Jones, Johnson, Withers Earn All-ACC Honors Monday, Mar 8 2021 

basketball and Carlik Jones and david johnson and Donovan Mitchell and dwayne sutton and Jae'Lyn Withers and jordan nwora and sports Eli Hughes 2:00 pm

By Kenny Klein–

Three University of Louisville men’s basketball student-athletes have received postseason recognition in the Atlantic Coast Conference for their accomplishments this season.

Graduate guard Carlik Jones was honored as a first team 2020-21 All-ACC selection, sophomore guard David Johnson earned honorable mention All-ACC honors, and freshman forward Jae’Lyn Withers was chosen as a member of the ACC All-Freshman team in a vote of media and league coaches.

Jones is only the third Cardinal to earn first team honors in Louisville’s seven years in the ACC, joining Jordan Nwora (2020) and Donovan Mitchell (2017).  Jones received the third-highest votes and finished tied for second in the conference player of the year vote.

Jones is the only player in the ACC to rank among the top five in scoring (17.0 ppg, 5th in the ACC), assists (4.6 apg, 3rd), assists/turnovers ratio (2.16, 3rd) and free throw percentage (.826, 3rd). He has 100 career double-figure scoring efforts, including 40 of his last 41 games (17 of his 18 at Louisville). He is the first person in UofL history to reach double figures in his first 17 games at Louisville.

It is Johnson’s first all-conference honor and with Jones’ selection, the pair matches Jordan Nwora’s All-ACC first team and Dwayne Sutton’s honorable mention selections from last year.  Johnson is the only player in the ACC among the top 25 in both rebounding and assists, averaging 12.6 points, 3.3 assists (11th in the ACC) and 5.5 rebounds (25th).  He has nearly doubled his scoring and rebounding averages from a year ago and has buried six times his number of three-pointers from last season (team leading 30-of-79 threes this year, .380).

Withers is the first Louisville freshman to be named to the conference All-Freshman team in the Cardinals’ seven years in the ACC and he is the first Cardinal to receive a similar honor since Chane Behanan was named to the Big East All-Rookie team in 2012.

Withers is the leading freshman rebounder in the ACC for all games (7.9 per game, 6th overall) and in conference only games (8.4, 3rd overall).  After redshirting last season, Withers is averaging 10.2 points while shooting a team-best 56 percent from the field.  The only player to start every game this season for the Cardinals, he has averaged 13.3 points and 9.3 rebounds over the last three games.

Louisville (13-6, 8-5 ACC) will enter the 2021 ACC Tournament as the number six seed and play on Wednesday at 7 p.m. against the winner of Tuesday’s game between Duke and Boston College. The complete bracket is available here (PDF).

Story and Photo Courtesy of GoCards

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Five men’s basketball players named to All-ACC Academic team Wednesday, May 27 2020 

All-ACC Academic Team and APR and basketball and CoSIDA and darius perry and dwayne sutton and Fresh Kimble and Grant Williams and jordan nwora and Ryan McMahon and Samuell Williamson and sports and steven enoch Cole Emery 7:20 pm

By Cole Emery–

The University of Louisville men’s basketball team ranked among the top 10 percent in academic success in the most recent Academic Progress Rate data released by the NCAA on May 12. 

“We are extremely proud of the academic success our basketball program has achieved in the recent years,” Head Coach Chris Mack said. “The APR speaks to speaks to the achievement and retention of our student-athletes we are fortunate to coach.”

This marks the seventh time in the last eight years the men’s basketball team has received recognition from the NCAA Academic Performance Program. The only other school in the Power Five conferences to achieve this recognition in seven of the past eight seasons is Stanford. 

Collectively, the men’s basketball team attained a 3.0 GPA in 22 of the last 24 semesters. During the 2020 spring semester, the team achieved a 3.160 team GPA. Among the 16 players on the team, 10 of the student-athletes finished the semester with a 3.0 GPA or better. Junior Jordan Nwora and freshman Samuell Williamson successfully finished this past semester with a perfect 4.0 GPA. The Cardinals strive for academic success in the classroom and feels it will help them on the basketball court.

