‘We’ve got to find a way.’ Kentucky women’s basketball at U of L shapes up as a mismatch.
When Kentucky and Louisville collide in the KFC Yum Center in Louisville for the 59th time Sunday afternoon, the Wildcats will be challenged by a Cardinals roster on a hot streak with a tremendous home-court advantage.
Both women’s basketball teams underwent significant changes to their core groups last offseason. While Kentucky’s alterations have led to a war of roster attrition, Louisville’s makeover is looking stronger every day.
The Cardinals (8-1) are ranked 18th in the country. Kentucky limps in at 4-6.
“Obviously it’s a big game,” UK head coach Kyra Elzy said after Wednesday’s home loss to Minnesota. “It’s a state rivalry game and, you know, we want to be tenacious and aggressive and all those things. You know, but we have to go in ready to fight. It’s going to be a battle. It’s a tough place to play. They’re a talented basketball team. So we’re going to take the next couple of days, reset and refocus.”
Kentucky leads the all-time series between the schools 34-24, but Louisville has won the last six meetings and is 196-21 all-time at the KFC Yum Center.
And while it’s true that each new season brings a distinct matchup in the annual rivalry game, the 2023 edition of UK-Louisville will look almost entirely different from last year’s challenge, thanks to a slew of transfers — both in and out of the two programs — graduations, freshman classes and injuries.
The Wildcats, who last won against Louisville on Dec. 10, 2015, in Lexington, return just two starters from their 2022-23 roster — and both might be unavailable Sunday.
Senior forward Nyah Leveretter has, as expected, not yet suited up for the Wildcats as she continues to rehab from ACL repair surgery in early March. But senior guard and second-leading scorer Maddie Scherr, who has been unavailable due to concussion protocol since taking a hard fall in the third quarter of UK’s win over Boston College on Nov. 30, is one of four other Wildcats who might not be available to take on Louisville.
Scherr, as well as sophomore guards Cassidy Rowe (undisclosed injury) and Amiya Jenkins (shoulder), are considered day-to-day. Rowe sat out Wednesday’s loss to Minnesota, but Jenkins and sophomore forward Zennia Thomas (suspended indefinitely) have not been available since UK returned from the U.S. Virgin Islands after dropping three straight games in the Paradise Jam.
In Kentucky’s 76-57 loss to Minnesota on Wednesday night, Kentucky had just seven available players; the Wildcats led at halftime but eventually ran out of steam.
“Maybe we were too tired to move,” Elzy said after the loss. “But it’s a basketball game, and we’ve got to find a way.”
Though it’s unclear which of the missing players — if any — will become available Sunday, sophomore point guard Brooklynn Miles said she was proud of how her teammates fought through adversity against Minnesota and that, against Louisville, the number of healthy Wildcats shouldn’t matter.
“Even if we still have seven players I still feel like we have enough,” Miles said. “We have enough to go make an impact and go win games.”
Louisville has faced just one common opponent, Cincinnati, which the Cardinals handled 77-59 in their first game of the year. The Bearcats beat Kentucky 65-41 in the Paradise Jam.
The Cardinals’ lone loss was a 78-73 disappointment to a then-undefeated Alabama team in a holiday tournament, but U of L has bounced back since then, assembling a four-game win streak. Included in those victories were impressive wins over West Coast Conference power Gonzaga (9-2) and then-No. 19 Ole Miss (6-3).
The Cardinals boast a strong, balanced roster with several offensive weapons that allow for — and successfully execute — three-level scoring. When asked how she plans to combat that, Elzy emphasized rebounding and aggressive play.
“We’ve got to be able to rebound the basketball, one,” Elzy said. “But two, you know, we have to have a better scramble when they’re playing inside-out, our closeouts. People are scoring too easy in the paint, so one-on-one defense, rebounding and then we have to move offensively and trust the offense.”
Though Louisville’s roster will prove to be a size mismatch, and features several dynamic players that will surely challenge Kentucky’s lack of depth, a few Cardinals in particular will require extra focus.
Senior forward Olivia Cochran, who was named to the 2023-24 Naismith Women’s Player of the Year watch list, leads Louisville in rebounds (5.4), steals (1.7) and blocks (0.4). Following the transfer of longtime leader and point guard Hailey Van Lith to LSU, the presence of the 6-foot-3 Cochran has anchored the Cardinals this season.
Guard Kiki Jefferson, a graduate transfer from James Madison, leads the Cardinals in scoring at 12.2 points per game. Jefferson shoots 50% from the field, 35% from long range and averages 3.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Louisville head coach Jeff Walz hit the portal jackpot again with graduate guard Nina Rickards, who spent four seasons at Florida before joining the Cardinals for her fifth and final season of college basketball. Rickards is the team’s assist leader, averaging 2.9. She also contributes 8.8 points on 60.4% shooting in addition to 4.7 rebounds and one steal per game.
Also making a splash after arriving via the transfer portal are graduate guard Sydney Taylor (UMass), who is averaging 10.9 points, three rebounds, 1.9 assists and one steal, and Jayda Curry (California), who is averaging 8.3 points, 2.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.1 steals in her junior season with the Cardinals.
Sunday
Kentucky at No. 18 Louisville
When: 2 p.m.
TV: ACC Network
Radio: WLAP-AM 630
Records: Kentucky 4-6, Louisville 8-1
Series: Kentucky leads 34-24, but Louisville has won the last six in a row
Last meeting: Louisville won 86-72 on Dec. 11, 2022, in Rupp Arena
This story was originally published December 8, 2023 at 11:23 AM.
