Freshman Mikel Brown Jr. scored 20 of his 29 points in the first half and No. 12 Louisville held on to defeat No. 9 Kentucky 96-88.

Brown pushed the Cardinals' lead to 20 with a pair of free throws with 12:24 remaining, bringing a fresh wave of elation to the heavily pro-Louisville crowd of 22,586. But then tension seeped back in as Kentucky whittled the deficit to 88-84 entering the final media timeout.

Led by guard Mikel Brown Jr.'s 29-point outing, the No. 12 Cardinals dispatched No. 9 Kentucky 96–88. That set off wild celebration among the Louisville faithful, without a win over the Wildcats since the pandemic-clouded days of Dec. 2020.

Nonconference? Boring? Who would suggest such a thing? Tuesday night's college basketball schedule is, in fact, loaded.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Louisville coach Pat Kelsey did not get through his first victory against Kentucky completely unscathed. The second-year coach was a little late to the press conference after his 12th-ranked Cardinals defeated the No. 9 Wildcats 96-88 on Tuesday night.

Second-year head coach Pat Kelsey earns his first win against Kentucky after UofL dropped a 93-85 decision in Rupp Area last season. Louisville also snaps a three-game losing streak to UK, with their last win coming back on Dec. 26, 2020.

Mikel Brown Jr. announced himself to the college basketball world on Tuesday night with a monster game in Louisville's win over Kentucky.

The No. 12 Louisville Cardinals play the No. 9 Kentucky Wildcats. The teams square off Tuesday for the first time this season.