Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. Florida State Seminoles

Louisville Cardinals (6-5, 0-1 ACC) at Florida State Seminoles (9-3, 0-1 ACC)

- Tipoff: Saturday, December 21 at 2:00 p.m. EST
- Location: Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Fla.
- How To Watch: The CW
- How To Listen: 93.9 FM
- Betting Favorite: Florida State -3.0
- All-Time Series: Louisville leads 35-18
- Last Meeting: Louisville won 101-92 on Feb. 3, 2024 (Louisville, Ky.)

Projected Starting Lineups

Louisville

G Chucky Hepburn (6-2, 190, Sr.)
G Reyne Smith (6-2, 190, Sr.)
G J'Vonne Hadley (6-6, 215, 5th)
F Noah Waterman (6-11, 230, 6th)
C James Scott (6-11, 220, So.)

Florida State

G Daquan Davis (6-1, 176, Fr.)
G Chandler Jackson (6-5, 205, Jr.)
G Jamir Watkins (6-7, 210, R-Sr.)
F Taylor Bol Bowen (6-10, 205, So.)
F Malique Ewin (6-11, 230, Jr.)

Comparison

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

Additional Coverage

Watch: Pat Kelsey, Louisville Players Preview Florida State

Game Notes

Louisville

Through the last three games, fifth-year senior Terrence Edwards Jr. is averaging 22.0 points a game off the bench, shooting 51.3% from the floor and 52.6% from the 3-point line.
Senior guard Chucky Hepburn was named ACC Player of the Week on Dec. 2 and was one of five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week after his stellar performance in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
Louisville could play six ranked teams before January 2. The Cardinals have the 11th best strength of schedule according to KenPom as of Dec. 20.
Louisville’s 89-61 victory over No. 14/15 Indiana in the quarterfinals of the Battle 4 Atlantis was Louisville’s first win over a ranked team since beating No. 19/20 Virginia Tech 73-71 on Jan. 6, 2021. It’s the highest ranked opponent the Cards have beat since beating No. 3 Duke 79-73 on Jan. 18, 2020.
In the win over Indiana, UofL’s Chucky Hepburn logged 16 points, 10 assists and seven steals. He’s the first DI player with at least those marks since Markquis Nowell of Kansas State did it against West Virginia with 23 points on Dec. 31, 2022.
All four of Louisville’s losses are to teams now in the top 20 in the AP Poll: No. 1 Tennessee, No. 4 Duke, No. 13 Oklahoma and No. 19 Ole Miss.
As of Dec. 20, Louisville is sixth in the country in three point attempts per game (32.5) and 49th in turnovers forced per game (15.1). Chucky Hepburn is fifth in the country in steals per game at 3.0 and in total steals with 33. Reyne Smith is 34th in the country in 3-pointers per game at 3.18 and 13th in total three point attempts.4.
Against Winthrop on Nov. 22, Louisville logged 10 blocks, including seven in the first half. Sophomore James Scott blocked five on his own. The 10 total, seven in a half and Scott’s five were all the first time those feats happened for the Cardinals since March 7, 2018 against Florida State.
Fifth-year senior forward Kasean Pryor tore his ACL and will be out for the remainder of the 2024-25 season.
Junior guard Koren Johnson tore his labrum and will be out for the remainder of the 2024-25 season.
Louisville has 11 players who were on teams that played in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The roster in total has made 14 NCAA Division I Tournament appearances at their previous schools, playing in 20 NCAA Tournament games across their careers.
Chucky Hepburn is the first Cardinal since Russ Smith (2011-12) to log three games of six or more steals in a single season. He grabbed six against No. 12 Tennessee and West Virginia and seven against No. 14/15 Indiana.
In his Louisville debut, fifth-year senior Kasean Pryor logged a doubledouble of 18 points and 12 rebounds against Morehead State on Nov. 4. He is one of seven Cardinals since 1965 to produce a double-double in their first time on the court in a Louisville uniform.
The Cardinals are one of the more experienced teams in the country this season. Between the 17-man roster, the average amount of years in college basketball is 3.0 years with just two underclassmen on the roster.
Louisville has just two underclassmen in freshman Khani Rooths and sophomore James Scott. Louisville is one of just 11 schools in DI that has two or fewer underclassmen on their roster, and the only Power Four school in that list.
Louisville has 11 players who were on teams that played in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The roster in total has made 14 NCAA Division I Tournament appearances at their previous schools, playing in 20 NCAA Tournament games across their careers.
Louisville returns just a single letterwinner to its roster in walk-on Aidan McCool. The program returns virtually 0% in all statistical categories from 2023-24. Louisville is one of five programs in the country returning 0% in scoring, rebounding and minutes played; the Cardinals are joined by DePaul, IU Indy, Iona and Kentucky.

