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Louisville HC Chris Mack Previews Pitt (1/4/22)

Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. Pitt Panthers

The Cardinals are returning to Louisville for their first home game of the new year.

Pitt Panthers (5-8, 0-2 ACC) at Louisville Cardinals (9-4, 3-0 ACC)

- Tipoff: Wednesday, January 5th at 7:00 p.m. EST
- Location: KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.
- How To Watch: ESPNU
- How To Listen: WKRD 790 AM
- Betting Favorite: Louisville -12.5
- All-Time Series: Louisville leads 20-6
- Last Meeting: Louisville won 64-54 on Dec. 22, 2020 (Pedersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.)

Projected Starting Lineups

Louisville

  • F Samuell Williamson (6-7, 205, Jr.)
  • F Matt Cross (6-7, 230, So.)
  • C Malik Williams (6-11, 245, Sr.)
  • G Noah Locke (6-3, 210, Sr.)
  • G Jarrod West (5-11, 185, Gr.).

Pitt

  • F Mouhamadou Gueye (6-10, 200, Gr.)
  • F John Hugley (6-9, 280, So.)
  • F William Jeffress (6-7, 205, So.)
  • G Femi Odukale (6-5, 205, So.)
  • G Jamarius Burton (6-4, 200, Sr.)

Main Storylines

Here are the more significant storylines to follow ahead of Louisville's matchup with Pitt: Points of Emphasis: Louisville vs. Pitt

Comparison

See how the Cardinals stack up against the Panthers, and who the statistical models favor: Tale of The Tape & Prediction: Louisville vs. Pitt

Game Notes

Louisville

  • In its first game of 2022, Louisville prevailed 67-64 at Georgia Tech on Sunday as Malik Williams led the Cardinals with a team-leading 20 points and 10 rebounds, his ninth career double-double and fourth of the season. UofL shot 48 percent from the field, held a decisive 34-25 reboudning margin over the Yellow Jackets and built an eight-point advantage after recovering from an early seven-point deficit to win. Louisville and North Carolina are the only teams with two ACC road victories this season.
  • Malik Williams, a preseason All-ACC second team selection, has scored in double figures in each of his last seven games and is averaging 15.0 points per game in that stretch. He has grabbed at least eight rebounds in 10 of his 12 games and is third in the ACC in rebounding (9.4 rpg) and 15th in the nation in defensive rebounding (7.3 per game). His 20 points and 10 rebounds at Georgia Tech was the ninth career double-double, fourth of the season, and his third in his last five games.
  • Jarrod West, third in the nation in career steals among active players with 280, needs eight points for 1,300 in his career at Marshall and UofL.
  • Dre Davis came off the bench for the first time this season at Georgia Tech and responded with 13 points, all in the second half. Davis, who has five double-figure scoring games this season, had scored just 14 points over the previous four games combined
  • Matt Cross has scored in double figures in five of the last six games, including 13 points and a season-high nine rebounds and two blocked shots at Georgia Tech.
  • Louisville is No. 24 nationally in adjusted defense in KenPom analytics (3rd in the ACC behind Duke, VT). The Cardinals rank 17th in the NCAA in defensive rebounding (29.5 rpg) and 35th in field goal percentage defense (.388).
  • Louisville is off to a 3-0 start in the ACC for the second consecutive season. The Cardinals won their first four ACC games last season
  • Mason Faulkner, who has scored in double figures his last three games and is second on the team in assists (30 total), missed UofL’s game at Georgia Tech due to COVID protocols
  • Noah Locke scored 10 points at Georgia Tech, his ninth game this season in double figures. He is third in the ACC in three-pointers made per game (2.5) and has made at least three threes in seven games
  • Louisville will play 10 games during the month of January, marking the first time it has played as many in that month since the 1997-98 season, when the Cardinals played 11 games in January
  • Louisville has a 46-16 record during the month of January over the last six years (.742) ... Louisville is unbeaten this season when outrebounding its opponent (8-0), shoots better from the field than the opposition (8-0), or shoots more free throws than its opponent (7-0)
  • The Cardinals were 25-for-34 from the free throw line against Wake Forest, both of which were season-high totals. The totals were the highest for the Cardinals since going 30-for-41 against Michigan State on Nov. 27, 2018. Louisville’s 22 free throws at Georgia Tech tied its third-most this season
  • The Cardinals shot 48.0 percent (24-for-50) from the field as a team at Georgia Tech, their highest shooting percentage against an ACC opponent since shooting 50.9 percent at Wake Forest on Jan. 13, 2021
  • The Cardinals finished with 36 points in the paint at Georgia Tech, their second-highest total of the season (44 against Southeastern Louisiana)
  • Georgia Tech shot just 41.1 percent (23-for-56) against the Cardinals, marking the 11th Louisville opponent in 13 games to shoot under 43 percent as a team
  • Louisville is gathering steals at a higher rate than a year ago, averaging 7.0 steals this season (eighth in the ACC) after averaging 4.8 a game last yearSydney Curry scored a season-high six points in six minutes off the bench vs. Wake Forest. Curry had not scored in the last six games
  • Louisville trailed by as many as nine (36-27) in the second half against Wake Forest, marking the 37th time in the last 10 seasons the Cardinals have recovered from nine or more points down to win.

