New Years Eve Shaping up to be a Classic

When was the last time that both Louisville and Kentucky were both ranked in the top 25 when they played each other? That would be the year 2005 when the Cats were ranked #23 and the Cards were ranked #4. UK was in the middle of a three year winning streak that Louisville snapped two years later and won the next two games. The Cats have the latest advantage, winning last year's testy game in Rupp Arena.

This year's teams are completely different than a year ago. It is well documented that Kentucky lost 5 players to the NBA while the Cards lost three key starters. But I have written on this blog in the past that I thought Louisville had a chance to be better with the loss of malcontent and me first guy Edgar Sosa and the loss of overrated, underachieving Jerry Smith. I did not think Louisville would be better without big man Samardo Samuels.

Louisville is a better TEAM then they were a year ago. The players seem to trust each other and like playing together. They are not what you would call a young squad but one would be hesitant to call them veteran. They are a mixture of both, having young guys like Peyton Siva and Mike Marra playing well and older guys like Preston Knowles and Terrence Jennings stepping up. And you can't count out Kyle Kuric. The kid has come up big in some of Louisville's most important games.

The main knock I had against Louisville is that, in my opinion, they had not played anybody yet. Last night the Cards proved that they can play with the big boys. They beat a ranked, undefeated UNLV team. I hate to say it, but they can play.

UK has a vastly talented team with 4 guys in Brandon Knight, Terrence Jones, Doron Lamb and DeAndre Liggins that can do everything you want a player to do on the court. But their main issue is depth. Once you get past those four plus Darius Miller and Josh Harrelson, the bench is lacking depth. Eloy Vargas has proven to be a non factor at Kentucky while Jon Hood has struggled to find his place offensively and defensively. Stacey Poole has contributed some but I wouldn't want him in the waning moments of a game against our top rival.

The Cats continue to improve and tough out hard fought games, wearing teams down and going on big scoring barrages. The maturation of Josh Harrelson has been something to watch. The lone senior gets better with every game and has become a beast on the boards. He is a hard worker but is prone to foul trouble at times.

The question mark continues to be Enes Kanter. Kentucky is still waiting on a ruling as far as their appeal is concerned and there have been no indications of a time table thus far. If Enes is ready to go by December 31st, then this game changes totally. If not, the Cats will need to figure a way to slow down Louisville, something that the Cats have been able to with some stiff competition.

And right now that is the only thing that separates these two teams. I feel that UK has played a harder schedule and has been in more battles than Louisville. Louisville did prove something yesterday, but Kentucky has been doing it all season. Kentucky has beaten tough teams (Washington, Notre Dame, Indiana) and lost to some tough teams (UConn, North Carolina). They have a well rounded resume.

One thing is for sure, the YUM! Center will be electric and this may be one of the hardest fought contests in recent memory. Both teams don't play a big time opponent until that day. Both will be ranked and both will have swagger. I can't wait until they go head to head and we can put the speculation to rest.