Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. Arkansas State Red Wolves

Arkansas State Red Wolves (3-7, 0-0 Sun Belt) at Louisville Cardinals (4-5, 0-1 ACC)

- Tipoff: Wednesday, December 13 at 8:00 p.m. EST
- Location: KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.
- How To Watch: ACC Network
- How To Listen: 93.9 FM
- Betting Favorite: Louisville -5.0 (KenPom)
- All-Time Series: Louisville leads 3-0
- Last Meeting: Louisville won 54-27 on Nov. 22, 2011 (KFC Yum! Center - Louisville, Ky.)

Projected Starting Lineups

Louisville

G Skyy Clark (6-3, 205, So.)
G Tre White (6-7, 205, So.)
G/F Mike James (6-5, 200, R-So.)
F J.J. Traynor (6-8, 190, Sr.)
F Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (6-10, 240, Jr.)

Arkansas State

G Caleb Fields (6-0, 190, Sr.)
G Derrian Ford (6-3, 207, So.)
G Freddy Hicks (6-6, 214, Jr.)
F Dyondre Domniguez (6-9, 208, Jr.)
F Izaiyah Nelson (6-10, 210, So.)

Comparison

See how the Cardinals stack up against the Red Wolves, and who the statistical models favor: Tale of The Tape, Predictions: Louisville vs. Arkansas State

Game Notes

Louisville

After allowing UMBC and Chattanooga to make 25 of 55 combined 3-pointers (45.5%) in the first two games, the Cardinals have held their last seven opponents to a combined 30-for-126 from 3-point range (23.8%). As of Monday, Louisville ranked 87th in the country in 3-point defense at 30.4% overall.
As of Monday, Louisville ranked 15th in the country in free-throw attempts per game (26.7) and 11th in made free throws per game (19.7). UofL’s 177 made free throws are the program’s second-most through nine games since at least 2010, behind only the 2018-19 team.
The Cardinals are 4-2 this season when they shoot more free throws than their opponent, as well as when they out-rebound their opponent. They’re 0-3 when they don’t accomplish either task.
In Louisville’s first three games, sophomore guard Skyy Clark averaged 11 points per game while going 0-for-8 from 3-point range and 7-for-13 from the free-throw line. In the last six games, Clark is averaging 20.2 points per game while shooting 14-for-38 (37%) from long range and 37-for-42 (88%) from the stripe.
In the last six games, freshman guard Ty-Laur Johnson has totaled 26 assists against just 13 turnovers. Johnson had just five total assists and eight turnovers in the Cardinals’ first three outings. Since 2010, Johnson is just the third Louisville freshman to have at least four games with five-plus assists, joining NBA Draft picks David Johnson (eight times in 2019-20) and Terry Rozier (four times in 2013-14).
Last game: Louisville dropped their 21st-consecutive road game, falling at DePaul 75-68. The Cardinals have not won on the road since January 2, 2021 at Georgia Tech.
KEY FIRST HALF RUN: After some back-and-forth scoring, the Blue Demons went on an 18-2 run to end the first half lasting 5:50 to put them up 38-22 going into the locker room.
KEY SECOND HALF RUN: The Cardinals opened the half with a 10-0 run to bring the game within single digits at 41-32. Louisville went on another run with seven unanswered points at 10:39, but DePaul answered immediately with a 7-0 run that spanned 1:36.
UofL shot 25 of 63 (39.7%) from the field, 5 of 19 (26.3%) from 3-point range, and 13 of 18 (72.2%) from the free-throw line.
Louisville’s bench outscored DePaul’s bench, 23-12.
The Cardinals forced a season-high 17 turnovers this afternoon, converting them into 17 total points. o Louisville committed 10 turnovers, tying their lowest single-game total this season.
Skyy Clark scored in double figures with 16 points on 6 of 17 shooting, including two from beyond the arc. Clark had a career-high three steals to contribute to a season-high team total of nine steals.
Mike James scored a team-high 18 points on 6 of 12 shooting and 6 of 7 from the line. James pulled down six rebounds and added two steals.
Ty-Laur Johnson scored 12 points, including two 3-pointers in 30 minutes. Johnson also contributed five assists, a single block, and two steals.

Arkansas State

Arkansas State is back on the road to begin a three-game road swing, opening Wednesday at Louisville. Tip-off against the Cardinals is slated for 7 p.m. CT inside the KFC Yum! Center. The game will be broadcasted live on the ACC Network, with Anish Shroff and Tim Welch calling the action. On the airwaves, the radio broadcast can be heard across the EAB Red Wolves Sports Network and the A-State Athletics mobile app.
A-State is taking on their fourth Power-5 opponent of the season on Wednesday, seeking a win over such a foe for the first time since Dec. 17, 2014.
Head Coach Bryan Hodgson is in his first season as head coach at Arkansas State and picked up his first career win on Nov. 14 against Alcorn State.
Dyondre Dominguez notched his third double-double of the season in Saturday’s win over UAB.
Sophomore guard Terrance Ford Jr. and newcomer Freddy Hicks received Preseason All-Sun Belt Third Team honors. Ford made his season debut on Nov. 28 against Jackson State, scoring 9 points with 5 assists and 4 rebounds.
Caleb Fields handed out 7 assists on Saturday against UAB to move past the 500 dimes mark for his career. He now has 504 assists in his career to rank third on the career assists list and is 40 shy of matching Carl Archer (1986-89) for second all-time with 544.
In the last game vs. UAB, an 87-68 win, Arkansas State hit 10 or more 3-pointers for the fifth time this season and only coughed up five turnovers - the fewest since allowing just five on March 12, 2019, at South Alabama. Caleb Fields handed out 7 assists to become just the third player in school history to amass 500 or more career assists. Dyondre Dominguez recorded his third double-double of the year.
After turning the ball over 22 times at Little Rock and 12 times in the first half at Alabama, the Red Wolves have coughed up just eight turnovers in the last 60 minutes since the start of the second half against the Crimson Tide. » A-State’s 5 turnovers against UAB on Saturday was its fewest since turning it over just five times at South Alabama on March 12, 2019.
Head Coach Bryan Hodgson has brought a much faster offensive philosophy, and it has already produced statistical improvements from last season. The Red Wolves are scoring at a much higher rate and shooting 28.3 3-point attempts per contest, which ranks 21st nationally and is tops in the Sun Belt.
Ahead of the 2023-24 season, a pair of Red Wolves garnered preseason recognition in the Sun Belt Conference preseason awards as voted on by the league’s head coaches. Sophomore guard Terrance Ford Jr. and junior newcomer Freddy Hicks were tabbed Preseason Third Team All-Sun Belt.
The amount of experience that Arkansas State boasts on this season’s roster is astounding. Last season, the Red Wolves began the year with a combined 424 career games played among all players. This season, that number has nearly doubled with the newcomers, totaling 791 career games played across 16 players. The same can be said for career starts. At last season’s start, the team totaled 118 career starts. This year? 337. Yes. You read that right.

(Photo of Mike James: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)

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