Louisville Basketball: Virginia Tech Recap

Cards pull big win on the road in Blacksburg Against Virginia Tech

The Cards entered Blacksburg needing a win. In the ACC, every game is tough, whether you’re playing the best or the worst team. Virginia Tech came out hot in conference play but had cooled off quite a bit. Louisville came in with just a single loss against Clemson, which has still yet to be determined whether that was a bad loss or not. The Cardinals needed a win over the Hokies really just to avoid what would be dubbed a “bad loss.” In the minds of the NCAA committee, bad losses stick out and the Cards must avoid those at all costs.

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Virginia Tech entered last night’s game 4th in the nation in Free Throws Attempted and leading the nation in Free Throw Attempts per Field Goal Attempted. Their game plan was pretty much “let’s drive the lane and pick up fouls.” Clemson had a similar game plan, and wound up going 32-44 from the charity stripe which proved to be the difference in a close four point loss handed to the Cardinals. The difference. Against Clemson, Louisville was cold from the field, shooting 35.3% and only went 11-16 from the Free Throw line. Against Virginia Tech, the Cards sent the Hokies to the line 38 times, surrendering 33 points from the line. However, the Cards shot over 50% from the field and made 25 of their 34 free throw attempts.

Defensively, the Cards allowed Virginia Tech to shoot 45%, significantly higher than the 36.4% they usually allow. The Cards racked up 31 rebounds to 28 for Tech. Another big difference, the Cards interior size proved to be too much for the Tech line up, as the Cards blocked 7 shots.

Tech reminds me a lot of last year’s Cardinal team. Four players accounted for 100% of Virginia Tech’s offense. They got no help off the bench and that played a big factor into this Cardinal victory.

Big Red Louie Game Awards

BRL Player of the Game: Damion Lee. Lee carried this team, scoring 29 points on 6 of 8 shooting (that’s insane!!). He added 6 assists and 5 rebounds to his total. He went a monster 6-7 from three point range and only missed one free throw. This is the Damion Lee we were looking forward to seeing. He balled out and we could use more performances like this as we enter the tough stretch of the season.

Jan 27, 2016; Blacksburg, VA, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Damion Lee (0) shoots a three pointer against the Virginia Tech Hokies in the first half at Cassell Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Michael Shroyer-USA TODAY Sports

BRL 6th Man of the Game: Matz Stockman. This may come as a surprise, but Matz entered the game with 8 minutes remaining in the first half after Onuaku, Mahmoud, and Spalding each racked up two fouls. He came in and played solid minutes at center, scoring 4 points and blocking one shot. Matz has developed quite a bit since last year, but he still has the farthest to go of the Louisville Big Men. He knows what to do with the ball once he gets it, but getting in position to receive a quality pass is where he lacks. Defensively he needs to be more aggressive, but expect Matz to be a contributing factor by his senior season.

Honorable Mention: Trey Lewis. 22 points. 42% shooting.

This Louisville was a good win. All ACC wins are good, and they’re even better on the road. Important to note, this win solidifies no more than 2 January losses this season, something the Cards haven’t seen in quite some time. Louisville is entering their toughest stretch of the season, with 7 of their final 11 games come against teams that are currently ranked in the top 25 (Duke will likely drop out when the new rankings come out). The Cards face #11 Virginia on Saturday and host a North Carolina team on Monday who many consider is the best team in the nation. The biggest tests are yet to come.

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