Kentucky or Louisville? Dozens of media members give us their predictions.

The Kentucky-Louisville basketball rivalry returns Saturday at the KFC Yum Center, and this year’s edition features a new face on one sideline and several players who will be experiencing Cats vs. Cards for the first time.

U of L head coach Chris Mack joins the rivalry, leading his Cardinals against a young UK team that is playing its first true road game of the season. It’ll be the final test for both teams before they head into conference play next weekend.

The Herald-Leader asked several media members who cover the Cats and Cards for their predictions ahead of the big game. Here’s what they had to say:

Jerry Tipton, Herald-Leader: Kentucky 73, Louisville 69 — Nothing comes easy.

John Clay, Herald-Leader: Kentucky 74, Louisville 65 — Chris Mack is off to a fast start at Louisville, but Kentucky has the better team.

Mark Story, Herald-Leader: Kentucky 72, Louisville 71 — Inside combination of Reid Travis and PJ Washington and UK’s defensive length on the perimeter will give Cats a narrow edge.

Ben Roberts, Herald-Leader: Kentucky 78, Louisville 73 — With Keldon Johnson, the Cats’ advantage in the post, the emergence of Ashton Hagans, and the ability of Tyler Herro to go off at any time, UK just has too many ways to win this one.

Jon Hale, Courier Journal: Kentucky 71, Louisville 69 — With Kentucky’s freshmen playing their first road game, don’t be surprised to see some nerves early, but after watching Kentucky apparently figure some things out against North Carolina I think the Wildcats’ superior talent wins out in a close one.

Danielle Lerner, Courier Journal: Kentucky 78, Louisville 72 — Louisville’s home-court advantage and free-throw shooting will keep this one close for a while, but I’ll give Kentucky the edge based on personnel and ability to limit turnovers.

Tim Sullivan, Courier Journal: Kentucky 74, Louisville 68 — Kentucky’s superior rebounding and Louisville’s susceptibility to front-line fouls figure to exacerbate U of L’s matchup problems.

Dominique Yates, Courier Journal: Kentucky 72, Louisville 68 — I think this game is going to be much better than everyone anticipated going into this year, and that’s a credit to the job Chris Mack has done with Louisville. I think Kentucky will struggle guarding Jordan Nwora, but U of L has been inconsistent from the post position. The size of PJ Washington and Reid Travis — and keeping them off the backboard — will be too much for the Cardinals down the stretch.

Darrell Bird, The Cats’ Pause: Kentucky 88, Louisville 79 — Chris Mack having U of L ahead of schedule paired with Kentucky’s slow start had Big Blue Nation fearful of a trip to the Yum! Center ... until the Cats demolished North Carolina last week. UK’s inside game, and newfound confidence, too much for Cardinals.

Rick Bozich, WDRB: Louisville 71, Kentucky 69 — For once, John Calipari is not parked in the front row of psyche of the Louisville basketball coach.

Curtis Burch, Big Blue Insider: Kentucky 77, Louisville 70 — Kentucky’s big guys will be too much for Louisville.

Fred Cowgill, WLKY TV: Louisville 72, Kentucky 70 — A physically demanding, emotionally taxing all-out nail-biter, the outcome in doubt until the final tick of the clock. An instant classic.

Drew Deener, ESPN Louisville: Kentucky 78, Louisville 72 — Without knowing how Chris Mack gets his team ready for this rivalry game, I’ll stick with the team that has the most pros.

Jody Demling, Cardinal Authority: Louisville 72, Kentucky 69 — Chris Mack embraces the rivalry and the Cardinals hit some outside shots against the Wildcats.

Jeff Drummond, Cats Illustrated: Kentucky 79, Louisville 75 — This one looks much more competitive than we imagined back in the summer. The Cats will have to overcome a truly hostile environment for the first time this season, but I think the combination of Reid Travis and PJ Washington will be too much for the Cards.

Mark Ennis, ESPN Louisville: Louisville 79, Kentucky 77 — While I’m far less confident about this prediction than I was a week ago, I still think being at home, Louisville will win the way it did against Michigan State and Seton Hall: getting to the free throw line often and hitting double-digit threes.