“We wholeheartedly believe the academic success has a direct correlation to athletic success,” Mack said. “Pushing oneself to do the best in every area speaks to character. You can’t win big if you don’t display character. We are extremely proud to have five All-Academic selections, and will continue to push our student-athletes in every way.”

Along with team success, the Cardinals also earned major individual academic awards over the past year. Nwora was named to the 2019 College Sports Information Directors of America, known as coSIDA, All-American second team. He is the fourth Louisville player to ever receive this honor. Nwora also earned his third straight All-ACC Academic Team honor.

Louisville and Pittsburgh were the only teams in the ACC to have five student-athletes named to the All-ACC Academic Team including Nwora, Williamson, Lamar “Fresh” Kimble, Ryan McMahon and Darius Perry. 

File Photo // The Louisville Cardinal

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Men’s basketball holds off Virginia Tech Monday, Mar 2 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and david johnson and dwayne sutton and Fresh Kimble and jordan nwora and KFC Yum! Center and malik williams and No. 11 Louisville Cards and sports and steven enoch Cole Emery 8:21 pm

By Cole Emery —

The No. 11 Louisville Cardinals defeated the Virginia Tech Hokies 68-52 in their final home game of the regular season March 1.

The Hokies controlled the pace early on, but neither team scored well to start the game. Only one shot was made for the first 13 attempts of the game.

Despite a poor offensive performance from junior Jordan Nwora in their previous game against Florida State, he scored 11 points in the first half which matched his total from the previous game.

The first half finished in a tie at 27.

With junior Malik Williams on the sideline in a boot, the Cardinals relied on seniors Steven Enoch, Dwayne Sutton and Nwora to control the boards. The three of them combined for 32 rebounds which amounted to more rebounds than the entire Virgina Tech team who finished with 26 for the game.

Louisville also forced 16 turnovers during the game that led to 19 points for the Cards. This strong defensive ability helped the Cards go on a 15-2 run during the second half to secure the victory. Graduate Fresh Kimble led the team on the night in steals with three.

Nwora finished the game with 20 points, 12 rebounds, two assists and a steal. Freshman David Johnson played an important role off the bench with eight points, six assists, four rebounds and a steal for the game.

Enoch scored eight points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Sutton scored eight points and secured nine rebounds. Four of Sutton’s rebounds came from the offensive end.

Louisville will play their final game of the season against Virginia at the John Paul Jones Arena March 7 at 4 p.m. on ESPN.

The Cards are looking to break Virginia’s six-game winning streak which began after they lost to Louisville 80-73 at the KFC Yum! Center Feb. 8.

Photo by Anna Claire Will // The Louisville Cardinal

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Men’s basketball routed by Seminoles Friday, Feb 28 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and Chris Mack and david johnson and dwayne sutton and jordan nwora and No. 11 Louisville and No. 6 Florida State and Ryan McMahon and sports and Trent Forrest John McCarthy 1:43 pm

By John McCarthy —

The No. 11 Louisville Cardinals men’s basketball team lost 82-67 to the No. 6 Florida State Seminoles Feb. 24 at the Donald L. Tucker Center.

The Cardinals (24-6. 14-4) played in front of an unwelcoming crowd, as the arena was at 100% capacity. With this loss, Louisville now sits a game half back from Florida State in the current ACC standings.

The Cardinals were strong defensively in the first half and held the Seminoles (24-4, 14-3) at 15 points through the first ten minutes of the game.

Louisville’s old-school scoring style to get to the rim proved effective. The Cardinals produced only two-point buckets and free-throws through the first 13 minutes of the game until senior Ryan McMahon bottomed a three-pointer from the left wing to put the Cardinals up 24-17.

The Cardinals kept their space from Florida State on the scoreboard during the first half, matching every jumper the Seminoles hit from the field. Headed into the locker room for halftime, Louisville led Florida State 40-32.

Early in the second half, the Cardinals sat comfortably in the driver’s seat with a ten-point lead and looked to have the obvious momentum. Louisville soon went through a nine-minute scoring drought.