Pitt

  • Pitt had its last game, Jan. 1 at Virginia Tech, postponed due to COVID issues within the Hokie program.
  • The Panthers have held five of its past seven opponents to fewer than 60 points scored and are allowing just 59.3 points per game in that span.
  • Pitt has held its past seven opponents to 6.7 three-point field goals per game and 32.0 percent (47-of-147) shooting from beyond the arc. The Panthers‘ opposition made 59 threes (9.8 3pg.) over the first six contests of the season.
  • Mouhamadou Gueye has scored in double figures in four of the past five games and is averaging 11.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game in that span.
  • John Hugley has scored in double figures a team-best nine times. He leads Pitt in scoring (14.8 ppg.), rebounds (7.9 rpg.), offensive rebounds (36), field goals (62), fi eld goal attempts (140), free throws made (65) and free throw attempts (91).
  • Jamarius Burton has scored in double fi gures in each of the past six games and is averaging a team-high 14.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in that span. He has scored 15 or more points in three of the past six contests
  • John Hugley has scored 20 or more points four times and also has four double-doubles on the season. He currently ranks among the league leaders in scoring (T-14th - 14.8 ppg.), rebounds (4th - 7.9 rpg.) and offensive rebounds (3rd - 2.77 orpg.).
  • Jamarius Burton is averaging 11.5 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists in a team-high 33.0 minutes per game in 11 games played. He missed five weeks of preseason action as well as Pitt’s first two games of the season due to injury. Burton has scored 10+ points in each of the past six games and 34 times in his career.
  • Mouhamadou Gueye is averaging 11.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in eight games when playing 25 minutes or more. He has scored in double figures and blocked two or more shots in six of the eight contests.
  • Pitt has played without its top five scorers from a season ago with a season-ending injury to Nike Sibande, a suspension of Ithiel Horton, the departure of Justin Champagnie to the NBA and two offseason transfers. Femi Odukale (6.6 ppg.) and John Hugley (5.1 ppg.) are the only returning players to average better than 5.0 points per game last season. The tandem has combined for 16 double-fi gure scoring games and an average of 27.2 points per game.
  • John Hugley has gotten to the free throw line 64 times in the past eight games. He leads the league in free throw attempts (7.0 ftapg.) and is second in free throws made (5.0 ftmpg.), while shooting 71.4 percent from the charity stripe.
  • Femi Odukale is 40-of-56 (.714) from the foul line over the past eight games. He has made seven free throws in a game three times during that stretch. Odukale ranks second in the ACC in free throw attempts (6.9 ftapg.) and fourth in made free throws (4.3 ftmpg.) for the season.
  • Ithiel Horton was reinstated to the program Dec. 30 after missing the first 13 games of the season due to suspension. He is the Panthers leading returning scorer after averaging 8.9 points and making a team-high 43 three-point field goals last season.
  • Pitt’s sophomore class - Noah Collier, John Hugley, William Jeffress and Femi Odukale - combines to average 34.3 points and 18.3 rebounds per game for the Panthers. Odukale (31.6), Jeffress (30.8 mpg.) and Hugley (29.4 mpg.) are three of the top four Panthers in minutes played per game and have combined to make 36 starts.
  • Femi Odukale has made a three-point fi eld goal in a game six times. He has scored in double figures in five of the six games he has made a three. Odukale is averaging 16.5 points per game in contests he makes at least one three-pointer.
  • Pitt has more made free throws (198) than its opponents have attempted (186) on the season. The Panthers lead the ACC with 23.0 free throw attempts per game and have outscored the opposition by 70 points from the free throw line.
  • The Panthers have been out-rebounded just one time this season. Pitt ranks fifth in the ACC in rebounding margin (+4.85) with the starting frontcourt of John Hugley (7.9 rpg.), Mouhamadou Gueye (6.0 rpg.) and William Jeffress (4.7 rpg.) combining for 51.4 percent of the team’s rebounds.
  • Pitt is averaging 25.1 points in the paint and 15.2 points from the foul line per game. Interior scoring and foul shots have accounted for 65.9 percent (524-of-795) of the team’s points this season.
  • Pitt has dropped six consecutive ACC road contests dating back to a 63-60 win at the Carrier Dome last season. Five of the six losses have been by seven points or fewer, including a pair of one-point defeats.

(Photo of Samuell Williamson: Charles LeClaire - USA TODAY Sports)

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