Louisville Dominated by NC State at Home
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Returning home after suffering their first conference loss of the season, the Louisville men's basketball program is now on their first losing streak of the season, falling to NC State 79-63 Wednesday night at KFC Yum! Center.
The Wolfpack (9-8, 2-4 ACC) returned the favor and denied a regular season sweep, as the Cardinals (10-6, 4-2 ACC) escaped Raleigh, N.C. with a road win back on Dec. 4 in the conference opener for both schools.
Louisville shot above their average at 46.0 percent from the field and 6-14 on three-point attempts, but it paled in comparison to NC State's night. The Wolfpack shot 56.1 percent from the field, including 12-25 on three. They also scored 20 points off 14 Louisville turnovers.
The Cardinals' bench carried the bulk of the weight, as they scored a whopping 52 points compared to 11 from the starting five. Sydney Curry lead the way with his first double-double at Louisville, a 22-point/10-rebound effort, while Noah Locke and Dre Davis each poured in 13.
NC State's backcourt duo of Terquavion Smith and Jericole Hellems lit up Louisville, combining for 43 points on 16-23 shooting and 11-16 on three point attempts. Adding insult to injury, the Wolfpack took just six free throw attempts, and didn't attempt their first one until 4:13 left in the game
Louisville struggled to get open shots to find the bottom of the basket in the first half -like most of the season - shooting just 9-27, but had encouraging ball movement to boot as they coupled that with eight assists. On the other side of the court, the Cardinals defense held strong to start the game, only allowing NC State to connect on three of their first 11 attempts.
Then came one of the worst stretches Louisville had seen all season long. Shooting went ice cold, while defense couldn't stop a nose bleed. Thanks to a segment when NC State shot 9-10 and 5-6 on three-point attempts with Louisville going 0-7, the Wolfpack fired off a 16-0 run in just 2:36, flipping a three-point Cardinals lead to a 13-point deficit in the blink of an eye.
Fortunately, Louisville scratched and clawed to end the half and get back in the game. The defense tightened up, while the offense got to the free throw line and connected down low to head into the locker room trailing by just eight.
When the teams reconvened, NC State set the tone immediately, scoring the second half's first eight points to extend out to a 16-point lead - tied for their largest lead of the night.
Louisville did a good job at chipping into the deficit, pulling within six behind much improved shooting. The problem was, NC State was hitting nearly all of their shots as well. While the Cardinals shot an impressive 60.9 percent in the second half, the Wolfpack upped theirs to 66.7 - including hitting their final six shots to put the game to bed.
Next up, Louisville will head back on the road for a rematch with Pitt. Tip-off against the Panthers is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 15 at 4:00 p.m. EST.
(Photo of Samuell Williamson: Jamie Rhodes - USA TODAY Sports)
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