Best Rivalry In College Basketball?

This was my chance.

I was going to use my tremendous powers of persuasion to convince you, dear reader, that the basketball rivalry between the Louisville Cardinals and Kentucky Wildcats was far and away the best rivalry in college basketball. Better, even, than that little game they play down on Tobacco Road.

Yes, I was going to do it. I, the native son, the kid from Louisville, was going to succeed in changing the minds of thousands.

And then the Louisville Cardinals and Kentucky Wildcats decided to suck the life out of this year's meeting.

Kentucky might have its worst team in 15 years. The Cats got drubbed by Indiana. They're 6-3. They can't shoot. And they aren't playing typical Tubby Smith defense. People are jumping off bridges in Lexington as we speak.

Louisville? The Cardinals are good, supposedly. Ranked fourth in the country. A 6-0 record. But I haven't yet been able to verify that any human being has actually seen them play. I sure haven't. I live a thousand miles away now, and because ESPN isn't big on picking up the thrilling Louisville vs. Chicago State matchup or the equally exhilarating Louisville vs. Prairie View A&M tilt, I have yet to see anything.

So what are we left with? What's shaping up to be a pretty ordinary Saturday in Lexington. Yes, there will be drama when Rick Pitino walks into his former stomping ground. Yes, there will be some oh-so-clever signs comparing Pitino to Benedict Arnold. Yes, the fans will be intense.

But this one — and I hate to say it — won't do much to vault the Bluegrass State to the top of the heap.

And that's a shame. Because it is a great rivalry.

There's history. The two didn't play for 24 years, and then found themselves matched up against each other in a regional final in 1983. That one was dubbed the "Dream Game," and once the season series resumed, that title was applied to the annual meeting.

There's tradition. Many called Denny Crum's program the team of the '80s, and Pitino's Kentucky program the team of the '90s.

There's fan support. Kentucky and Louisville annually rank in the top five for attendance figures. And fans of the two schools don't exactly like each other.

And then there's Pitino. He left Kentucky for an ill-fated foray to the NBA in 1997, then found his way back to college basketball four years later, this time wearing Cardinal red. Suffice it to say, lots of Kentucky fans don't like him much.

I'm biased in all of this, of course. I grew up despising the color blue because of my allegiance to Louisville. The UK/UofL game was always the biggest of the year. I remember snippets of almost every game they've played in my lifetime.

And that's why I was all ready to set forth my argument.

But alas, this year's editions of the Cards and Cats haven't cooperated. I have no doubt it will be a good game. But it probably won't be great.

Louisville is ridiculously unproven. The Cardinals haven't played a road game, not even a game on a neutral court. The title of "best team they've played" is a toss-up between Akron and Richmond. And I don't even know who half the players are. Three regulars are back from last year's Final Four team. Apparently — and again, this is only a rumor — the Cards have enough players to field a team.

Kentucky, on the other hand, has proven plenty. It just so happens that what the Cats have proven isn't so good. They're clearly missing something, whether it's Randolph Morris, who was suspended for the season by the NCAA, or Chuck Hayes or Kelenna Azubuike. Either way, things aren't looking rosy. The Cats lost to a freshman-dominated North Carolina team two weeks ago, then threw in a major clunker against Indiana, losing by 26. (Note: Morris' NCAA suspension was reduced to 14 games on Dec. 15, making him eligible to return on Jan. 10.)

All in all, it adds up to a game with a fair amount of uncertainty. That alone could make for some exciting storylines. Is Louisville for real? Which Kentucky team will show up?

I know I'll be watching. And I've lowered my expectations for you. You don't have to believe it's the best rivalry in the country. Based on this year's game, you probably shouldn't believer that. But I think you should watch anyway. Saturday at 2 PM.

And maybe you could wait a year before you judge.