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LEXINGTON, Ky. - Rick Pitino thinks Billy Gillispie will one day get Kentucky back among the nation's elite.

That didn't stop Pitino from turning Gillispie's debut in the rivalry locals call "The Dream Game" into another nightmarish chapter for the first-year Wildcats coach.

Using a myriad of defenses that rattled Kentucky and silenced raucous Rupp Arena, Louisville raced to an 89-75 win Saturday to snap a three-game losing streak against its Bluegrass rival.

"Our guys played a good, smart basketball game," Pitino said.

The Cardinals (10-4) forced 22 turnovers and played with the kind of intensity and cohesion they have lacked at times this season.

Juan Palacios, who missed the first 10 games with a knee injury, scored 17 points to go with six rebounds and four assists.

"No senior wants to leave Louisville without beating Kentucky," said Palacios. "This is big for us. It gives us confidence."

The Wildcats had hoped an upset of their rivals would help erase the memory of stunning home losses to Gardner-Webb and San Diego.

Instead, Kentucky (6-7) will stumble into SEC play under .500 for the first time since 1988-89, the season before Pitino arrived in Lexington to revive a program decimated by scandal.

Gillispie's rebuilding project won't be quite so extensive, but after watching his team repeat the same mistakes that have plagued them all season, he knows Kentucky has a long way to go.

"We have to become a much tougher team," Gillispie said. "We have to become a much better defensive team."

Ramel Bradley led Kentucky with 27 points and Joe Crawford added 19 in his final game against Louisville, but the Wildcats shot just 41 percent and wore down in the second half against the bigger, deeper and more experienced Cardinals.

Louisville harassed Kentucky freshman forward Patrick Patterson all game, blocking several of his shots and muscling him out of the lane. Patterson finished with six points on 3-of-14 shooting and turned the ball over six times.

© 2008, The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.