Winless Louisville Dominated by Sputtering Florida State

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Playing in their first true road game of the 2022-23 season, the Louisville men's basketball program couldn't even find success against a struggling Florida State team, falling 75-53 Saturday at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center.

At 0-9 to start the Kenny Payne era, the Cardinals become the first team in ACC history to start a season with nine straight loses. They also move one game closer to matching their worst start in program history, when they lost their first 11 games to open up the 1940-41 season.

Meanwhile, the Seminoles second only their second win in 11 games so far this season. Their lone previous win on the year came against Mercer on Nov. 21, when they won 81-72.

Facing a Florida State team that KenPom has as the second-tallest team in Division I, Louisville struggled inside the three point line. They shot just 11-34 on two point attempts and 7-17 on dunks and layups, were out-rebounded 42-32 and were blocked seven times.

They might have connected on nine of their 23 three-point attempts, but still shot 35.1 percent from the field. Louisville was able to generate a season-high 14 assists, but that also came with 16 turnovers, resulting in 17 Florida State points off of them. On the other side, the Seminoles shot 45.2 percent from the field and were 7-19 on three-point attempts.

El Ellis was the lone Louisville player to finish in double figures, scoring 15 points on 5-of-17 shooting. Florida State has three players score double digit points, led by Caleb Mills' 16.

Florida State didn't dominate Louisville right out of the gates like so many other teams have over the last few weeks, but the Seminoles' length presented a real challenge for them. The Cardinals shot just 3-16 on two-point attempts and were blocked four times during the first half, forcing them to settled for a lot of outside looks as the opening half progressed.

While Louisville did capitalize on a lot of these outside looks, shooting 6-12 from beyond the arc before halftime, that still came with nine turnovers and seven Florida State points off them. With the Noles also shooting much better in the first 20 minutes than Louisville, connecting on 14 of their 33 attempts, it handed the Cardinals a 36-24 deficit at halftime.

The shooting discrepancy between the teams, as well as Louisville's inability to consistently attack the lane, carried over into the second half. Instead of the bottom completely falling out for Louisville at any point during the second half, like they have displayed numerous times this year, the Seminoles were simply more methodical. FSU shot 48.3 percent form the field after halftime, compared to 37.9 percent for the Cardinals, while also out-rebounding them 23-15.

Next up, Louisville will return to the KFC Yum! Center for a three-game home stand, stating with Western Kentucky. Tip-off against the Hilltoppers is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 9:00 p.m. EST.

(Photo of Caleb Mills, Mike James: Melina Myers - USA TODAY Sports)

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