Louisville basketball is set to play Creighton on March 20 in the round of 64. This matchup will be held in Lexington, Ky., just an hour away from the KFC Yum! Center. Louisville basketball's first two rounds will be played in Rupp Arena.
The Cardinals, however, will be playing in an 8-seed vs 9-seed matchup when most fans assumed they were going to be playing a 5v12 or 6v11 matchup. The Cardinal's resume seems to be glaringly overlooked by the NCAA Tournament committee. Louisville basketball has won 21 of their last 23 games and beat Clemson twice, but yet the Tigers secured a 5-seed.
Teams like BYU, Kansas, Clemson, Saint Mary's, and others are all ranked higher than the Cardinals, and it just doesn't make much sense. Well, now because of their draw the Cardinals will have to go up against a difficult path to make it to the NCAA Final Four.
5 players who make or break Louisville basketball championship dreams
Louisville basketball currently opens up with a +11000 odds to win the National Championship, and +1900 to make it to the Final Four from the South region. The Cardinals will have to overcome all the adversity, but having the home court advantage can be helpful.
The Final Four and National Championship are being held from San Antonio, Texas. If the Cardinals want to make a deep playoff run, these five players will have to step up to make Louisville basketball championship dreams come true.
5. Noah Waterman
Louisville basketball played three games in the ACC Tournament, and one of the surprising names who stepped up was Noah Waterman. The Cardinals senior forward averaged nine points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 46 percent from downtown.
The Cardinals bench must step up in the NCAA Tournament to make a deep run in March. One of the key players coming off the bench for Pat Kelsey is Noah Waterman. Waterman displayed in the ACC Tournament that he would be the first guy off the bench and could provide some shooting for the Cardinals.
Louisville can put out a shooting lineup with Hepburn, Smith, Edwards, Hadley, and Waterman and space the floor out. The Cardinal's downtown shooting is going to be vital for this team's postseason run, and Noah Waterman off the bench must be their main guy.
4. J' Vonne Hadley
J'Vonne Hadley has shown he can be that third scoring option countless times this season. Louisville basketball will need Hadley to be a little more aggressive in the NCAA Tournament than he was in the ACC Tournament.
Hadley stepped up big time vs Clemson as he finished the game with 20 points, nine rebounds, and 66.7 percent from the floor and from downtown. The 6-foot-6 guard is a key X-factor for Pat Kelsey and his Cardinals as he can guard one through five, but then, on the other end, will back his defender down and score an easy bucket.
Louisville basketball's path is going to be hard to earn a spot in the Sweet Sixteen, but if the Cardinals want to beat Creighton and then upset the No. 1 Auburn Tigers, then Hadley will have to be aggressive on the offensive side of the court.
3. Reyne Smith
Reyne Smith is this team's glaring X-factor. The sharpshooter missed all of the ACC Tournament, which revealed just how vital he is to this Louisville basketball team. In the ACC Tournament, the Cardinals' offense was much more stagnant, with less ball movement or movement without the ball.
Smith has a significant effect on the court, as the defense must keep someone on him at all times, as he is one of the best catch-and-shoot shooters in the nation. The Cardinals' offense flows much better with him on the floor. Smith makes the Cardinals space the floor out and forces the defense not to double Edwards or Hepburn.
The sharpshooter is also lethal from downtown. He averages 3.5 threes a game, has made 104 on the season, and is shooting it at 38.5 percent.
2. Terrence Edwards Jr.
Terrence Edwards Jr. is coming into the NCAA Tournament on fire. The Cardinals star guard is now Pat Kelsey's leading scorer with 16.6 points per game. Edwards averaged 25 points and 5.3 rebounds while shooting around 40 percent from the floor and splashing eight threes.
Edwards has emerged as one of the best guards in the nation, and he has shown he can take over. Lousiville basketball's guard dropped 29 points in the Cardinals ACC Tournament Championship game against the No. 1 seed Duke Blue Devils. Edwards's ability to create his own shot and drive to the basket or shoot from downtown is what makes this player so unique.
Terrence Edwards Jr. will have to keep this scoring up and help Chucky Hepburn out. The Cardinals guard will have to shoot consistently and be Louisville basketball's primary scorer.
1. Chucky Hepburn
Chucky Hepburn had the biggest highlight of Lousiville basketball's ACC Tournament run with his buzzer-beater to defeat Stanford. However, outside of that, Hepburn struggled a little bit. The Cardinals All-ACC guard averaged 15.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 2.7 steals while shooting 33.2 percent from the floor and around 20 percent from beyond the arc.
Without Smith, it was clear the Cardinal's star guard had a hard time creating shots on his own or playing at the level we are accustomed to. The attention was all on Hepburn, and court spacing was not how it usually is.
Chucky Hepburn has to be the Cardinal's best player if they want to go far in the NCAA Tournament. With Reyne Smith returning to the floor, Hepburn will be able to play more freely and be back to his usual self. Hepburn has the ability to take over games, as he has had seven games with 20 points or more, including his career-high 37 points against Pitt. Hepburn must shoot the ball at a reasonable split but be the elite defender he is on the other side. The Cardinal's fate relies heavily on Chucky Hepburn and the production he puts out on the floor.
Louisville basketball NCAA Tournament begins March 20 at 12:15 p.m. local time against Creighton.