Points of Emphasis: Louisville vs. Syracuse

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville men's basketball program came close to securing their first win since mutually parting ways with head coach Chris Mack, but ultimately fell in overtime to North Carolina, in part due to some questionable officiating.

Next up for the Cardinals (11-11, 5-7 ACC), they are heading back on the road for a showdown against Syracuse (11-1, 5-6). Tip-off is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 5 at 2:00 p.m. EST.

Here are a few of the more significant storylines to follow ahead of the Cardinals' matchup against the Orange:

O Captain, My Captain

The indefinite suspension for Louisville men's forward/center Malik Williams will continue on for at least one more game. The fifth-year big man will not make the trip up to Syracuse, but interim head coach Mike Pegues added that "there are still hopes that he will, at some point, rejoin the team."

"I won't get into timing, but there is a meeting scheduled for Malik and I to sit down," he said. "Hopefully we can get on the same page and clear things up, but as for now, Malik will not make the trip to Syracuse. So we'll move forward without him."

The co-captain was suspended the day before Louisville's previous game against North Carolina for not upholding the "standard which all of our guys are expected to meet" at "different times throughout the year." He is averaging 10.0 points and 8.7 rebounds per game so far this season, leading the Cardinals in both categories.

Reason for Optimism?

At this point in time, Louisville just needs something, anything, good to break their way. The Cardinals are on a four-game losing streak - their first since 2004 - and have lost seven of their last eight games to fall to .500 on the season. Oh, and that stretch includes parting ways with their head coach.

Mike Pegues has only been back in charge for two games, and while both were losses, there is reason to believe that Louisville's losing streak could end sooner rather than later. They fought back from an 16-point hole to tie things up with No. 9 Duke in the final eight minutes, and they took rallied against UNC to take the Heels to overtime. It's dramatic difference in their effort over the final games of the Chris Mack era.

"I think that the spirit of the group, and our commitment to competing and putting ourselves in a position to truly win a game again against two really good teams, I think has galvanized these guys into believing that, "hey, if we can tighten up on some things, we can win a game'," Pegues said. "We got to be able to cash in and get a win here to bring it full circle, and I think that when that happens, they can open the floodgates in a good way."

Similar Struggles

All that being said, Louisville isn't the only team in this upcoming matchup that has had a disappointing season up to this point. Like the Cardinals, the Orange are very much trending towards not making the NCAA Tournament.

Syracuse has been unable to generate any sort of consistent positive momentum, as their longest win-streak on the season is just two. Sitting at just .500 on the year, their best win came when they took down Wake Forest and Indiana in double overtime at home, but that's really it.

Cuse is just 1-5 in Quad 1 wins, and has losses to Colgate, Georgetown and Pitt. That's not a Big Dance-worthy resume in the slightest.

Another Barnburner in Store

If you thought Louisville's last game against North Carolina was a high-scoring affair (at least in terms of this season), we could see even more points in their game against Syracuse.

Led by Hall of Fame head coach Jim Boeheim and his two sons, Buddy and Jimmy, the Orange sport one of the most efficient offenses in college basketball. They average 77.8 points per game, shoot 45.7 percent from the field and 37.0 percent on three pointers, and turn the ball over just 11.3 times per game. In all, KenPom has them as the No. 15 offense in D1.

The issue is, the defense has been subpar to say the least. Boeheim's legendary 2-3 zone defense is still in place, but its efficiency has greatly declined over the past few years.

Cuse still forces teams to settle for three-pointers most of the time, as 50.8 of opponents' shots are threes - the second-highest mark in DI - but teams are connecting on them at a high caliber. The Orange are not only allowing opponents to hit 34.8 percent of their threes, but 51.9 percent of their two point shots - for an effective field goal percentage of 52.1, which ranks 263rd in D1.

Throw in the fact that the defense can barely generate any turnovers (12.73 per game), and are one of the worst teams in college basketball at preventing opponent offensive rebounds, and Syracuse sports the 235th-ranked defense in the land, according to KenPom.

Bench? What Bench?

Syracuse is a team that can score nearly at-will from almost anywhere on the floor. In fact, all five starters average double figures.

The Orange are led by Buddy Boeheim, who pours in 19.3 points per game - the third-highest in the ACC and 34th in D1. Collectively, their four top scorers - Buddy and Jimmy, Joseph Girard III and Cole Swider - combine for 186 made threes on the year.

But beyond the starters, Syracuse has, almost quite literally, nothing behind them.

Benny Williams, Symir Torrence and Frank Anselem are Cuse's go-to reserves, but they barely ever see the court. In fact, they are second-to-last (St. Bonaventure) in bench minutes, with non-starters playing just 15.8 percent of the total minutes

(Photo of Mike Pegues, Louisville Players: Matt Stone - Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK)

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