LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Welcoming No. 12 Tennessee to the KFC Yum! Center for an early season showdown, the Louisville men’s basketball program could not capitalize on the opportunity to make a statement early in the Pat Kelsey era, falling flat on faces for a 77-55 loss on Saturday.
The Cardinals (1-1, 0-0 ACC) have now dropped their last 16 games against AP Top 25 competition, having not won since taking down No. 19 Virginia Tech on Jan. 6, 2021. Louisville went 0-12 in two years against such competition under previous head coach Kenny Payne.
From the jump, Louisville struggled with Tennessee’s defense and overall physicality, and could not establish any sort of presence down low. They shot a paltry 26.7 percent from the field, including 10-of-39 on three pointers, with just 21 of their 60 total field goal attempts coming inside the arc. The Cardinals were also out-rebounded 40-26 on the afternoon.
On the other side of the court, the Volunteers seemingly got whatever they wanted whenever they weren’t turning the ball over. While Louisville forced 20 turnovers, Tennessee still shot 56.6 percent from the floor, tallied 40 points in the paint and were a blazing 10-of-19 on threes.
Reyne Smith had a team-high 18 points and five rebounds off the bench for Louisville, while Noah Waterman was the only other Cardinal to crack double figures scoring with 10 points. Zakai Zeigler and Chaz Lanier both had 19 points for Tennessee, combining for 14 of the Volunteers’ 30 field goals.
Louisville played with a little too much juice right out of the gates, and it was evident on the court. They missed their first seven field goals of the game and turned the ball over four times in the first five minutes of the game, allowing Tennessee to open up the game on a 10-0 run.
Even when the Cardinals did start to find some momentum on the offensive end, their defense was boom-or-bust. While they did force 11 first half turnovers, the Volunteers still shot 16-of-27 for the first half, leading by as much as 22 with just over three minutes until halftime.
Louisville was able to end the first half on a 10-2 run to head into halftime with some momentum, but they still shot just 8-of-33 in the opening period – including a stretch of 1-for-13 – to trail 40-26 at the break.
When the two teams returned to the floor, Louisville did show some increased physicality and tenacity. While their execution still left some to be desired, the Cardinals were able to trim the deficit to as little as nine with just over 13 minutes left in the game.
But after the spurt that them in striking distance, Tennessee put together the kill shot. Assisted by a stretch where they shot 8-for-11, the Vols strung together a 22-5 run to lead by as much as 26. Louisville was able to get a brief 8-0 run together, but never posed a true threat to mount a comeback. They went just 8-for-27 in the half, compared to 14-of-26 by Tennessee.
Next up, Louisville will continue on their four-game home stand to open the 2024-25 season with a matchup against Bellarmine. Tip-off against the Knights is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 19 at 7:00 p.m. EST.
(Photo of Zakai Zeigler, James Scott: Jamie Rhodes – Imagn Images)
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