#Kentucky vs. Louisville line, prediction: Cardinals are the play

The battle for the Bluegrass State features a Louisville team that is getting back on track while the Kentucky Wildcats are off to their worst start since the 1926-27 season.

Kentucky (1-5) is using a completely overhauled roster as the currently injured Keion Brooks Jr. is the only player on the roster who scored a point for the Wildcats a season ago. That’s combined with the team’s lack of 3-point shooting, which ranks 318th out of 330 teams that have faced a Division I school.

Louisville dealt with a lot of roster turnover as well, but has received a massive boost from Radford transfer Carlik Jones, who is leading the team with 16 points and 5.6 assists per game while making 50 percent of his 3-point shots. The Cardinals are 5-0 when he plays and 0-1 when he doesn’t, with that loss being an 85-48 drubbing by Wisconsin.

Louisville also has been the better team on the glass to this point, ranking 26th in the country in rebound rate while Kentucky is 58th in that category.

With an assist-to-turnover ratio that is 278th in the country while scoring 64 points or fewer since their season-opening victory against Morehead State, Kentucky’s brutal start should be extended by Louisville.

The play: Louisville,