Shorthanded Louisville Holds Off Notre Dame
(Photo of Malik Williams, Juwan Durham: Jeremy Brevard/USA TODAY Sports)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Playing their first home game in 22 days and hoping to bounce back from their worst loss since before World War II, the Louisville men's basketball program was able to take a step back in the right direction, taking down Notre Dame 69-57 at the KFC Yum! Center on Saturday.
Not only was the victory just three days removed from a 45-point beatdown at the hands of North Carolina, but it came with the Cards missing one of their best players. Just before tipoff, it was announced that guard David Johnson, who is averaging 12.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, would be unavailable due to a non-COVID related illness.
Five Louisville players finished in double figures, led by a game-high 18 points from Carlik Jones. Jae'Lyn Withers finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
As efficient as the Cardinals were on the glass to start the game, out-rebounding the Irish 24-15 in the first half, Louisville struggled to finish on shots around the rim. They shot just 3-12 on layups, were 34.4% from the field in the first half, and went into the half having made just two of their last 13 shots.
Fortunately, Louisville's defense, and shooting from beyond the arc and at the charity stripe kept them in the game and gave them a 33-24 lead at halftime. In the first half, Notre Dame was held to just 32.1% from the field, the Cardinals connected on four three pointers, and were also a perfect 7-7 at the free throw line.
While Louisville shot much better in the second half, so did Notre Dame, as the teams shot 50.0% and 41.4%, respectively. The Irish used the three-pointer, particularly from Prentiss Hubb, to slowly cut the Cardinals lead to as little as five with six minutes to go.
However, powered mainly by Williamson and Jones, Louisville was able to put some distance between them and the Irish using a 13-6 run down the stretch to come away victorious.
For the game, Louisville shot 42.2% to Notre Dame's 36.8%, out-rebounded the Irish 45-30 and had a 14-5 edge on the offensive glass.
Next up for Louisville, they will head back on the road for a rematch with Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, Feb. 27. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. EST on ESPN.
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