LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- It's a new chapter in the Kentucky-Louisville basketball rivalry and it seems more friendly.

After winning their respective trap games Wednesday night, both Louisville coach Pat Kelsey and Kentucky's Mark Pope spoke in respectful tones of each other ahead of the latest edition of the Bluegrass basketball blood feud scheduled at 5:15 p.m. Saturday in Rupp Arena.

Truth be told, it hasn't been much of a feud lately. Kentucky has won 13 of the past 16 meetings. Each of Louisville's wins in that span has been by three points (and one was vacated by the NCAA). Kentucky has won by an average of 11.8 points, including blowout wins the past two seasons against Kenny "I just want to win by one" Payne.

Speaking with Bob Valvano after his team's three-point win over UTEP on Wednesday, Kelsey said of Kentucky, "They're very, very good. Very good. I think if the season ended right now, I'm just being honest, I think Mark Pope would probably be a front-runner for National Coach of the Year. They're deep. They're physical. They're big. They're skilled. Obviously, the venue's a tough place to play, so we know the challenge that's ahead of us. And we'll work our butt off here over the next couple days and get ready to go down to play a big one."

Pope played against Louisville for a couple of Rick Pitino-coached teams at Kentucky.

"I'm well aware of the beauty of this rivalry," he said, illustrating well his knack for positive description.

But he also acknowledges the obvious, for both sides, the players have no experience with it. And he said there's little chance of him being able to convey the passion behind it to them.

"The answer is probably no," he said, when asked. "You probably have to experience it to do it. ... I have seasoned guys. I have guys that have played in big-time rivalry games. It's not a foreign concept to them. It's just a little level up, right? It will not be unfamiliar to our guys. It's exciting. It's awesome. We love it and we hate it and all of those things."

Kentucky is 9-1 and ranked No. 5 in the nation. Louisville is 6-4 after Wednesday's win ended a three-game losing streak, all to teams in the top 20. A quick look at three matchups that could frame the contest:

1. Lamont Butler vs. Chucky Hepburn

If the matchup materializes (Butler has been out for the past two games with an ankle injury) it will be a matchup of nationally premier point guards. As you'd expect, they drive these teams.

That's certainly true of Louisville, where Hepburn, a transfer from Wisconsin with big-game starting experience, leads Louisville at 14.6 points and 4.6 assists per game. In very similar fashion, Butler, a transfer from San Diego State, is the metronome for Kentucky's team, averaging 12.6 points, 3.9 assists and 3.1 rebounds, while shooting 55 percent from the field.

Both are also outstanding defenders. Hepburn is probably being asked to play too many minutes after his backup, Koren Johnson, suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. Butler's backup, too, is lost for the season. Kerr Kriisa underwent ankle surgery earlier this week. And Butler's status remains in doubt, though coaches were hopeful he could return.

"Lamont is getting a little bit better," Pope said after Butler missed Wednesday's game against Colgate. "He's on the court a little bit today. Every day we test him a little more and see, we will know more tomorrow morning when he wakes up how he's feeling. It's kind of a throw it out there today and see what we end up with when he wakes up. We will know a little bit more and I would prefer he re-joins our team on the floor sometime soon."

If he can't, Jaxson Robinson, who played the point for Pope at BYU, will handle the duties.

Regardless, the point guard situation will be a major storyline.

2. Who wins in the paint?

In 7-foot, 260-pound Amari Williams, Kentucky has an interior presence that Louisville does not. A big-time rim protector averaging 1.8 blocks per game, Williams was the Colonial Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Year last season at Drexel. His 10 rebounds per game add an element that Louisville has not had.

The Cardinals have some promising young players in the backcourt, namely 6-foot-11-inch James Scott and 6-foot-8-inch freshman Khani Rooths, but neither is the physical presence of Williams. Noah Waterman, a 6-foot-11-inch grad transfer who is one of two players on Louisville's roster who played for Pope last season at BYU, has been more active on the perimeter than an interior presence. The team's best rebounder has been 6-foot-6-inch J'Vonne Hadley, a battler on the boards and a solid interior scorer who has had some success posting up opposing guards.

Kentucky also has success inside with versatile big man Andrew Carr, a Wake Forest transfer who is an inside-out threat and a catalyst for the Wildcats team, as well as 6-foot-10-inch sophomore Brandon Garrison.

Kentucky figures to have an edge down low, though how much they will look to exploit it will be one of the questions heading into this game.

3. Three-point contest

Both coaches would like to see their teams get up at least 35 three-pointers per game. Kentucky has been falling short of that number lately, a concern that Pope has made a point to voice.

"For us it's just the volume," Pope said after the Colgate win. "Our volume has been down and it's been a little frustrating to me. Kerr (Kriisa) has been one of the big catalysts for us. Not only is our volume down for us but we lost one of our catalysts. We are going to rediscover ways to get back to that part of our game. I was happy to get over 30 (against Colgate)."

The Kentucky three-point attack is led by Koby Brea, one of the best three-point shooters in the country at 56.1% (32-57). He's one of four Kentucky players who shoot it 36 percent or better from beyond the arc (Carr, Otega Oweh and Ainsley Amonor are the others). Butler and Trent Noah are at 33%, and Kentucky is shooting it at 35.5% as a team, averaging 28.7 attempts per game.

Louisville has had no problem finding three-point attempts. The Cardinals average 31.8 threes per game and take better than half their shots from beyond the arc. The problem is that they're making just 27% of their threes. Only one player on the team shoots it better than 33%, and that's graduate transfer Reyne Smith, who is 37.1% beyond the arc. Hepburn is next-best at 32.6% (15-46).

Do not expect either team to stop firing away. Kelsey told Valvano, "Our shooting, the process is elite, good shooters, they work on their game. We pour confidence into them, and those things are going to start falling. I know it, I know it. I know it."

Summary

Kentucky has played some of the better three-point defense in the nation this season, and has been an elite defensive rebounding team. Louisville has been among the better offensive rebounding teams in the country.

With key matchups at all three levels – point guard, interior and behind the three-point line – the game very well could come down to who is making threes. Kentucky would look to have more options to score in other ways, however, which is why the Wildcats will be a favorite in this game.

Depth figures to be a factor, too. Louisville is without three players who play significant minutes. You can't just draw up a plan on the blackboard to overcome that, though Kelsey is trying. These are two of the most experienced teams in the country with two of the most creative young coaches in the game.

The new-look rivalry should be a fun matchup, though with Louisville's injury situation, the result could be similar to many in recent years.

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