Seminoles senior Trent Forrest scored 14 of his 16 total points in the second half during Louisville’s stretch without a basket. Florida State ended up rallying back for the home victory due to the Cardinals scoring drought, defeating Louisville 82-67.

McMahon finished with 14 points. Junior Jordan Nwora had 13 points and eight rebounds. Freshman David Johnson totaled 13 points, four points and four assists. Senior Dywane Sutton finished with eight points and five rebounds.

The Seminoles’ field goal percentage propelled them to victory, they shot 51% from the field and 31% from the three-point line. Head coach Chris Mack said, “We battled. I thought their pressure, although it might have not turned us over, kept us on our heels. We handled it the first 20 minutes. Just didn’t keep up the pace in the second half.”

Louisville will host Virginia Tech next at the KFC Yum! Center Mar. 1 at 6 p.m. on the ACC Network.

Photo by Anna Claire Will // The Louisville Cardinal

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Men’s basketball blow out the Tar Heels Sunday, Feb 23 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and Cole Anthony and david johnson and dwayne sutton and Fresh Kimble and HS and jordan nwora and malik williams and roy williams and Ryan McMahon and sports Cole Emery 4:00 pm

The No. 11 Cardinals defeated North Carolina 72-55 Feb. 19 at the KFC Yum! Center.

The contest had a sloppy start as both teams accumulated seven turnovers collectively in the first four minutes of the game. 

Freshman David Johnson made the first basket of the game with an open three-pointer from the left wing.

After a three minute scoring drought for both teams, junior Jordan Nwora got the Cards (23-5, 14-3) back on track with a mid-range jumper. Johnson suffered three turnovers early in the game and senior Ryan McMahon, who drained his first shot from behind the three-point line, subbed him out. 

Freshman Cole Anthony for North Carolina (10-17, 3-13) displayed his ability to score inside with his first six points coming from inside the paint.

Graduate Fresh Kimble stole the ball and scored the transition layup to give the Cardinals a double digit lead with less than a minute left in the first half. 

The Cardinals took a 36-23 lead into halftime.

Nwora led the charge for the Cardinals with nine points and five rebounds. Junior Malik Williams scored seven points, grabbed four rebounds and dished an assist. Johnson scored five points and assisted three baskets, but did not suffer another turnover for the rest of the half. 

Senior Dwayne Sutton scored the first basket of the second with a two-handed slam. 

Louisville noticeably slowed the game down to start the second half. They scored eight points in the first four and a half minutes without allowing the Tar Heels to score a single point.

Nwora achieved a double-double in points and rebounds early in the second half as the Cardinals started the half on a 14-3 run. 

The Cardinals went to the free-throw line more often in the second half after they shot only two free-throws in the first half and found themselves in the bonus with nine minutes left in the contest.

The Cardinals cruised to the victory and maintained a double digit lead the entire second half. 

Nwora finished the game with 18 points, 11 rebounds and two steals. Williams finished with 17 points, nine rebounds, two assists and a block. 

Regarding Louisville’s team, future Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams said after the game, “They have the one of the chances of those teams that could win the whole blessed thing.”

The Cards travel to Florida State in their next contest Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Photo by Jessica Abell // The Louisville Cardinal

 

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Men’s basketball squashes the Orange Sunday, Feb 23 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and Buddy Boeheim and dwayne sutton and HS and jordan nwora and KFC Yum! Center and malik williams and Quincy Guerrier and Ryan McMahon and sports Cole Emery 3:56 pm

No. 11 Louisville defeated the Syracuse Orange 90-66 Feb. 19 at the KFC Yum! Center, putting their two-game losing streak behind them. 

The Cards immediately showed their dominance from behind the arc when senior Dwayne Sutton drained a three-pointer assisted by freshman David Johnson on the first play of the game. Senior Ryan McMahon matched the energy with a couple of three-pointers to a quick 11-5 lead to begin the game.

Freshman Quincy Guerrier helped keep Syracuse in the game early on with his ability to grab rebounds and make shots. 

McMahon finished the half with two more three-pointers which ended up being the last shots he made from the field. This help allowed the Cards to take a 41-34 lead into half-time. 

To begin the second half, junior Malik Williams fired on all cylinders, scoring eight points and grabbing four rebounds in the first five minutes of play. This momentum allowed the Cards to develop a double digit lead.

The Orange found difficulty scoring in the second half. Two minutes of scoreless basketball from Syracuse allowed the Cards to go on a 13-0 run and brought their lead to 25 points with nine minutes left in the game.

The Cardinals ability to move the ball helped them tremendously in this game as they racked up 23 assists as a team, the most they accumulated for a game this year. Their ability to grab offensive rebounds greatly helped them as they had four more than Syracuse and outrebounded them 45-36 as a team.

Sophomore Buddy Boeheim had 15 points and Guerrier had 14 for Syracuse in their loss.

Williams matched his career high in rebounds with 13 in his first start of the year while scoring 14 points as well. Sutton helped the team with 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Nwora only shot 5-18 but still put together 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists to end the game.

Photo by Anna Claire Will // The Louisville Cardinal

 

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Men’s basketball secures victory in final moments Thursday, Feb 20 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and Coach Chris Mack and david johnson and jordan nwora and KFC Yum! Center and malik williams and sports and steven enoch Cole Emery 2:11 pm

By John McCarthy–

No. 5 Louisville men’s basketball defeated Virginia 80-73 at home in a tight matchup.

The two ACC teams showed down in the KFC Yum! Center Feb. 8. The Cardinals were able to extend their winning streak to ten games.

Before the game, the University of Louisville (20-4, 11-2) honored its 1980 National Championship team led by Darrell Griffith. 

The hype of the Yum! Center helped push the Cardinals out to an early lead over the Cavaliers. Louisville bottomed five or their first six from the three-point line. The Cardinals first 15 points came via the three-point shot.

As a collective, Louisville shot 53.3% from three in the first half. The Cardinals were able to out rebound Virginia (15-7, 8-3) in the first half, leading to multiple second chance buckets that put the Cardinals up big going into the locker room.

Going into halftime, Louisville led the Cavaliers 44-30. 

In the second half the Cardinals witnessed a different Virginia team. Virginia fired back, and shot 53% from the field as a team. They also found success from the three-ball, sinking 50% of the threes they attempted.

The difference between the two ACC rivals was the rebounding category. Louisville hustled on the boards to out-rebound Virginia by 12.

With time winding down late in the second half, Junior Malik Williams went in for a two-handed flush and was hit hard, but there was no foul call on the dunk attempt. Seconds later on the other end of the floor, a foul was called on Louisville. Coach Chris Mack was furious with the call, and in turn was called for the technical foul.

This ignited a flame beneath the Cardinals for the remainder of the game. Immediately after the technical foul, freshman David Johnson hit a jumper from the elbow. Louisville went on to shutdown the Cavalier offense and hit all of their free-throws to win 80-73. 

Junior Jordan Nwora finished with 22 points and seven rebounds. Senior Steven Enoch finished with 13 points and two rebounds. Williams finished with 13 points and six rebounds. Although they are currently unranked, Virginia has not been an easy task for Louisville in the past. Nwora said, “We have had a bunch of chances to beat them, and somehow they always find a way to win. It was good just being able to finish the deal today.”

Louisville’s next match will be at McCamish Pavilion where they will take on Georgia Tech. The game is Feb. 12 beginning at 8 p.m.

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Louisville defeated Wake Forest 86-76 Saturday, Feb 15 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and dwayne sutton and Fresh Kimble and jordan nwora and KFC Yum! Center and malik williams and Ryan McMahon and sports and steven enoch John McCarthy 12:04 pm

By John McCarthy —

The No. 5 Louisville Cardinals men’s basketball team won against Wake Forest 86-76 in a tough match Feb. 5 at the KFC Yum! Center.

This extends the Cardinals’ winning streak to nine as they continue their ascent in the NCAA basketball rankings.

The Cardinals (20-3, 11-1) have accrued 16 wins in which they have defeated their opponent by 10 or more points this season.

