Duke’s massive injury update should have Louisville basketball fans dreaming big

Louisville basketball is set to take on the winner of Syracuse and SMU tomorrow afternoon in the 2026 ACC Tournament. The Cards are the No. 6 seed and will look to make another trip back to the ACC Tournament Championship game, as last year Pat Kelsey took the Cards to the program's first ACC conference tourney title game.

Louisville basketball's ACC Tournament run has major NCAA seeding implications

Now, while the season hasn’t gone the way the fans would have liked, all that is in the past, and everyone is 0-0 moving forward, as it is win-or-go-home. Louisville has a lot to play for still, as the Cards seek their first ACC Title and try to climb the NCAA Tournament seeds.

When looking at the ACC, Louisville fans know there is a giant in the tournament who is the heavy favorite, the Duke Blue Devils. However, Duke gave a major update this morning, and Louisville fans should suddenly dream big.

Major Duke injury update could boost Louisville basketball’s ACC title hopes

This morning, Jon Scheyer announced that the Duke Blue Devils will be shorthanded in the ACC Tournament, as junior guard Caleb Foster and starting center Patrick Ngongba will be out for the entire tournament.

Foster went down with a foot injury in the first half against UNC in the Blue Devils' final game of the season, and it was just announced he has a fracture in his foot and will be out for the “foreseeable future”. As for Ngongba, he is out for the ACC Tournament and is “hopeful” for the NCAA Tournament, as the 6-foot-11, 250-pound center is dealing with foot soreness after the Blue Devils' win over North Carolina State.

With these two major updates, Louisville fans should like their ACC Title chances way more now. The Cardinals have the third-best odds to win the ACC Title according to FanDuel, and while they still are low at +1300, Duke is now down two starters for the entire tournament, giving Louisville a huge boost if they meet on Saturday in the finals.

In the Cardinals and Blue Devils two showdowns, Foster averaged 13.5 points on 58 percent shooting from the field with four rebounds and two assists. As for Ngongba, he averaged 9.5 points on 61 percent shooting from the field, four rebounds, one steal, and one block against Louisville.

These two starters were huge factors for Duke, and now, with the Blue Devils undermanned, Louisville should feel much better about its chances of winning the program's first ACC Title. The Cardinals and Blue Devils wouldn’t meet until the ACC Championship, as Louisville’s path is most likely through SMU, Miami, Virginia, and then they would meet the Blue Devils on Saturday.

With Louisville trying to climb in the NCAA Tournament seeds, this is a massive update for the ACC and the Cardinals. Louisville will tip off tomorrow afternoon at 2:30 p.m. local time.

Related: 3 biggest questions Louisville basketball must answer before the ACC Tournament

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