Louisville @ Western Kentucky preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 19, 2015 ) Western Kentucky 56, Louisville 78

No. 2 Louisville looks to stay perfect on the season when it takes on intrastate rival Western Kentucky in a non-conference contest being played in Nashville on Friday. The Cardinals have won their first six games this season, including an 82-76 victory over Akron on Sunday, while the Hilltoppers have won two straight entering this contest, capped by a 69-64 win over Fordham in the fifth-place game of the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam last weekend.

Junior forward Jordan Nwora leads four double-figure scorers for Louisville with 21.3 points as well as 7.2 rebounds per game. Senior guard Ryan McMahon is averaging 12.3 points, while the frontcourt duo of Steven Enoch (11.7 points) and Dwayne Sutton (10.5) are tied for the team lead in rebounding with 8.7 per game apiece. Western Kentucky is lacking in size, which will be trouble against the Cardinals and will put pressure on 6-11 sophomore center Charles Bassey (team-high 15.7 points, 9.7 rebounds) to have a big game and stay out of foul trouble. Coach Rick Stansbury's squad is averaging 84 points a game and all five starters average in double figures in scoring.

TV: 5 p.m. ET, No TV.

ABOUT LOUISVILLE (6-0): The Cardinals have plenty of size inside, but they also have great shooting throughout their lineup, as shown by the team's 42.4 percent shooting from 3-point range. McMahon leads the team with 20 3-pointers on 57.1 percent shooting, but he's one of three players hitting better than 50 percent from beyond the arc. Nwora has connected on 16 3-pointers on 51.6 percent accuracy, while Sutton has hit 54.5 percent from 3-point range, making six 3-pointers in six games.

ABOUT WESTERN KENTUCKY (6-1): If you don't think Western Kentucky players know about Stephen F. Austin's win over No. 1 Duke this week -- and Evansville's victory over then-No. 1 Kentucky earlier this season -- you're fooling yourself. And just in case they don't know or don't remember, you can be sure Stansbury is going to remind them about the potential upset that can happen in this one for the Hilltoppers. Louisville has a chance to rise to No. 1 after the Blue Devils' loss, but Western Kentucky has the firepower to earn the surprising victory and Stansbury will make sure his players have the confidence that they can do it as well.

TIP-INS

1. Louisville is third in the country in field-goal percentage at .530, while Western Kentucky is fifth at .528.

2. Cardinals G Darius Perry is third in the ACC and 20th in the country with 6.3 assists per game.

3. Western Kentucky has made 50 more free throws (132) than its opponents have attempted (82) through seven games.

PREDICTION: Louisville 84, Western Kentucky 78