NCAAB Game Recap - Louisville at Syracuse
Wed Feb 20, 2019 7:00 PM EST

UNC
88
Duke
72
F
Nev
57
SDSU
65
F
Rut
60
MSU
71
F
Butl
69
Marq
79
F
Fla
82
LSU
77
F(OT)
Vill
73
GTown
85
F
Lou
49
Syr
69
F
MissSt
68
UGA
67
F
N AL
76
KennSt
61
F
Tul
76
Mem
102
F
Lipsco
61
FlGlf
67
F
Stetsn
77
NJIT
82
F
LaSal
60
StBon
62
F
Xav
70
Seton
69
F
BC
80
NCSU
89
F(OT)
Army
81
Leh
91
F
Amer
68
Lafy
70
F
NFla
80
JU
73
F(OT)
UMass
67
GrgWas
79
F
Evans
58
LoyIL
70
F
Ford
69
Rich
72
F
IlSt
50
IndSt
73
F
TXAMC
65
SFA
55
F
Nich
74
SHSU
84
F(OT)
CenAR
75
McNee
83
F(OT)
Lamar
76
InWor
58
F
SeLA
68
NOrl
89
F
NWSt
54
HCU
92
F
Denv
45
SDak
72
F
W IL
63
NebOm
77
F
NrthIA
63
MOSt
43
F
SIU
52
Valpa
55
F
StJon
59
Prov
78
F
NW
49
OhSt
63
F
Ark
56
Aub
79
F
Stan
62
AzSt
80
F
WichSt
81
Tuls
60
F
Pitt
65
GaTec
73
F
Crei
79
DeP
67
F
Colora
74
WaSt
76
F
ColSt
91
SJSU
70
F
CSNor
78
LongB
80
F
AF
64
Fres
61
F
Utah
45
Wash
62
F
NM
55
UtSt
71
F
Navy
LoyMD
PPD

Feb 20, 2019, 7:00 PM EST

Final

1

2

T

(18) Louisville

23

26

49

Syracuse

35

34

69

Syracuse beats No. 18 Louisville 69-49
Wed Feb 20, 2019 11:02 PM

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) Syracuse desperately needed a game like this and slumping Louisville obliged.

Elijah Hughes scored 18 points and Oshae Brissett had 16 to lead four players in double figures as the Orange beat the 18th-ranked Cardinals 69-49 on Wednesday night.

The Orange, who had lost two of three, got back on track after being off for a week, and their third win this season over a ranked team was paced by their 2-3 zone defense.

"Louisville has been a really good road team... they've been very, very good on the road, so a good win," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "I thought the week off helped us. I thought we were able to do some things practice-wise that helped us."

Syracuse (18-8, 9-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) had suffered a 73-58 loss at North Carolina State in their last game, shooting just 35 percent, a weakness the Orange had displayed in all four of their conference losses. They weren't much better in this one (22 of 57 for 38.6 percent) but hit 11 3-pointers and held the Cardinals in check throughout.

"Give Syracuse credit. Their length really bothered our guys," Louisville coach Chris Mack said. "Early on, when we got the ball into the logo and a few areas we were trying to get to, we just didn't convert. Even our offensive rebounds we had trouble converting."

Louisville entered the game shooting 36.3 percent from 3 and finished 6 of 28 (21.4 percent) and 14 of 54 (25.9 percent) overall, both season lows.

And all the misses had an uncharacteristic effect at the other end - a lack of defensive effort.

"We try to pride ourself on defense," said guard Khwan Fore, who had eight points. "We miss our first couple of shots and ended up letting them get in the lane and drive the ball. I think that's where it all started."

The Cardinals (18-9, 9-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) were coming off two tough games. They blew a 23-point second-half lead and lost to top-ranked Duke just over a week ago, and on Saturday barely eked out a 56-55 win over Clemson. Louisville led the Tigers by seven points with 17 seconds remaining and Clemson had two chances in the final seconds to walk off the court with a win.

The slump continued against the Orange.

Jordan Nwora had 11 points on 3-of-13 shooting to lead Louisville, Dwayne Sutton was 1 of 10 for five points and Christen Cunningham missed all six shots he attempted, finishing with four points on free throws and with three assists and three turnovers.

Buddy Boeheim had 14 points and Tyus Battle 11 for Syracuse.

Syracuse led 35-23 at the break and the sluggish Cardinals couldn't get untracked. After Cunningham missed a 3 from the top of the key and Nwora followed with an air ball, Battle converted a steal and dunk, then fed Hughes for an open 3 on the wing. Less than two minutes later, Hughes hit his fourth 3-pointer of the game to boost the Orange lead to 47-28 with 12:05 left.

"It's gonna give me a lot of confidence going to the next one and I'm just gonna try to keep it going," said Hughes, who scored just 13 points combined in the previous two games.

Syracuse's 2-3 zone was purring in the first half, too, and the Orange led by as many as 16 after both teams struggled at the start. The Cardinals averted falling further behind by hitting 10 of 12 free throws.

AWFUL START

In the opening nine minutes, the teams combined to shoot 4 of 18 from the floor, 2 of 10 from beyond the arc, and each had four turnovers. The Orange held the Cardinals without a basket for 7:20 and put together a 15-3 run to gain a double-digit lead. Boeheim hit a 3 and a runner, Hughes converted a pull-up 3 in transition, and Brissett's left-handed layup gave Syracuse a 26-13 lead with 4:03 left in the first half. A dunk by Steven Enoch with 3:48 left broke the drought for the Cardinals, who trailed 35-23 at halftime after shooting just 1 of 13 from long range and 6 of 26 (23.1 percent) overall. They entered the game shooting 37.3 percent from 3-point range in league play.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Cardinals will drop again in the next Top 25.

HE SAID IT

"I think it's just a slump. All teams have that," Fore said. "We've just got to keep working, put it behind us."

BIG PICTURE

Louisville: After losing three of their previous four - all the losses to ranked teams - the Cardinals were reeling and have to figure out something fast with No. 3 Virginia up next.

"We've got to be able to be big boys and get over it," Mack said. "No other way to put it. I thought tonight our energy level once we started missing shots became flat. That's certainly not the answer."

Syracuse: The Orange still have to play No. 1 Duke and No. 3 Virginia at home and No. 8 North Carolina, Wake Forest and Clemson on the road. That's a daunting schedule before the postseason begins, and point guard Frank Howard is still not performing even close to his level of play. He took one shot and didn't score against Louisville.

UP NEXT

Louisville hosts No. 3 Virginia on Saturday at noon.

Syracuse hosts top-ranked Duke on Saturday night.

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More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25

Leaders

Louisville PTS +/- AST REB ST BLK
J. Nwora 11 0 0 6 0 0
K. Fore 8 0 2 2 2 0
Syracuse PTS +/- AST REB ST BLK
E. Hughes 18 0 1 6 2 2
O. Brissett 16 0 0 8 0 1

Team Comparison

Lou Syr
Points For 49 69
Field Goals 14/54-26% 22/57-39%
Three Pointers 6/28-21% 11/30-37%
Free Throws 15/18-83% 14/16-88%
Offensive Rebounds 10 9
Defensive Rebounds 26 30
Rebounds 40 43
Blocks 2 5
Steals 7 5
Turnovers 13 12
Personal Fouls 16 14
Technical Fouls 0 0
Ejections 0 0

2018-19 Reg Season - Syr Leads Series 1-0

Date Result Away Pts Ldr Home Pts Ldr
Wed Feb 20 Lou 49 @ Syr 69 J. Nwora 11 E. Hughes 18

Game Information

Stadium: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, New York
Attendance: 22,988
Game Time: