Preview: Pitt Looks to Rally against Louisville

The Pitt Panthers look to rally against a tough Louisville side.
Jan 7, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Pitt Panthers head coach Jeff Capel (right) talks to guard Jaland Lowe (15) during the first half against the Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images
Jan 7, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Pitt Panthers head coach Jeff Capel (right) talks to guard Jaland Lowe (15) during the first half against the Duke Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images / Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers look to bounce back from a tough loss, as they face Louisville at home.

Pitt was limited in all ways against No. 4 Duke on the road on Jan. 7, scoring just 47 points, the fewest they've scored in a game since Feb. 7, 2022, at Virginia Tech where Pitt also scored 47 points. Senior guard Ishmael Leggett only scored four points, his fewest in a game since he scored two against Duke at home on Jan. 9, 2024.

The Blue Devils are one of, if not the best, defensive teams in the country. They top the charts inKenPom's defensive rating. But the Panthers certainly need to bounce back.

That opportunity comes in a return to the Petersen Events Center, where the Panthers host the Cardinals in their next matchup.

Former Pitt forward Blake Hinson scored a career high 41 points including a school record nine 3-pointers at home against Louisville on Feb. 17, 2024. The 41 points finished for third most in a game in Pitt histroy.

But Hinson is no longer with the Panthers and new threats have emerged. Leggett and sophomore guard Jaland Lowe tied for the second-most points from a Panther that day with 10 each. Now, they're the main offensive threats for the Panthers.

Although a rough offensive outing from the Panthers as a collective against Duke drove everyone except junior forward Cameron Corhen's points-per-game down, Leggett still is averaging 16.8, and Lowe averages 16.7 points per game, ranking No. 8 and No. 9 best scorers in the ACC, respectively.

Pitt hasn't yet proved they can hang with the top teams. They lost to Mississippi State on the road by 33 points, just two days after making it into the AP Top 25 poll for the first time this season, leading to an unranked start the following week.

In the most recent poll, the Panthers received the most votes of any unranked team, but recently suffered that last defeat to the Blue Devils.

The Cardinals are not on the level of the Bulldogs nor the Blue Devisls so far, but they do give the Panthers a chance to win back the trust of AP poll voters.

Preview: Pitt vs. Louisville

The Cardinals are on their fifth head coach since legendary head coach Rick Pitino took a break from coaching after the 2016-17 season.

The most recent hire is first-year head coach Pat Kelsey, who spent the last three seasons coaching at the College of Charleston, where wonback-to-back Colonial Athletic Association conference championships and NCAA Tournament Appearances. He won three conference championships in nine seasons at Winthrop prior to his last stop.

Kelsey inherited a difficult situation, as the Cardinals won four games and eight games in the last two season, respectively.

These ranked as two of the worst seasons for Louisville, with their 1940-1941 season the worst, as they won two contests but only played 16 games.

Kelsey looks like the right guy for the job, as he's used the transfer portal to great success so far.

Louisville's leading scorer is senior guard Chucky Hepburn, who is one of the most experienced players in college basketball.

Hepburn has started in every one of his 119 collegiate career games and has averaged over 30 minutes per game every season.

His first three seasons were spent at Wisconsin, averaging 12.2 points per game and shooting 40.5% from deep in his sophomore season. Now with the Cardinals, Hepburn leads the charge with 15.1 points per game and leads the team with 5.6 assists per game, the 40th best mark in the country.

Hepburn is capable of big games, scoring a career-high 32 points in a 79-70 overtime win over West Virginia.

Another key transfer Louisville acquired is fifth-year senior guard Terrence Edwards Jr, who spent the first four seasons of his collegiate career at James Madison.

Standing at six-foot-six, Edwards Jr. got on the nation's radar last season when he led James Madison to a birth in the NCAA Tournament with a No. 12 seeding, where they upset No. 5 Wisconsin in the first round.

Edwards Jr. started in all 36 games and averaged 17.2 points last season. This year with the Cardinals, Edwards Jr. is the second-leading scorer averaging 13.1 points in his career-high 30.3 minutes per game.

Senior guard Reyne Smith transferred in to help with the Cardinals three-point shooting. Smith, who stands at six-foot-two, stepped on the campus of College of Charleston when Kelsey got there, and left with Kelsey too.

As a first-year, Smith shot 7.5 three-pointers per game on very good efficency. In Smith's three seasons at Charleston he started all but 13 games and averaged double-digit points ever season.

Smith shot 39.4% from deep on 8.1 attempts per game, in his junior year, Smith hasn't been a full-time starter this year with the Cardinals, but is shooting 37.2% from behind the arc on a career-high 9.1 attempts per game.

Rounding out the Cardinals' starting lineup is fifth-year senior guard J'Vonne Hadley. Standing at six-foot-six, Hadley leads the Cardinals with 7.9 rebounds per game while adding 11.6 points per game.

Hadley proved he could be a full-time starter last season when he started all 36 games for Colorado averaging 11.6 points and grabbing six rebounds per game.

The Panthers need to be ready for the multitude of ways the Cardinals can score. After such a poor offensive performance against Duke, confidence can be difficult to muster.

But the Panthers must stay unwavering. They were happy to return graduate student guard Damian Dunn against Duke after he missed seven straight games due to surgery on his thumb.

It's still unclear if Dunn will return to his spot in the starting lineup that would send redshirt senior forward Zach Austin back to the bench as the sixth man, but he's a vital player whenever he's on the court, regardless if he starts or not.

How to Watch: Pitt vs. Louisville

Pitt vs Louisville tips off at noon on Jan. 11 at the Petersen Events Center. ESPN2 will broadcast the game.

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