The fierce rivalry between Kentucky and Louisville extended into The Basketball Tournament (TBT) on Monday night, leading to a near brawl that required security intervention after the game. A team made up mostly of former Kentucky Wildcats, known as “La Familia,” defeated “The Ville,” a team of former Louisville Cardinals, 70-61 in an intense overtime battle at Freedom Hall in Louisville.
With 13,506 fans in attendance—a TBT record—the atmosphere was electric and the stakes were high, as the winner moved closer to the $1 million prize. The game itself was a physical affair, foreshadowed by an early double technical issued to Andrew Harrison of La Familia and Chris Jones of The Ville.
La Familia took a commanding lead, up by 20 points in the third quarter, but The Ville fought back, narrowing the gap to just six points late in the game. In the end, it was Harrison who sealed the victory for La Familia with a clutch shot under the “Elam Ending” format.
However, post-game interactions turned sour when tensions, already heightened by the historic Kentucky-Louisville rivalry, erupted. Chinanu Onuaku of The Ville was reportedly at the center of the scuffle, with La Familia’s Nate Sestina accusing him of spitting in his face after the Kentucky players performed the “L down” gesture, a taunt commonly directed at Louisville fans.
“There was great chatter throughout the game, nothing crazy, nothing personal,” Sestina said. “But he spit at me. That’s on him.”
Despite the heated post-game scene, La Familia advanced to the semifinals, where they will face Carmen’s Crew, a team featuring mostly former Ohio State players, on Friday. The incident underscores the deep-rooted rivalry between Kentucky and Louisville, proving that even in an exhibition tournament, old grudges die hard.
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