Pat Kelsey’s Cardinals nearly knocked out Mark Pope’s Cats in the first half Tuesday night. Louisville finished the job down the stretch.

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.

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 on Tuesday night.

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.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - For the first time in four years, the Battle of the Bluegrass belongs to the Louisville men's basketball program. Hosting Kentucky for their annual matchup against their arch rival,

Donovan Mitchell spent the Cavs' day off supporting his alma mater, Louisville Cardinals, during their clash against Kentucky.

Turnovers were a big focal point in the game. Kentucky (2-1) had 14 of them that led to 19 Louisville points. The Cards turned it over just six times, which turned into 10 points for the Cats.

As for the Wildcats, year two under head coach Mark Pope has also gotten off to a 2-0 start. While their opener against Nicholls got off to a slow start, Kentucky still wound up capturing a 77-51 win, which was then promptly followed up by a 107-59 dismantling of Valparaiso.