team in points in that game with 20 while Mike James was next on the team with 19. Skyy Clark led the team in assists with 5 in that game while Brandon Huntley-Hatfield led the team in rebounds with 12. They were 48.5% from the field, 56.3% from 3-point range, and 75% from the free throw line with their shooting in that game. Their offense is averaging 74.5 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 73.6 PPG against them. Louisville has an ATS record of 5-6 this season and their O/U record is 5-6.

The current betting odds have Kentucky listed as an 11 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Kentucky has looked really good in their games this season with their 8-2 record overall and they have played a pretty tough schedule this season too. They have a loss to Kansas and a loss to UNC Wilmington but they have looked really good in their wins, including some wins over ranked opponents too. Meanwhile, Louisville hasn't looked that great in their games this season with their 5-6 record overall. Louisville has improved a bit from last season's terrible start as they did get off to a bit of a hot start this year, but that quickly faded and they haven't looked as good in their games lately with a lot more losses now. This is a rivalry game and Louisville has been pretty good at home this season with their 5-2 home record, but Kentucky is still a ranked team and they have something to prove here as they look to continue climbing up the rankings. Kentucky also has a lot more talent and depth on their team to work with so they will eventually pull away in this game and there will be no way back in this game for Louisville. The best way to place a bet here is on Kentucky to cover the spread in this game. 

Kentucky Louisville Prediction:  Our NCAAB Pick for Thursday, December 21, 2023 (6:00 pm ET start time) is Kentucky 81 Louisville 64.

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Kentucky Wildcats: 7-4 ATS when the total is 150 to 159.5. 24-18 ATS after one or more consecutive overs. 21-11 UNDER as a road favorite of 10 or more points. 9-4 UNDER in a road game where the total is 155 to 159.5. 77-44 UNDER after a win by 6 points or less. 

Louisville Cardinals: 13-26 ATS in all home games. 19-29 ATS against SEC opponents. 7-15 ATS after 4 straight games committing 14 or less turnovers. 6-1 UNDER as a home underdog of 10 or more points. 23-17 UNDER in all home games. 12-5 UNDER after 3 consecutive non-conference games.

Kentucky Wildcats:  G. Darbyshire (G) Out indefinitely - Undisclosed. Z. Ivisic (F) Out indefinitely - Eligibility.

Louisville Cardinals:  D. Evans (C) Ques Thurs - Undisclosed. J. Traynor (F) Ques Thurs - Shoulder.

“When they're making plays at the end of the game to win game, that shows you what kind of team they are. The upside for this team is really up. Let's see if we can get there.” - John Calipari after his team’s win against UNC in their last game on Saturday.

"First off, I am proud of the way guys played today, played with energy, played together. Seventeen assists goes to show that we are capable. I am always preaching that you are not playing against the opponent, but that you are playing against yourself. That means it that it doesn't matter who the opponent is, you have to conquer yourself. You have to go out and challenge the doubt that you may have, the fears that you may have and go out and perform. If you can conquer yourself, the opponent becomes easy. I thought we were aggressive and attacking. We did have some lulls that we talk about if we get up 10, 15, 20 points, we build on it. There were times when we let up and got casual and they got back into the game. But some of that is learning and being a young team." - Kenny Payne after his team’s win against Pepperdine in their last game on Sunday.

J. Edwards 

T. Mitchell 

A. Reeves 

A. Thiero 

D. Wagner

S. Clark 

D. Evans 

B. Huntley-Hatfield 

M. James 

T. White

PPG: A. Reeves (17.1)

APG: R. Dillingham (4.5)

Reb/G: T. Mitchell (6.2)

PPG: S. Clark (15.4)

APG: T. Johnson (3.5)

Reb/G: B. Huntley-Hatfield (9.2)

Coaches:

Kentucky Wildcats: John Calipari (15th season)

Louisville Cardinals: Kenny Payne (2nd season)