Florida State

Florida State’s Leonard Hamilton enters Saturday’s game against Louisville looking to move into sole possession of fourth place in the illustrious history of the ACC for most regular season ACC wins by a coach. Hamilton enters
Saturday’s game against Louisville ranked fifth in ACC history with 428 overall wins.
Malique Ewin (21 points and 15 rebs) and Taylor Bol Bowen (13 pts and 13 rebs) both earned double-doubles in Florida State’s 82-64 win over Winthrop on Tuesday night in Tallahassee.
Florida State has been measured as the nation’s second-tallest team in the nation by Ken Pomroy’s analytics. The Seminoles' roster contains 12 players listed at 6’5 or taller, 10 at 6’7 or taller, five taller than 6’10, and one seven-footer.
The last time two players earned double-doubles in consecutive games was during the 1991-92 season (the Seminoles’ first year in the ACC) against Georgia Tech (January 23, 1992) and NC State (January 25, 1992).
Florida State’s defense limited Winthrop to a .250 3-point field goal shooting percentage (nine of 36) in its victory over the Eagles in Tuesday in Tallahassee. The Seminoles are holding their last six opponents to a combined .253 shooting mark from long range.
Florida State is shooting a combined .827 from the free throw line while senior All-American candidate Jamir Watkins is shooting nearly 90 percent from the line and averaging 25.3 points per game in the last three games. The Seminoles are making an average of 22.3 free throws per game and an average of 27.0 free throws attempted per game.
Florida State enters Saturday’s game against Louisville as the ACC leaders in blocked shots (63 / 5.3 bpg) and steals (115 / 9.6 spg). The Seminoles are the only ACC team with more than 60 blocked shots and the only ACC team with more than 100 steals.
Senior All-American candidate Jamir Watkins has scored in double figures in nine consecutive games and is averaging 19.3 points per game since scoring 19 points against Florida on November 15 in Tallahassee. He enters Saturday’s game against Louisville having scored 20 points or more in a career-best three consecutive games.
Junior Malique Ewin is averaging a double-double of 17.8 points and 12.3 rebounds with two double-doubles (17 points and 17 rebounds against LSU and 21 points and 15 rebounds against Winthrop), with two scoring games with at least 20 points (his career-high of 23 at NC State and 21 against Winthrop), two rebounding games of at least 15 rebounds (his career-high
of 17 rebounds against LSU, 15 against Winthrop), and is shooting .653 percent from the field (32-49) in the last four games.
Junior Chandler Jackson scored his season-high of 14 points in Florida State’s victory over Winthrop and has scored in double figures in three times this season in 11 games. He scored in double figures four times in 31 games as a sophomore.
Freshman Daquan Davis is the only Seminole player who has made at least one free throw in each of the Seminoles’ first 15 games of the season and enters Saturday’s game against Louisville shooting .780 from the free throw line.
With eight steals in the last four games (2.0 spg), freshman Daquan Davis enters Saturday’s game against Louisville tied for third among his teammates with 15 steals in the first eight games of his career.
Sophomore Taylor Bol Bowen enters Saturday’s game against Louisville with 181 career points – he needs only 19 points to reach 200 for his career and he has scored in double-figures three times this season (his career-high of 17 against Northern Kentucky, 13 against Winthrop, and 10 against Hofstra) – all victories for the Seminoles.
Sophomore Jerry Deng is averaging 12.0 points (24 points total), averaging 1.5 steals (3 total steals), shooting .538 from the field (seven of 13) and shooting .600 from the 3-point line (six of 10) against the two teams from Louisiana (LSU and Tulane).

(Photo of Noah Waterman: Jordan Prather - Imagn Images)

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