University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Louisville
No. 6 Tar Heels Fall To Louisville, 97-80
December 23, 1999 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 23, 1999
By STEVE BAILEY
AP Sports Writer
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Nate Johnson scored a career-high 31 points and Louisville forced No. 6 North Carolina into 21 turnovers in the Cardinals' 97-80 victory Thursday night.
Louisville (7-3), who fell to unranked Kentucky by 30 points on Saturday, harassed the larger, slower Tar Heels (8-4) and refused to be intimidated in the paint.
Nate Johnson was 13-of-19, including 4-of-8 on 3-pointers. Marques Maybin added 20 points, Reece Gaines had 12 and Quintin Bailey 10. The Cardinals committed only six turnovers and collected 13 steals to the Tar Heels' two.
Led by Bailey's 10 points, Louisville's unheralded bench outscored North Carolina's reserves 25-13.
Max Owens led North Carolina with 22 points. Joseph Forte added 16 and Jason Capel 13, and Brendan Haywood had 10 points and 10 rebounds.
North Carolina, still smarting following Tuesday's 82-73 loss to No. 20 Indiana in the Jimmy V Classic, fell victim to the Cardinals' quickness and athleticism from the game's opening moments.
A 7-2 run put Louisville up 29-22 with 8:45 remaining in the first half. The Cardinals then blitzed North Carolina with a 10-0 run over the final 2:30, including two thundering dunks by Maybin on back-to-back turnovers, to take a 50-35 lead at halftime.
Louisville's frenetic pressure forced 14 first-half turnovers, leading to 21 points. The Cardinals also hung with the Tar Heels on the boards, trailing by a 20-16 margin at halftime but scoring 11 second-chance points to North Carolina's four.
Leading 63-51, a Johnson 3-pointer capped an 11-4 run, giving the Cardinals a 19-point lead with 9:15 remaining.
The Tar Heels cut the margin to 11 with 3:45 to play but would get no closer.
