Know Your Opponent: Louisville

By Bobby Hundley

Louisville (GoCards.com)
Location: Louisville, Ky.
Rankings: No. 39 KenPom, NR AP
NET/SOS: No. 30 NET, No. 7 SOS
Record: 10-5, 1-1 ACC
Carolina Series History (Last Meeting): UNC leads 13-5 (UNC 93, UofL 76, Feb. 17, 2018, KFC Yum! Center)

Louisville comes to Chapel Hill Saturday with a new coaching staff and a mostly new roster from the last time the Cardinals visited the Smith Center. Chris Mack made the 100-mile move from Xavier to lead the program after a 22-14 season under David Padgett in 2018.

On the floor, a mix of returning reserves and transfers now make up the starting lineup, led by sophomore standout Jordan Nwora. After averaging just 12.0 minutes per game as a freshman last year, Nwora has thrived under Mack and leads the Cards in both scoring (17.3 ppg) and rebounding (8.3 rpg). The 6-7 sophomore is the team's volume outside shooter (37 percent on 83 attempts) as well as an outstanding defensive rebounder, making him extremely valuable on both ends of the floor.

UConn transfer Steven Enoch and sophomore Malik Williams provide the bulk of Louisville's interior presence. Williams in particular, who made his first start of the year against Pitt, has played well of late, including a 19-point, 11-board performance in the home win over Miami on Sunday. Dwayne Sutton mirrors Nwora as a solid outside shooter who is also an enthusiastic rebounder.

Nine total Cardinals are averaging at least 16 minutes per game, including a pair of grad transfers in Christen Cunningham and Khwan Fore. Cunningham, a 6-2 Kentucky native who joined the program after graduating from Samford, has been an especially important addition. After missing most of the 2017-18 season due to illness, Cunningham joined the Louisville program in the offseason and was named a co-captain. He is making 46 percent of his 3s so far as a Cardinal and has given Mack a stabilizing presence at point guard. Veteran guards V.J. King and Ryan McMahon also see plenty of minutes in the backcourt.

UofL has faced a challenging schedule in Mack's first season at the helm, with four of its five losses coming to teams in the top 20 of the NET rankings and the top 33 of KenPom's overall efficiency margin. They also have an overtime win over Michigan State, one of the ACC's best non-conference victories.

An exemplary free throw rate (and a stellar percentage at the line) is powering an above-average offense, but an inability to force turnovers has limited the defense (which Mack called "deplorable" after the loss at Pitt). Ultimately, this is a team with a résumé that will keep it in the NCAA tournament conversation well into March.

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