Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. North Carolina Tar Heels

The Cardinals hit the road to face the Tar Heels, who are currently the top team in the ACC.

Louisville Cardinals (6-10, 1-4 ACC) at North Carolina Tar Heels (13-3, 5-0 ACC)

- Tipoff: Wednesday, January 17 at 9:00 p.m. EST
- Location: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, N.C.
- How To Watch: ACC Network
- How To Listen: 93.9 FM
- Betting Favorite: NC State -6.0
- All-Time Series: North Carolina leads 19-7
- Last Meeting: North Carolina won 80-59 on Jan. 14, 2023 (KFC Yum! Center - Louisville, Ky.)

Projected Starting Lineups

Louisville

• G Skyy Clark (6-3, 205, So.)
• G Hercy Miller (6-3, 175, Jr.)
• G/F Mike James (6-5, 200, R-So.)
• F Danilo Jovanovich (6-8, 220, So.)
• F Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (6-10, 240, Jr.)

North Carolina

• G R.J. Davis (6-0, 180, Sr.)
• G Elliot Cadeau (6-1, 180, Fr.)
• G Cormac Ryan (6-5, 195, Gr.)
• F Harrison Ingram (6-7, 225, Jr.)
• F/C Armando Bacot (6-11, 240, Gr.)

Comparison

See how the Cardinals stack up against the Tar Heels, and who the statistical models favor: Tale of The Tape, Predictions: Louisville vs. North Carolina

Game Notes

Louisville

• Over the last three games, the Cardinals are 28-for-59 (48.7%) from 3-point range. Louisville is also averaging 14.0 assists per game over its last six outings after not tallying more than 13 assists in any of the first 10 games.
• In the last three games, redshirt sophomore Mike James is averaging 23.0 points per game, while shooting 61.1% from the field (22 of 36), 73.3% from 3-point range (11 of 15) and 77.8% from the free-throw line (14-18).
• Over the last seven games, junior forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield is averaging 14.7 points and 8.7 rebounds while shooting 62% from the field (37 of 60) and 74% from the free-throw line (28-38). After registering two double-doubles in the first 68 games of his career, he has four in his last seven games.
• Freshman guard/forward Curtis Williams is averaging 12.3 points off the bench over the last six games while making 17 of 38 3-pointers (44.7%). He was 5-for-18 from 3 (27.8%) over the first 10 games. After not reaching double figures in the first 10 games of his career, Williams has scored at least 11 points in five of the last six.
• UofL’s Kenny Payne and UNC’s Hubert Davis are two of 29 Division I head coaches in the country who were NBA Draft picks. Payne was selected 19th by the 76ers in 1989, while Davis was selected 20th by the Knicks in 1992.
• UNC forward Jae’Lyn Withers played three seasons for Louisville from 2020-23, appearing in 81 games with 64 starts. He was a team captain for UofL last season and an ACC All-Freshman Team selection in 2021.
• Last time out: Louisville's last-minute comeback attempt came up just short, falling 89-83 vs. NC State.
• KEY FIRST HALF RUN: The Wolfpack jumped out to an early 12-0 advantage, netting 4-5 shots from the field, and forcing four Cardinal turnovers. Louisville scored their first bucket of the game at the 15:41 mark after a jumper by Ty-Laur Johnson found the bottom of the net. The Cardinals remained at arm’s length for most of the first half, pulling within single digits after a layup by Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and a pair of free throws by Johnson to bring the Cards within nine entering halftime.
• KEY SECOND HALF RUN: The Cardinals came out hot to start the second half, going on a 9-0 run to pull within two with 16:11 remaining. Mike James and Huntley-Hatfield led the Cardinals during the run, combining for 11 points on 5-7 shooting. It was a back-and-forth contest throughout the half until NC State went on a 12-5 run to stretch the lead to 14 at the 2:18 mark. With 2:09 remaining in the game, Louisville fought back with an 11-3 run off a 3-pointer from Skyy Clark to cut the lead to just three with 22 seconds left. The Wolfpack iced the game at the free-throw line, going 4-4 as time expired in the second half.
• Mike James paced the Cards with 20 points, making this his third straight game with 20 points or more. He netted 6 of 12 from the floor along with five boards and an assist in his 38 minutes of play.
• Brandon Huntley-Hatfield logged his sixth double-double of his career and fourth on the season, contributing 13 points and 10 rebounds, going 6-12 from the field in 35 minutes of action.
• Curtis Williams made four 3-pointers, tying his career-high, and scored 15 points off the bench. He has now reached double figures in five of his last six games played. He also pulled down a career-high five rebounds to go along with two assists.
• Ty-Laur Johnson tied his career-high with 14 points in 21 minutes of action. He also contributed five assists, two steals, and one rebound on the afternoon.
• Skyy Clark filled his stat sheet with 10 points, two assists, two steals, one board, and one block in 36 minutes.
• After missing three games due to injury, Tre White contributed seven points in 20 minutes of play. He netted 3-6 from the field to go along with four boards.

