Short-Handed, Cold-Shooting Louisville Drilled by Ole Miss in SEC/ACC Challenge

The Cardinals shot just 33.3 percent for the evening, fresh off of losing two players for the season.

Dec 3, 2024; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Chucky Hepburn (24) looks to pass under the pressure of Mississippi Rebels guard Sean Pedulla (3) during the first half at KFC Yum! Center. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images / Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Hosting Ole Miss as part of the annual SEC/ACC Challenge in their first game following the Battle 4 Atlantis, the Louisville men's basketball program could not overcome persistent shooting issues and mounting injuries, falling 86-63 on Tuesday night at the KFC Yum! Center.

The Cardinals (5-3, 0-0 ACC), who previously dropped a 69-64 decision to Oklahoma in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship, lose back-to-back games for the first time under first year head coach Pat Kelsey. As for the No. 23 Rebels (7-1, 0-0 SEC), they bounce back from a narrow neutral court loss to No. 13 Purdue.

Now matter where on the floor that Louisville attempted a shot, they struggled to sink it. Despite generating a fair amount of good looks, they finished shooting just 33.3 percent from the floor, were an ice cold 5-of-30 on three point attempts, and just 20-of-30 at the free throw line.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the floor, the Cardinals' defense had issues of its own. The Rebels routinely took advantage of one-on-one matchups around the rim, resulting in scoring 48 points in the paint and shooting 56.7 percent overall. UofL also only forced eight Ole Miss turnovers, and had just two steals.

Their inability to protect the rim or defend deep into the game were heavily impacted by injuries. Louisville announced Monday that Kasean Pryor would miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL, and reserve guard Koren Johnson - who had missed the last five games - announced hours before tip-off that he would have to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery. The Cardinals have also been without forward Aboubacar Traore (broken arm) since the second game of the year.

Chucky Hepburn, fresh off of National Player of the Week honors, led Louisville in scoring with 19 points and four assists. J'Vonne Hadley also cracked double figures scoring for the Cardinals with 12 points.

On the other end, four Ole Miss players finished scored double digits, including a team-best 18 points from former Cardinal Dre Davis.

Louisville's shooting efforts to start this one were as cold as the air outside the KFC Yum! Center. They connected on just five of their first 22 shot, and missed their first 11 three-point tries. Meanwhile, Ole Miss shot 15-of-30 for the entire first half.

What kept this snowballing into something much worse by halftime was a concerted effort to score around the rim in the final few minutes of half, and free throw shooting. The Cardinals attempted only two threes in the last seven-plus minutes, and in turn hit five of their final shots. Add in a 10-of-13 effort at the charity stripe to the Rebels' 7-of-8, and they went into the break down just 40-31.

In the second half, Louisville's shooting from both the field and free throw line, as well as their defense, took a nose dive. They were just 9-of-29 from the floor, 4-of-17 on threes and 10-of-17 at the line, while Ole Miss shot a blazing 19-of-30 while only going 5-of-9 from deep and 3-of-5 at the stripe.

Next up, Louisville welcomes Duke to town for their ACC opener. Tip-off against the Blue Devils is scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 8 at 6:00 p.m. EST.

(Photo of Sean Pedulla, Chucky Hepburn: Jamie Rhodes - Imagn Images)

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