Highlights, Photos and Notes: Appalachian State 61, Louisville 60

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville men's basketball program nearly captured their first win of the season against Appalachian State, but the game-winning layup was waived off, plummeting the Cardinals to 0-3 on the season in the process.

The Atlantic Coast Conference put together a highlight tape of the matchup, which you can see here:

Team Notes:

UofL used the starting lineup of Mike James, El Ellis, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Sydney Curry, and Jae’Lyn Withers for the third consecutive game. This lineup is now 0-3 this season.
KEY FIRST HALF RUN: After missing their first shot from the floor, the Mountaineers opened the first half on a 15-5 run and led 38-25 at the break. Louisville went just over eight minutes without a made field goal until a Mike James three-pointer at the 9:47 mark snapped the drought. The Cardinals shot 6 for 23 (26%) from the floor in the first half.
KEY SECOND HALF RUN: Louisville ended the game on a 15-4 run over the last six minutes, keyed by 12 points from El Ellis, but could not take the lead.
UofL shot 18 of 46 (39.1%) from the field, 7 of 22 (31.8%) from 3-point range, and 17 of 23 (73.9%) from the free-throw line.

Player Notes:

Guard El Ellis led the team in scoring with 29 points, 19 of which came in the second half, tying his career high. Ellis also led the team with three assists and tallied three rebounds in 39 minutes. Ellis matched his career high in points, which he initially set against Wright State on Nov. 12. Prior to this season, his career high was 25 points during Louisville’s 90-83 overtime loss to North Carolina on Feb. 1, 2021. The point guard shot 8 of 18 from the floor, along with a 9 for 11 mark at the foul line. Ellis is the first Louisville player to score at least 29 points in back-to-back games since March 6- 7, 2022, when Reece Gaines scored 30 and 29 vs. Texas Christian and Marquette.
Forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield secured his first career double-double with a final line of 12 points and 10 rebounds in 38 minutes. The forward’s 12 points set a new season high and tied a career high dating back to his time at Tennessee. His 10 rebounds tied a career best, set against Bellarmine on Nov. 9 in the season opener.
Guard/forward Mike James poured in nine points on 3 of 6 shooting from the field. He also pulled down four rebounds and blocked one shot.
Guard Hercy Miller set new career highs in rebounds (6), assists (2), and minutes (25) in coming off the bench. The guard played 18 of his 25 minutes in the second half to help bring the Cardinals back within one. o He also chipped in with a season-high five points.

Photo Gallery:

NOTE: Photos courtesy of Louisville Report's Cindy Rice Shelton

You can follow Louisville Report for future coverage by liking us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram:

Facebook - @LouisvilleReport
Twitter - @UofLReport
Instagram - @louisville_report

You can also follow Deputy Editor Matthew McGavic at @Matt_McGavic on Twitter

Add us as a preferred source on Google