Kentucky Wildcats vs Louisville Cardinals Box Score on Dec 26, 2020

Dre Davis made a free throw with 18.9 seconds left to snap a tie and Carlik Jones hit two more Saturday as host Louisville extended Kentucky's losing streak to six games with a 62-59 win.

Davis' foul shot came after he claimed a loose ball and was fouled in backcourt by Isaiah Jackson. After Olivier Sarr's wing jumper rattled out, Jones grabbed the rebound, drew a foul and calmly swished his foul shots.

The Wildcats (1-6) could have forced overtime, but Brandon Boston's clean look at a 25-footer banged off the rim just before time expired. It sealed the worst start for a Kentucky team since 1911.

Jones scored a game-high 20 points for the Cardinals (6-1), while David Johnson stuffed the stat sheet with 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Louisville overcame 42.3 percent field goal shooting and a 40-35 disadvantage on the boards.

Davion Mintz pumped in 19 points for the Wildcats, while Boston added 11 but made just 3 of 11 shots. Jacob Toppin scored 10 points, but it wasn't enough to prevent Kentucky from losing to its in-state rivals for just the third time in 14 games.

As one would expect from bitter rivals, it was a hard-fought game. Most shots were contested and rebounds required a man's effort to pull them in. The lead changed hands consistently during the first half.

Louisville managed an 8-5 lead at the first television timeout, but Kentucky responded and took a 13-11 advantage nearly eight minutes into the game on a jumper by Toppin. Jones' driving layup at the 7:12 mark pushed the Cardinals ahead again at 21-19.

Mintz stroked a 3-pointer with 1:16 left to give the Wildcats a 27-26 edge, but Jae'Tyn Withers gave Louisville a one-point margin at halftime when he converted Johnson's pass into a layup with two seconds left. The difference in the half was that the Cardinals scored more than half their 28 points on 3-pointers, going 5 of 14.

--Field Level Media