National Basketball Association
Kentucky 78, Louisville 70
When: 3:45 PM ET, Saturday, December 28, 2019
Where: Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center, Lexington, Kentucky
Officials:
# Ron Groover, # Pat Adams, # Don Daily
Attendance:
20437
By Field Level Media
Nick Richards broke a tie with two free throws with 27 seconds left in overtime and No. 19 Kentucky went on to defeat third-ranked Louisville 78-70 on Saturday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.
Richards notched seven straight Kentucky points in overtime.
After Richards' go-ahead free throws, Ryan McMahon missed a 3-point attempt for Louisville.
Two free throws each by Immanuel Quickley and Tyrese Maxey sealed the outcome before Ashton Hagans' dunk served as an exclamation point as the Wildcats (9-3) scored the game's final eight points.
Maxey, a freshman guard, racked up 27 points to put his stamp on the biggest game in the state, shooting 9 of 14 from the field. Quickley, a reserve, added 18 points and Richards ended up with 13 for Kentucky, which snapped a two-game losing streak.
The Wildcats have won 11 of the past 13 meetings against Louisville.
Maxey had a go-ahead basket with 32 seconds left in regulation.
Louisville took a timeout and knotted the game on Lamarr Kimble's basket at the 13-second mark. Maxey's potential game-winning shot was off the mark, sending the game to overtime.
Steven Enoch's 18 points paced Louisville (11-2), while Dwayne Sutton added 14 points and Kimble finished with 12.
Maxey scored five points as the Wildcats went from down 46-45 to up 52-46 with 6 1/2 minutes to play.
A series of lead changes developed in the final five minutes, with the teams capable of converting on offense in what had otherwise been a game defined by defense.
Maxey put Kentucky up 57-55 on a drive with 1:41 to play only to have Malik Williams counter with a jumper for Louisville less than 10 seconds later.
Quickley's two free throws put the Wildcats back on top with 1:11 to go, but Enoch answered for Louisville on a jumper with 51 seconds to play.
Kentucky scored the final five points of the first half for a 32-24 edge at the break, marking the largest margin of the game at that stage.
Louisville scoring leader Jordan Nwora was held to eight points on 2-of-10 shooting from the field.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
Louisville |
|
Kentucky |
Steven Enoch 18 |
Scoring |
Tyrese Maxey 27 |
Lamarr Kimble 4 |
Assists |
Ashton Hagans 8 |
Dwayne Sutton 10 |
Rebounds |
Nick Richards 10 |
Jordan Nwora 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Immanuel Quickley 8 |
Lamarr Kimble 2 |
Steals |
Ashton Hagans 2 |
N/A |
Blocks |
EJ Montgomery 2 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Louisville
|
70 |
40.3 |
7-27 |
9-20 |
12 |
30 |
0 |
5 |
11 |
Kentucky
|
78 |
46.3 |
7-15 |
21-25 |
12 |
35 |
5 |
5 |
11 |