Dick Gabriel, Big Blue Insider: Kentucky 78, Louisville 68 — Cards have been playing sound basketball all year and will make a game out of it until Kentucky wears them down at the end.

Jeff Greer, The Athletic: Louisville 72, Kentucky 70 — I’m not confident at all in picking this game. Both teams have flaws, and both teams have showed what it looks like when they play close to their best. I just think Louisville can hit enough threes to stretch Kentucky’s defense and slightly edge the visitors.

Whitney Harding, WHAS-11: Kentucky 80 Louisville 75 — This year’s game will be a return to the come-down-to-the-final-minutes matchup we have been used to in the rivalry. A couple weeks ago, I would have said Louisville would win, but Kentucky’s defensive improvement and the win over UNC has been impressive and has the Cats coming in with momentum.

Lee K. Howard, WKYT-27: Kentucky 75, Louisville 69 — Kentucky is coming off its best win of the season, and I think the players are beginning to figure out their roles on the team. Although Louisville hasn’t lost at home this season, I’m picking Kentucky to win.

Matt Jones, Kentucky Sports Radio: Kentucky 77, Louisville 72 — Louisville leads early with strong three-point shooting, but Kentucky wears the Cards down late thanks to Reid Travis and PJ Washington inside.

Mark Mathis, Messenger-Inquirer: Kentucky 79, Louisville 72 — Was real tempted to pick Louisville, but then Kentucky dropped North Carolina and looked good doing it. Too much talent on the UK side (Reid Travis, PJ Washington, Keldon Johnson to name a few) but this should be a fun game to watch.

Lachlan McLean, ESPN Louisville: Kentucky 77, Louisville 69 — I’m not buying the “Kentucky has figured it out” hype yet, but they are the more talented team and there will be plenty of blue in the KFC Yum! Center, so U of L home court won’t mean as much. I don’t think the Cards have an answer for Reid Travis and if UK hits their average double-digit rebound margin, they’ll have so many extra possessions.

Mike Rutherford, Card Chronicle: Kentucky 77, Louisville 75 — I was all set to pick Louisville in this game before Kentucky looked so impressive against North Carolina. Everyone knows how important point guard play is in Calipari’s system, so Ashton Hagans playing the way he did has the potential to be a major development not just for this game but for the rest of the season. Shooting slumps tend to be broken in this series, so I’m also fully expecting Tyler Herro to go off from deep.

Kent Spencer, WHAS-11: Kentucky 72, Louisville 68 — The Cats have made better strides in the last few weeks, and I think their edge in the post will overcome the Yum Center home court advantage. Look for the unexpected player to step up.

Keith Taylor, Kentucky Today: Kentucky 81, Louisville 75 — Kentucky picked up the signature win it needed over North Carolina last week. This contest is Kentucky’s first true road game, but I believe UK has the experience needed to overcome the Cards on their home court.

Kent Taylor, WAVE 3: Kentucky 65, Louisville 61 — Cards will make it close, but Cats follow up their big win over UNC with first true road W. Reid Travis has a big day.

Derek Terry, The Cats’ Pause: Kentucky 80, Louisville 76 — UK rides its recent momentum into an important road victory just before conference play begins.

Tyler Thompson, Kentucky Sports Radio: Kentucky 82, Louisville 75 — Close game, but if Kentucky can keep Louisville in check from the outside and control the tempo, the Cards won’t be able to keep up.

Kyle Tucker, The Athletic: Kentucky 78, Louisville 70 — A week ago, I might’ve picked U of L because it was hard for me to believe in UK winning away from home against a good team until I’d actually seen it happen. But now I have, and many things happened against UNC that have me buying the Cats’ high ceiling again.

Larry Vaught, Vaught’s Views: Kentucky 74, Louisville 68 — A week ago my pick would have been Louisville at home. After UK’s win over North Carolina, give me Kentucky.

This story was originally published December 27, 2018 at 6:07 PM.