Louisville Wins Five Straight Games, Holding Off Florida State

The Cardinals also pull out the regular season sweep over the Seminoles.

Louisville, Kentucky After taking a couple more days off, the Louisville men’s basketball team resumed their play and managed to hold off Florida State long enough to win 89-81 in the KFC Yum! Centre on Saturday.

at addition to extending their winning run to five games, the Cardinals (21-6, 14-2 ACC) defeat the Seminoles (16-11, 7-9 ACC) 90-76 at Tallahassee to complete the regular season sweep.

It’s the first time Louisville has swept two ACC teams in the regular season since their 2017–18 campaign, when they did the same against Pitt and Virginia Tech. They also swept Virginia earlier this year.

It was by no means Louisville’s most effective game. They had more turnovers (13) than assists (10), shot 50%, and only made 7 of 21 three-pointers. Conversely, they let Florida State shoot 54.2 percent for the game, which is their highest percentage this season in a victory and the highest by an opponent since Kentucky shot 58.2 percent from the field.

The free throw line was the game’s main difference. FSU was 13 of 17 in the charity stripe, while Louisville hit an incredible 30-of-34. In addition, the Cardinals scored 17 points off turnovers compared to the Seminoles’ 7.

Typically a facilitator, Chucky Hepburn scored 29 points to lead Louisville in scoring. He also broke the school record for the most made free throws in a single game, going 17 of 19 at the line.

Three other Cardinals scored in double figures as well. Terrence Edwards Jr. contributed 16 points, Reyne Smith ended with 11 points, and J’Vonne Hadley recorded a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Jamir Watkins lead FSU with 23 points.

Louisville made a strong first impression. The Seminoles burned a timeout just 80 seconds into the game after Florida State missed their first four shots in addition to making two three-pointers in the opening minute.

By messing up the game on defence, the ‘Noles attempted to rally, but the Cardinals threw a kink in their own strategy. UofL held FSU to 12-of-26 from the floor and caused 12 turnovers for 15 points off of them in the first half alone.

Louisville maintained their composure during moments in the first half when their attacking flow faltered. They hit it 15-of-28 from the field and 5-of-12 on three-point tries, leading by as much as 20 points and carrying a 45-31 lead into halftime despite turning it over eight times during this time.

Momentum began to go in the opposite manner in the second half. While Florida State’s offence began to get into a groove, Louisville’s offence encountered some hiccups.

The Cardinals’ advantage was reduced to eight points by four turnovers in the opening four minutes, and it was reduced to as little as six points with less than nine minutes remaining due to a 0-for-5 cold streak following a 6-of-8 shooting start to the quarter.

The Cardinals were able to dig deep and deliver a counterpunch after the Seminoles placed them on the ropes. With little over four minutes remaining, they pulled off a 13–4 run to increase their advantage back to 15 points.

With 1:35 remaining, FSU managed to put together a quick 9-0 run to go within six, but UofL did just enough to keep their guests at bay. Twenty second-half free throws proved to be the difference, even though Louisville only shot 11 for 24 in the second half compared to Florida State’s 20 for 33.

Next up, Louisville travels to Blacksburg to play Virginia Tech, their last road trip of the season. Tuesday, February 25 at 9:00 p.m. EST is the planned tip-off time versus the Hokies.

MCGAVIC MATTHEW

McGavic is a native of the Derby City and a 2016 graduate of the University of Louisville’s Sport Administration program. Since 2017, he has covered the Cardinals in a variety of roles, including a brief stint covering Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Georgia. Plus, he co-hosts the State of Louisville network’s ‘From The Pink Seats’ podcast. Dog enthusiast, video gamer, and bourbon drinker. His Twitter handle is @Matt_McGavic.