Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. Boston College Eagles
Louisville Cardinals (2-17, 0-8 ACC) at Boston College Eagles (9-11, 3-6 ACC)
- Tipoff: Wednesday, January 25 at 9:00 p.m. EST
- Location: Silvio O. Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
- How To Watch: ACC Network
- How To Listen: 93.9 FM
- Betting Favorite: Boston College: -10.0 (KenPom)
- All-Time Series: Louisville leads 10-4
- Last Meeting: Louisville won 67-54 on Jan. 19, 2022 (KFC Yum! Center - Louisville, Ky.)
Projected Starting Lineups
Louisville
- G El Ellis (6-3, 180, Sr.)
- G/F Mike James (6-5, 215, R-Fr.)
- F Jae'Lyn Withers (6-9, 220, R-Jr.)
- F J.J. Traynor (6-8, 190, Jr.)
- F Sydney Curry (6-8, 270, Sr.)
Boston College
- G Makai Ashton-Langford (6-3, 180, Gr.)
- G Jaeden Zackery (6-2, 215, So.)
- G DeMarr Langford (6-5, 220, Jr.)
- G/F Prince Aligbe (6-7, 225, Fr.)
- F Quinten Post (7-10, 250, Sr.)
Comparison
See how the Cardinals stack up against the Eagles, and who the statistical models favor: Tale of The Tape, Predictions: Louisville vs. Boston College
Game Notes
Louisville
- On Thursday, Louisville added freshman forward/center Emmanuel Okorafor to the roster. Okorafor is a 6-foot-9 native of Lagos, Nigeria, and is eligible immediately after arriving from NBA Academy Africa.
- Over the last five games since turning the calendar to 2023, redshirt freshman guard/forward Mike James is averaging 14.6 points and 4.6 rebounds while shooting 43% from the field and 46% from the 3-point line. In the first 14 games of the season, James averaged just 6.9 points while shooting 44% overall and 31% from 3-point range.
- Over the last 10 games, senior guard El Ellis has averaged 19.8 points, 5.8 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.9 steals. As of Sunday, Ellis was one of 20 players in the nation with at least 330 points and 85 assists this season. After having a positive or even assist-to-turnover ratio just three times in the first nine games of the season, Ellis has been positive or even in eight of the last 10 games. Ellis’ current 17.8 points per game overall is the seventh-most by a Cardinal in the last 30 seasons.
- After averaging 1.7 points and 3.6 rebounds across the first nine games, senior forward Sydney Curry is averaging 8.7 points and 6.6 rebounds over the last 10 games while shooting 58% overall. His career-high 19 rebounds against Florida A&M were the most by a Cardinal since Luke Whitehead grabbed 19 boards against Marquette on Jan. 31, 2004.
- Sophomore forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield missed the last two games with a foot injury. He leads the team with 6.0 rebounds per game and is averaging 7.5 points per contest.
- Last game: Louisville suffered their second-consecutive 20+ point loss, falling 75-54 to Pitt.
- KEY FIRST HALF RUN: The Cardinals traded points back and forth with the Panthers for the first five minutes of the game, with almost three minutes of a tied game. A Louisville 7-0 run that spanned 3:16 gave the Cards the 14-10 lead.
- The Panthers pulled to a 29-16 lead after a 19-2 run that lasted four and a half minutes. The run was led by three 3-pointers by Nike Sibande.
- KEY SECOND HALF RUN: Louisville cut the lead to seven on a three-point play from El Ellis with 15:15 left in the game.
- The Panthers scored five-of-seven field goals with 9:03 left in the game to extend their lead to 59-45.
- UofL shot 19 of 56 (.339) from the field, 5 of 20 (.250) from 3-point range, and 11 of 13 (.846) from the free-throw line.
- The Cardinals outscored the Panthers in the paint 24-20, marking the sixth time this season outscoring their opponent in the paint.
- Louisville shot 84.6% from the free throw line, making it the fifth game this season they shot 80% or better from the charity stripe.
- The Cardinals hauled in 11 offensive rebounds, marking the ninth time this season tallying double-digit offensive rebounds.
- Louisville out-rebounded the Panthers 34-33. This is the sixth time this season the Cardinals have out-rebounded their opponent and the fourth time in five games UofL has grabbed more offensive rebounds than their opponent (11-7).