North Carolina

• The Tar Heels have won six straight and are 13-3 overall, 5-0 in the ACC. It is the second time the Tar Heels have won at least six straight games under head coach Hubert Davis. In 2021- 22 UNC won its final five regular-season games and beat Virginia in the ACC quarterfinals.It is the first time Carolina has begun ACC play 5-0 since an 8-0 start in 2015-16.
• This is the 15th time UNC is 5-0 in the ACC.
• The Tar Heels defeated Syracuse, 103-67, on January 13. RJ Davis led five Tar Heels in double figures with 22 points, Armando Bacot and Harrison Ingram both had double-doubles and Carolina scored its most points and posted the largest margin of victory (36) in series history.
• Davis led the Tar Heels in scoring for the 12th time this season with his 10th 20-point game of the season. He passed Mitch Kupchak, Hubert Davis, Jawad Williams, Justin Jackson and Eric Montross in career scoring to move up to 24th in UNC history.
• Carolina is No. 4 in this week’s Associated Press poll, the fourth straight week and sixth time in the last seven the Tar Heels are ranked in the top 10. It is the 88th time UNC is No. 4 in the poll.
• It’s the latest in a season the Tar Heels are ranked as high as fourth since being ranked No. 3 in the three polls in 2018-19.
• The Tar Heels are No. 5 in KenPom and No. 7 in the NET. The Tar Heels have five Quad 1 wins; only Purdue (six), Arizona (five) and Kansas (five) have as many.
• The Tar Heels are 4-2 against AP-ranked opponents this season with wins over No. 20 Arkansas, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 7 Oklahoma and No. 16 Clemson (rankings when UNC played those teams).
• KenPom ranks Carolina’s schedule the eighth most difficult in the country behind Purdue, Arizona, Florida A&M, Xavier, Wisconsin, Alcorn State and Mississippi Valley State.
• The Tar Heels are No. 5 in the country in defensive efficiency (91.9 points allowed per 100 possessions) and No. 16 in offensive efficiency (117.8 points scored per 100 possessions).
• Since Ken Pomeroy began tracking points per possessions in 2001-02 the Tar Heels’ highest national finish in defensive efficiency was fourth in 2010-11 (90.4).
• UNC, Arizona, Auburn, Houston and Tennessee are the only schools in the top 20 in both offensive and defensive efficiency.
• Carolina is 19-7 vs. the Cardinals, including 10-4 since Louisville began competing in the ACC in 2014-15.
• The Tar Heels are 5-1 in Chapel Hill (all in the Smith Center).
• Carolina has won the last four games, including 80-59 at the KFC Yum! Center last season.
• The Tar Heels are 5-1 when UNC is ranked No. 4 or higher in the AP poll.
• Jae’Lyn Withers earned his degree from Louisville and played the last three seasons (and red-shirted in 2019-20) for the Cardinals. He totaled 653 points and 455 rebounds in 81 games for the Cards. The Charlotte native made 64 starts over the previous three seasons for UL.
• Withers totaled 34 points in four games for Louisville against UNC. He played against UNC two times in the Smith Center, including 2/21/22, when he had 10 points and seven rebounds.
• Armando Bacot has averaged 13.2 points and 14.2 rebounds in five previous games against Louisville.
• Bacot has 53 rebounds in his last three games against the Cards. He set his then-career high with 22 in the overtime win at Louisville in 2022, had 15 later that year at home and 16 at the KFC Yum! Center last season.
• Bacot has double-doubles in each of his last three games against Louisville (19/22, 12/15 and 14/16).
• RJ Davis has averaged 13.0 points and 3.8 assists in his four previous games against Louisville. That includes 18 points and five assists in the overtime road win his sophomore season, 16 later that year at home and 12 points, five assists last season.
• Davis has made 10 of 21 three-pointers (.476) against the Cards.
• Cormac Ryan has averaged 8.3 points in four games with a high of 11 last season while playing for Notre Dame. He also had eight assists and three steals in that game, a 76-62 Notre Dame victory.

(Photo of Mike James, Caleb Love: Jamie Rhodes - USA TODAY Sports)

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