Who Would Louisville Rather Face In ACC Tournament Opener?
The 2019-20 college basketball regular season has officially concluded, and with it comes the postseason starting with conference tournament time. Following Louisville's disappointing 57-54 loss at Virginia this past Saturday, the Cardinals have now locked up the #3 seed in the ACC Tournament, and are set to resume play this Thursday at 9:00pm EST in Greensboro, NC.
While they were successful in clinging a double bye for the ACC tournament, giving junior center Malik Williams more time to heal from his ankle injury, the Cards did not have the best end to the regular season. Over their last seven games, they went just 3-4.
However in a peculiar twist of fate, the Cards have the potential of facing one of the three teams they defeated during that stretch for their first game in the ACC Tournament. These teams are the Virginia Tech Hokies, the North Carolina Tar Heels, and the Syracuse Orange.
But who would the Cards prefer to lace 'em up against come Thursday? While all of their last three wins took place at home and has the potential to be different on a neutral court, let's take a look at what went right the in the first matchup against each team.
We'll start with Virginia Tech, since it was the most recent victory and the only one of the three where Malik Williams was sidelined. If you thought that Louisville was not trending in the right direction, the Hokies are just 3-11 in their last 14 games, with wins over Clemson & Pitt and a 2OT victory against North Carolina.
In Louisville's 68-52 win over the Hokies, the Cards were led primarily by Jordan Nwora's 20 point/12 rebound double double. After the game, head coach Chris Mack went as far to call it "one of his most complete games in a Louisville uniform". Also having a good day on the hardwood was Steven Enoch, who in place of Williams in the starting lineup hauled in 11 rebounds and chipped in with 8 points against the 9th shortest team in Division I.
Louisville also held star freshman Landers Nolley II to just 6 points, and held the Hokies as a whole to 10-30 shooting from beyond the arc (below their 35.4% average up to that point in the season).
Now onto the Orange. Louisville's 90-66 win back on Feb. 19th was Syracuse's most lopsided loss of the season. Like against Virginia, Nwora also led the scoring efforts for the Cards with 17 points. But as the score suggests, he was not the only player to chip in as Dwayne Sutton, Malik Williams, Ryan McMahon and Steven Enoch all had double digits on the night.
Williams' presence could be missed in a potential game vs. Syracuse if he is unable to go, as he hauled in a game high 13 rebounds. However considering Enoch came away with 5 of his own in under half the minutes that Malik played, it's not unreasonable to think he could be just as successful. Especially if he matches the aggression he had in the first half against Virginia.
Defensively, the Cards held the Orange to 38.3% from the field and 26.9% on three-point attempts. 2020 First Team All-ACC selection Elijah Hughes had a night to forget against Louisville's pack-line defense as he went just 3-13 and 1-6 on three pointers for 10 points. Even if the Cards allow Cuse to shoot marginally better, their efforts on the offensive end could still lead them to victory.
Finally, we have North Carolina. This season has not been kind to Roy Williams and Co., as his 13-18 regular season record marks the first time he has gone under .500 as a head coach. Their matchup with the Cards wasn't much different from many of their other games this season, as Louisville defeated them 72-55 back on Feb. 22nd.
While this obviously ended up as a Louisville victory, injuries could play a huge factor for both teams in a potential rematch. Not only did Malik Williams score the second most points for the Cards with 17 on 8-11 shooting (behind only Jordan Nwora's 18), but the ACC's Most Improved Player in Garrison Brooks did not play vs. UofL because of illness. He has averaged 16.7 points over the 2019-20 season, with freshman phenom Cole Anthony also scoring 18 in the losing affair.
If it were up to me, I would prefer to play Virginia Tech over either Syracuse or North Carolina. Louisville has proven that they can defeat Tech with or without Malik Williams due to the fact that the Hokies have one of the smallest lineups in Division I.
Next for me would be Syracuse. The Orange seemed to struggle with their outside shooting thanks to Louisville's perimeter defense, and the Cards had well-balanced scoring effort on the other side of the floor.
As odd as it sounds, I would not want to see North Carolina meet the Cards in Greensboro, NC despite being the lowest seed in the tournament. The Tar Heels will (presumably) be at full strength this time around with two lethal scorers, and Roy Williams is still a Hall of Fame coach. Not to mention that it would be a de facto home game for UNC.
While these theoretical matchups mainly revolve around the availability of Malik Williams, it's important to note that Dwayne Sutton was one of the more important players on the floor in all three previous matchups.
He might not have had the gaudy scoring numbers that Nwora had, but Sutton led the team in +/- in every one of these games (17 vs. VT, 27 vs. SU, 22 vs. UNC). Combined with his willingness to play the five spot in spots where neither Williams or Enoch are on the floor, his flexibility and versatility will be one of the bigger X-Factors come Thursday.
You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top righthand corner of the page. Also be sure to like us on Facebook & Twitter:
Facebook - @LouisvilleOnSI
Twitter - @LouisvilleOnSI and Matthew McGavic at @GeneralWasp
