Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. Clemson Tigers

The Cardinals square off with the Tigers in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

Jan 7, 2025; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Chucky Hepburn (24) looks to pass under the pressure of Clemson Tigers guard Jaeden Zackery (11) during the first half at KFC Yum! Center. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images / Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Louisville Cardinals (26-6, 18-2 ACC) vs. Clemson Tigers (27-5, 18-2)

- Tipoff: Friday, Mar. 14 at 9:30 p.m. EST
- Location: Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.
- How To Watch: ESPN2
- How To Listen: 93.9 FM
- Betting Favorite: Clemson -1.0
- All-Time Series: Louisville leads 10-6
- Last Meeting: Louisville won 74-64 on Jan. 7, 2025 (KFC Yum! Center - Louisville, Ky.)

Projected Starting Lineups

Louisville

• G Chucky Hepburn (6-2, 190, Sr.)
• G J'Vonne Hadley (6-6, 215, 5th)
• G/F Terrence Edwards Jr. (6-6, 205, 5th)
• F Noah Waterman (6-11, 230, 6th)
• C James Scott (6-11, 220, So.)

Clemson

• G Jaeden Zackery (6-1, 218, Gr.)
• G Chase Hunter (6-5, 202, Gr.)
• F Ian Schieffelin (6-8, 240, Sr.)
• F Viktor Lakhin (6-11, 245, Sr.)
• C Christian Reeves (7-2, 253, R-So.)

Comparison

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

Additional Coverage

• Post-Regular Season Louisville NCAA Tournament Projections
• How the ACC Tournament Can Impact Louisville's NCAA Tournament Seed
• Watch: Louisville Chucky Hepburn Sinks Buzzer-Beater vs. Stanford

Game Notes

Louisville

• Senior guard Chucky Hepburn was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year alongside his head coach Pat Kelsey who was voted ACC Coach of the Year. Hepburn was tabbed as a First Team All-ACC selection while teammate Terrence Edwards Jr. earned a spot on the Third Team. See Around The ACC on Page 5 for the full list of postseason league honors.
• After Terrence Edwards Jr. scored a career high 35 points against Cal on March 5, Louisville became the only DI program this season to have four different players log at least one 30-point game. It’s also the first time in Louisville’s 111-year history that the team has four players with a 30-point game.
• Louisville has improved from eight wins in 2023-24 to 25 wins in 2024-25, the largest turnaround in program history, improving by 17 wins - it also leads the nation in win differential.
• For the first time in the 111 years of program history, Louisville has earned five road wins with a margin of victory of 20 points or more: at Virginia (20), at Syracuse (24), at SMU (25), at Boston College (26) and at NC State (25).
• Starting point guard Chucky Hepburn was named to the Naismith Trophy Men’s Player of the Year Midseason Team.
• Pat Kelsey’s Cardinals are one of the most improved teams in the country from the end of 2023-24 to now, accounting for the NET and number of wins. He was named to the Naismith Men’s College Coach of the Year Watch List on Feb. 21.
• As of March 11, Reyne Smith is third in the country in 3’s per game (3.53) and ninth in total 3-pointers (106) - he’s 17 made 3’s away from breaking Louisville’s made 3-pointers in a single season record.
• As of March 11, Chucky Hepburn is eighth in the country in total steals (68), ninth in steals per game (2.43), 24th in total assists (176) and 25th in assists per game (5.9).
• As of March 11, sophomore forward James Scott is third in the country in dunks with 71 makes on the year, according to Bart Torvik. He leads the ACC in that category and is third on Louisville’s dunks in a single season list.
• Three of Louisville’s six losses have all come to teams now ranked in the AP Top 25: No. 2 Duke (27-3), No. 4 Tennessee (24-6) and No. 19 Kentucky (20-10). As of March 4, those teams, plus RV Ole Miss (21-9), are a combined 92-28.
• At SMU on Jan. 21, Chucky Hepburn broke the UofL single game assists record with 16. Reyne Smith broke the program’s single game made 3’s record with 10. Louisville became the only DI team this century to have a player with 10+ 3’s and 15+ assists in the same game. The Last NBA team to do it was the Warriors with Klay Thompson (10 3PM) and Steph Curry (15 AST) on Nov. 20, 2022.
• This is the first season in Louisville’s 11 years in the ACC that three different players have earned ACC Player of the Week. Chucky Hepburn had the title on Dec. 2 and March 3, Reyne Smith got the accolade on Dec. 23 and Terrence Edwards Jr. earned it on Feb. 10.
• Against Florida State on Feb. 22, Chucky Hepburn knocked down 17 shots at the charity stripe, marking a new single game record for the Cards. Hepburn had tied the previous record of 16 earlier in the year against North Carolina on New Year’s Day.
• Against Florida State on Dec. 21, Chucky Hepburn and Terrence Edwards Jr. both logged eight assists apiece; it was the first Louisville game to have two Cardinals log at least eight assists each in the same game since Peyton Siva and Gorgui Deng both had eight against Syracuse in the 2013 Big East Tournament championship game.
• 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. The Cards have 12 players designated as seniors this season, tied with Western Kentucky for the most on any team in men’s DI college basketball. Louisville is one of four programs with seven or more fifth-year seniors or older.
• Louisville has just two underclassmen in freshman Khani Rooths andsophomore 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
• Guard Reyne Smith remains day-to-day after suffering an ankle injury in the Mar. 5 win over Cal.

