On Monday night, one of the best rivalries in college basketball comes to The Basketball Tournament when La Familia, Kentucky’s alumni team, and The Ville, Louisville’s alumni team, face off in Freedom Hall. It’s being billed as the biggest game in TBT history, with ticket sales already surpassing the 10,000 mark, shattering the previous TBT record of 7,202.
Willie Cauley-Stein and Russ Smith know a thing or two about the rivalry and are looking forward to stepping back into it as La Familia and The Ville battle it out for a spot in the TBT semifinals at 9 p.m. Monday. Both called KSR this morning to preview the matchup with The Field of 68’s John Fanta and Rob Dauster. Cauley-Stein said the fact that 10,000 tickets have already been sold shows how much this rivalry matters in the state.
“Numbers don’t lie,” he said. The state is buzzing right now.”
The rivalry even extends to the golf course, where Cauley-Stein found himself trash-talking with some Cards fans on Thursday.
“I was just out in Louisville yesterday taking a golf lesson and I ended up playing a par-three course with a bunch of kids from out there and we were all jawing back and forth about the game so just that energy that is carried all the way to a middle of nowhere golf course. It’s fun, man. I can’t wait. I’m glad there are a few days to get the energy really buzzing. Monday will be one for the books.”
After growing up in New York and playing basketball overseas, Russ Smith is familiar with all sorts of sports rivalries. He says Kentucky vs. Louisville ranks among the best.
“I would say the rivalry is definitely one of the bigger rivalries I’ve ever seen or been a part of,” he said, mentioning the Yankees vs. Mets Subway Series, Fenerbahçe-Galatasaray in Turkey, and Panathinaikos vs. Olympiacos in Greece as others. “Louisville vs. Kentucky, I would like to think, is really up there, that people get up in the morning for.”
Smith was 1-5 vs. Kentucky in his career as a Cardinal (2010-14), two of those losses coming in the postseason (2012 Final Four, 2014 Sweet 16). He said that during his playing days, the rivalry was so intense he and his teammates would avoid eating out the night before games in case the person cooking their food was a Kentucky fan.
“I remember when I was a freshman, you’d get those — not horror stories, but they’d try to scare you. They’d go, ‘Hey, don’t go out to some restaurants because if you’re a Louisville guy or if you’re a Kentucky guy, you might have a fan of one or the other cooking your food and we don’t want you to get sick.’ So we would have to stay in and we’d eat what our chef would make and he would more than likely be a Louisville guy so we were safe. We definitely stayed in when it was time to time to play Kentucky.”
“It’s gonna be serious; it’s not gonna be like a pickup game”
La Familia’s roster is a combined 17-2 against Louisville over the years. The former Cats have been dominant in TBT thus far, winning their first three games by an average of 24 points. The Ville got off to a slower start in the event but looked good Wednesday night, beating Team DRC 83-68 to win the Louisville Regional and advance to the quarterfinals to face La Familia.
In the closing minutes, Louisville fans chanted “BEAT UK,” proof of how hungry the Cardinals are for a win over the Cats, even if it is in TBT. Chris Jones, who hit the Elam Ending, said there could be some blood spilled when La Familia comes to town. Willie Cauley-Stein, who is 3-1 vs. the Cards, wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It is what it is. You can go from game to game in history for all throughout the history of both teams going back and forth and it’s been that way. It doesn’t matter if this is an alumni game or not. All of us are our pros or are right outside of pros so it’s gonna be serious. It’s not gonna be like a pickup game.”
Kentucky and Louisville fans almost broke the internet when tickets went on sale Wednesday night. Organizers have opened up more parts of Freedom Hall since, and limited tickets remain on Ticketmaster. The game will be shown live on FS1, but Willie wants to see a sea of blue when he walks out of the tunnel at Freedom Hall.
“I need to see more blue than red, for sure. I know how we get down. I know how we get down. It’s Blue Country when we go up there.”
Willie’s message for fans that do make it inside the building? Be loud and get ready to witness another Kentucky vs. Louisville classic.
“They know the vibe and what we’re there for. I’m trying to hear it loud, I’m trying to feel the energy. I have no doubt that’s gonna happen, but this is probably one of the best Louisville vs. Kentucky games in history. When you put it on paper, who is really on this team, we’re all in our prime so we’re seeing something crazy right now. We really are gonna see something crazy. Just the way TBT is set up, it’s ending on a game-winner regardless. The energy is going to be wild.”
Listen to Willie. Get in there, BBN.