- El Ellis registered 19 points, making it his 11th straight game with double-digit points and his 17th of 19 games this season. Ellis had a team-high five assists and added two rebounds in 38 minutes. The guard recorded at least one steal for the ninth straight game and also shot 5 of 5 from the free throw line, the fourth time this season shoot 100% from the charity stripe.
- J.J. Traynor recorded a career-high 14 points, his second double-digit game of the season. His 6 of 9 field goals was a career-high in field goals made and field goals attempted and his fourth time this season shooting 60% or better from the field. The forward totaled six rebounds, one assist, and one steal through 30 minutes of play.
- Jae'Lyn Withers scored eight points and recorded a team-high seven rebounds. The forward had one steal in 26 minutes of action.
- Sydney Curry totaled four points and four rebounds in 23 minutes of action.
- Mike James tallied five points to go along with four rebounds. The guard shot 2 of 2 from the free throw line and played 35 minutes.
Boston College
- Boston College is 341-203 all-time - and 67-82 in ACC games - played at the Silvio O. Conte Forum. BC was 10-8 at home in 2019-20 - the 18th time that BC won 10+ games at Conte Forum in a single-season.
With the win over Notre Dame on Jan. 21, BC earned its first regular season series sweep in ACC play since 2019-20. That season, the Eagles took two from Virginia Tech - 61-56 at home and 77-73 in OT in Blacksburg.
With a 3-pointer with 3:05 remaining in the first half at Notre Dame, Makai Ashton-Langford scored the 1,000th point of his college career. Through 129 career games, the graduate student has scored 1,012 points at Providence (2017-18) and Boston College (2020-present). Since transferring to BC, he has tallied 763 points in 66 games over two-plus seasons at the Heights, from 2020-23.
Quinten Post scored a career-high 29 points and tied a career-best with 14 rebounds in an 84-72 win at Notre Dame on Jan. 21. Post was 10-for-14 from the floor, connecting on a career-best 4-of-5 from the beyond the arc. The 7-footer also connected on 5-of-5 from the charity stripe and blocked two shots in 29 minutes.
Boston College saw its 420-game streak with at least one made 3-pointer end on Jan. 17 at North Carolina. BC was 0-for-6 from beyond the arc in the game - marking the first time since Nov. 28, 2009 that BC went without a 3-pointer.
Boston College connected on a season-best 11 3-pointers, making 11-of-19 from the perimeter at Notre Dame on Jan. 21. The 11 treys were the most by the Eagles since Feb. 21, 2022 when they also made 11 in a home win over Florida State.
In conference play (nine games), BC is averaging nearly 11 turnovers per game, while posting a 1.20:1 ATR. During the non-conference, the Eagles were averaging nearly 3.0 turnovers more per game, with a 0.75:1 ATR.
Makai Ashton-Langford (t8th, 1.50) and Jaeden Zackery (t8th, 1.50) rank among the ACC leaders in steals. In conference games, Zackery is sixth (1.56 spg), while Ashton-Langford is ninth (1.44 spg)
Despite being a freshman, Prince Aligbe does not shy away from big moments in his first season with the Eagles. He scored 10 of his 15 points in the second half vs. ND on Jan. 3, including a jumper with 2:32 left, making it 61-60.
In five of Boston College’s nine wins, the Eagles have trailed or been tied at some point during the final 4:00 of regulation.In those games. Boston College has hit five baskets with under 2:00 remaining in regulation to either tie (VT) or go ahead for good (Cornell, Detroit Mercy, Rhode Island, Notre Dame).
Jaeden Zackery scored a season-high and game-high 18 points in the win over Notre Dame on Jan. 3. The sophomore guard tallied 14 of his 18 points over the final 10 minutes of play in the second half against the Irish. He made a career-high seven field goals in the game, while adding four boards and three assists in 37 minutes. BC is 4-0 when Zackery scores at least 16 points in a game this season (Notre Dame, Stonehill, Rhode Island, Wyoming).
Over his last six games. DeMarr Langford Jr. has dished out 22 assists while committing only five turnovers. During that span, he is posting a 4.40:1 assist/turnover ratio, while averaging 9.5 points, 3.7 boards, and 3.7 dimes per outing.
(Photo of Kamari Lands: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)
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