Clemson

• Clemson extended a school record and earned its 18th ACC game against Virginia Tech (65-47).
• The Tigers extended a record to eight consecutive road wins in ACC play. A winning record on the road (9-1) for the first time a since a 5-2 mark in 1986-87. Tigers set a program record with its eighth consecutive ACC win vs. Virginia Tech.
• The Tigers tied a school record for wins on the court (26), but set a school record for most regular season wins.
• Clemson is third all-time in the ACC with 15 double-digit league wins this season.
• The Tigers finished January and February 13-2 (.867) – the best winning percentage in both months combined in school history.
• Chase Hunter became the eighth player to surpass 1,700 points in his career is now sixth all-time (1,720). Hunter was named to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association 2024-25 Oscar Robertson Trophy Midseason Watch List.
• Ian Schieffelin surpassed both Jaron Blossomgame and Elden Campbell in career rebounding at Virginia (3/1) and now has 852 career rebounds. He is averaging 12.9 points and 9.3 rebounds, while adding 2.8 assists per game. One of eight players nationally to average that line. He earned ACC Player of the Week and Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for his performances during the week of Dec. 9. Schieffelin eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau with a career-high 24 points against Notre Dame (Feb. 26).
• Schieffelin totaled a career-best 20 rebounds in Clemson's win over Kentucky (Dec. 3). It was the most rebounds in a game for a Tiger since Harold Jamison collected 20 on March 4, 1999 against Florida State. Schieffelin added 11 points and four assists in
  addition to 20 rebounds in the win over Kentucky. He is the only men's division I player in the last 25 years to put up 10+ points, 20+ rebounds and 4+ assists in a win against an AP Top 5 opponent.
• Viktor Lakhin scored 22 points in each win over No. 2 Duke and North Carolina. He finished 18-28 from the field in both games and added 10 rebounds and eight blocks.
• Schieffelin posted 18 points and 13 rebounds, earning MVP of the Sunshine Slam, against Penn State in the title game. Schieffelin added a career-high eight assists, four steals and two blocks.
• Chase Hunter has played in 109 Clemson victories in his career. He's set the new mark for most wins in program history.
• Dillon Hunter is now first in Clemson history in career assist/turnover radio. He has 144 assists and 49 turnovers in his 98-game career and that 2.94/1 ratio is the best in Clemson history.
• Dillon Hunter scored career-high 17 points on career-best seven made field goals in win at Florida State (2/15).
• Jake Heidbreder posted a season-high 15 points off the bench in a win over Wake Forest (12/21). He made three 3-pointers and finished 4-for-5 from the floor and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
• Chauncey Wiggins posted a season high 17 points on six made field goals and four 3-pointers in a win over Stanford (1/1).
• Chase Hunter posted a career-high 30 points in a loss at Boise State (11/17). He also totaled a career-best 12 made field goals in the effort. He became the 21st player in program history to score 30 in a true road game and it was the 33rd overall occurrence in a true road environment.
• Jaeden Zackery has 61 steals (1.97/game) –10th all-time for a single season. His per game average is ninth all-time as it stands.
• Zackery posted a stat line of 19 points, six rebounds, seven assists, five steals and two blocks in a win over SMU (2/22). He became just the 12th player since 1996-97 in a Division I game to record that line. First in the ACC during that time frame.
• Brownell has led the Tigers to the fourth-most overall wins amongst ACC teams since 2017-18 (167). The Tigers have won 90 games in the league, which ranks fourth in that same time frame.
• Brownell signed a contract extension that runs through 2029. Brownell is the winningest coach in program history with 291 wins as the leader of the Tigers, earning the 2017-18 Sports Illustrated National College Coach of the Year Award. The Tigers have reached the NCAA Tournament four times, including three in the last seven seasons that have culminated in a Sweet 16 appearance in 2018 and an Elite Eight in 2024. They are one of just 24 programs since 2018 to advance to a Sweet 16 and Elite Eight in separate
  seasons.

(Photo of Chucky Hepburn, Jaeden Zackery: Jamie Rhodes - Imagn Images)

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