Cardinals Host the Hilltoppers on Saturday Afternoon

Saturday, December 19

LOUISVILLE, KY

NOON ET

University of Louisville

WESTERN KENTUCKY

Tickets

December 18, 2015 | Men's Basketball

Louisville plays its fourth of six straight home games in the KFC Yum! Center on Saturday

By: Kim Pemberton

GAME 10
Date: Dec. 16, 2015
Time: 12:01 p.m.
Site: KFC Yum! Center/Crum Court, Louisville, Ky. (22,000) (88-13 in 6th yr.)
Television: ESPNU Jim Barbar, play-by-play; Len Elmore, analyst.
Radio: WKRD (790 AM) Paul Rogers, play-by-play; Bob Valvano, analyst (Sirius channel 118, XM 194)
Series History: Tied 39-39 (27-18 in Louisville, 9-16 in Bowling Green, 3-5 neutral)
Last Meeting: UofL 76, WKU 67 (Dec. 20, 2014 in Bowling Green, Ky.)
UofL National Ranking: 16th USA Today, 19th Associated Press
Officials: Les Jones, Bill Covington, Jr., Raymond Styons, Jr.
Next UofL Game: Dec. 22 vs. UMKC, KFC Yum! Center, 9 p.m. ET (Regional Sports Networks / Fox Sports South in Louisville)

Louisville plays its fourth of six straight home games in the KFC Yum! Center as the Cardinals face intrastate foe Western Kentucky on Saturday. Louisville beat Kennesaw State 94-57 on Wednesday as the Cardinals shot 58.8 percent from the field, outrebounded the Owls 47-22 and made 10-of-24 three-pointers.

The Cardinals are led by two players averaging double figures, Damion Lee leads the duo of top scorers with 18.7 points per game. Trey Lewis ranks second on the team in scoring with 13.7 per game. Quentin Snider also leads the team in assists with 4.8 per game while averaging 9.9 points. Chinanu Onuaku leads the team in rebounding with 7.0 per game while Mangok Mathiang ranks second in rebounding with 5.8 per game.

As a team, the Cardinals are shooting 52.5 percent from the field while holding opponents to 34.4 percent shooting. Louisville leads the nation in scoring margin, defeating opponents by an average of 31.3 points per game. The Cards are also averaging 44.7 rebounds and 15.2 assists per game.

The Hilltoppers (6-4) have won three of their last four games, including a 79-70 victory over Alabama A&M on Wednesday. Chris Harrison-Docks led four Hilltoppers in double figures with 18 points.

WKU has five players averaging double figures. Justin Johnson leads the team in scoring with 17.2 points per game. He also leads the team in rebounding with 8.4 boards per game. Nigel Snipes is second on the team in scoring with 12. 9 points per game.

Louisville and Western Kentucky are tied 39-39 in the series which dates back to 1926. This will be the 11th meeting in the last 22 years and eighth straight year between the teams, with Louisville winning the last six matchups.

Louisville has won six straight and 23 of the last 26 meetings. The Cardinals had won 14 straight in the series before Western Kentucky beat UofL 78-77 in Freedom Hall on Feb. 16, 1993 as Dwayne Morton missed a dunk at the buzzer for UofL. Louisville has a 27-18 advantage in games played in Louisville.

CARD FILE:

New toys will be collected and subsequently donated to Kosair Children's Hospital at the Cardinals' Dec. 19 men's basketball game against Western Kentucky. Toys for all ages and genders will be collected at the entrances.
Louisville's 131 victories over the last five years are the second-most wins in the nation in that stretch. Louisville and Wichita State are the only schools in the nation to win 30 games in three of the last four seasons, including a school-record 35 victories amassed by Louisville's 2012-13 NCAA Championship team.
UofL leads in the nation in scoring margin (+31.3) and rebounding margin (+17.8), is second in scoring defense (55.6) and third in field goal percentage defense (.344).
Damion Lee has been the Cardinals' top scorer in eight of nine games this season. He is among the ACC leaders in scoring (18.7, 4th), steals (1.4, 6th) and field goal percentage (.538, 10th).
UofL has a 23-3 record during the month of December over the last four years, winning 11 of its last 13 in that month.
Louisville is fifth in the nation in field goal percentage (.525). UofL has shot above 50 percent in eight of its nine games. The Cards shot 50 percent or above on eight occasions all last season. UofL leads the ACC in scoring (86.9 ppg).
Rick Pitino coached his 500th game at Louisville when the Cards played at Michigan St. on Dec. 2 (376-127 record).