Know Your Opponent: Louisville

By Bobby Hundley

Louisville (GoCards.com)
Location: Louisville, Ky.
Rankings: UofL - No. 29 KenPom, RV AP; UNC - No. 10 KenPom, No. 14 AP
RPI/SOS: UofL - 41/49; UNC - 8/2
Records: UofL - 18-8, 8-5 ACC; UNC - 20-7, 9-5 ACC
Carolina Series History (Last Meeting): UNC leads 12-5 (UNC 74, UofL 63, Feb. 22, 2017, Smith Center)

For all the offseason turmoil surrounding the Louisville men's basketball program, the early departures of Donovan Mitchell and Jaylen Johnson to the pro ranks may have had the greatest on-court impact on the 2018 Cardinals. Mitchell was an especially tough loss, as the 6-3 sophomore led UofL in scoring and was poised for a national breakout as a junior. (The breakout has definitely happened, by the way, with Mitchell threatening Ben Simmons for NBA Rookie of the Year honors.)

Junior Deng Adel has developed from strong second option to leading man in the absence of Mitchell, though his status for Saturday is in question after missing the last two games with an ankle injury. The 6-7 Australian is averaging a team-best 15.5 points per game and is also second on the team in assists and third in rebounds. He has scored in double figures in 17 straight games, but Adel sprained his left ankle in the home loss to Syracuse on Feb. 5 and has not played since.

Louisville is still led by its defense. At No. 17 nationally in KenPom's adjusted defensive efficiency, UofL is in line to finish as a top-20 defense for the eighth year in a row. With 7-footer Anas Mahmoud (13th nationally in block percentage) and 6-10 Ray Spalding (91st) protecting the rim, the Cards have one of the most formidable defensive front lines in college basketball. In ACC play, opponents are making a paltry 45 percent of their 2s, third only to Duke and Syracuse.

After largely coming off the bench in 2017, Spalding has thrived in a larger role as a junior. He is Louisville's best rebounder, especially on the offensive end where he ranks 25th nationally in OR% according to KenPom. A non-factor in the loss to Carolina a season ago, Spalding's impact on both ends of the floor figures to be critical for the Cardinals Saturday.

Point guard Quentin Snider gives UofL two seniors (along with Mahmoud) who log big minutes, and for the second year in a row, Snider has taken his game to another level against ACC competition. He is shooting 42 percent from deep in league games after making just 34 percent of his 3s in non-conference action. When he has struggled, however, the Cardinals have struggled - in the loss to Syracuse, Snider had three points on 1-of-8 shooting and did not tally an assist for the first time since his sophomore year.

Even without Adel, Louisville has no shortage of depth. Ten Cardinals played double-digit minutes in the rout of Pitt, and the freshman trio of Darius Perry, Jordan Nwora and Malik Williams is starting to see more impact time on the floor. Perry especially looks to be a piece of the puzzle moving forward after making his first career starts last week.

In Adel's absence the Cardinals took care of business against Georgia Tech and Pitt and now stand at 18-8 and 8-5 in the ACC with five regular season games to go. Louisville is just a game out of second, but its closing stretch is likely the toughest in the league - UNC at home, at Duke, at Virginia Tech, home for Virginia and then at NC State. And with three games separating second and 11th, there's plenty to play for over the final three weeks, starting with Saturday night at the Yum!.

Scoreboard Slider

University of North Carolina Athletics

Related Videos