Highlights, Photos and Notes: Louisville 85, Virginia Tech 71

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville men's basketball program was able to put together a complete performance in their matchup against Virginia Tech, earning an 85-71 victory on Saturday.

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 Mikel Brown Jr., Isaac McKneely, Ryan Conwell, J’Vonne Hadley and Sananda Fru for the ninth time this season. The group is now 8-1 together.
KEY FIRST HALF RUN: The two teams stayed within two scores of one another for the first 15 minutes of the game, before Louisville used a 14-3 run to end the half and pull away. The Cardinals led the Hokies 37-22 at the break.
KEY SECOND HALF RUN: Virginia Tech made an 8-0 run at the Cards after chipping away at the Louisville lead, resulting in a score of 64-56 with 7:22 left on the clock. Louisville retaliated with a 12-3 run to create a comfortable 17-point lead. The Hokies would come as close as 11 but never less.
Louisville shot 47.0% (31 of 66) from the field, 39.4% (13 of 33) from deep and 76.9% (10 of 13) from the free-throw line.
The Cardinals outrebounded the Hokies 44-31, with the margin being 15-9 on the offensive glass.
Louisville outscored Virginia Tech in the paint 36-14.

Player Notes:

Mikel Brown Jr. returned to the court with a vengeance, scoring a team-high 20 points on 7 of 11 shooting. He dished out six assists and added four boards in his 2026 debut.
J'Vonne Hadley did a little bit of everything with 14 points, six rebounds, two assists and one steal in a team-high 31 minutes on the floor.
Sananda Fru notched his third double-double of the season and 13th with 10+ points. He had 13 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two assists, one block and one steal.

Gallery:

Photos courtesy of

louisville virginia tech — Jan 24, 2026; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Mikel Brown Jr. (0) dribbles against Virginia Tech Hokies forward Tobi Lawal (1) during the second half at KFC Yum! Center. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

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