The efficiency of the Demon Deacons (10-12, 3-9) stunned the Cardinals in the first half. Wake Forest busted out of the gates, shooting 60 percent from the field on 18 shots made. They also managed to out-rebound Louisville, heading into halftime plus five on the boards.

At one point, Wake Forest led the Cardinals by 16, but that would end up being their largest lead of the game. Louisville managed to keep the deficit within a dozen with their three-point shooting.

The Cardinals shot 50 percent  from three in the first half with nine three-pointers made.

Junior Jordan Nwora headed into the locker room with a dozen points and a pair of rebounds. Junior Malik Williams had eight points in the first half. Senior Ryan McMahon made two of Louisville’s nine first-half three-pointers.

The second half was all about the Cardinals’ monstrous comeback.

Without Louisville’s game-changing five minute run to open the second half, this game would have come down to the wire. With 14 minutes left to play, Nwora fooled a Wake Forest defender with a filthy crossover and followed up with an off-balance one-footed three-pointer.

Senior Dwayne Sutton carried the energy next for the Cardinals in the second half by grabbing a steal and taking it to the other end for a strong two-handed dunk.

Nwora finished with 21 points, seven rebounds and an assist. Sutton ended with a double-double, shooting for 15 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.

Seniors Steven Enoch and graduate Fresh Kimble came to life in the second half. Enoch collected two rebounds and shot for 11 points. Kimble dished four assists, grabbed 4 rebounds and scored 14 points. Collectively the Cardinals finished the game shooting 48 percent from the field.

Wake Forest had three players finishing with double-digit scoring, but the shooting of Louisville sought victory for the Cardinals.

Louisville will look to improve their winning streak to 17 when they host Virginia Feb. 8. The game will begin at 4 p.m. inside the KFC Yum! Center.

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Men’s basketball blow out Clemson at home Wednesday, Feb 5 2020 

basketball and darius perry and david johnson and jordan nwora and KFC Yum! Center and Samuell Williamson and sports and steven enoch Cole Emery 9:48 am

By John McCarthy — 

The No. 6 Louisville Cardinals men’s basketball team topped the Clemson Tigers at the KFC Yum! Center Jan. 25. 

Louisville’s objective was to capitalize on the defensive side of the ball. Louisville wanted to contain Clemson’s pesky guards and did just that.

The Cardinals (17-3, 8-1) shot 66 percent from the field and had a 20-0 run that put them securely out in front. 

Junior Darius Perry marked the scoring column first for the Cardinals with a jumper and a three-pointer. Senior Steven Enoch followed suit by sinking a corner three-pointer. 

Clemson (10-9, 4-5) junior Clyde Trapp responded with a three-pointer of his own. Perry quickly silenced Trapp’s response with another three-pointer for the Cardinals. Perry’s shot peaked a 31-9 lead for the Cardinals. 

Freshman Samuell Williamson provided an offensive boost off Louisville’s bench with 10 points in the opening half. 

Freshman David Johnson had six assists alone in the first half. Clemson trailed Louisville 47-26 going into halftime.

Louisville’s offensive productivity shined in the second half. The Cardinals bottomed five three-pointers, and Louisville defense was much improved from their last game. 

The Cardinals never let Clemson come within 15 points throughout the second half. 

Louisville wrapped up this win, shooting 48 percent from the field. In addition, they corralled 12 more rebounds than the Tigers. 

Clemson’s second half strategy was to foul often at the rim to slow the game down. Louisville did an impressive job from the charity stripe, making 18-22 free-throw attempts. 

Louisville only shot 28 percent in the second half but still maintained a substantial lead. The Tigers could not keep up with the Cardinals and fell 80-62.

Perry achieved his career high with 19 points and hustled for five rebounds. Junior Jordan Nwora had 10 points, five rebounds and a pair of assists. Williamson provided 14 points off the bench. Enoch grabbed seven rebounds and 11 points. Johnson added eight points, five rebounds and six assists.

Louisville will travel to Boston College Jan. 29 to play the Golden Eagles at 9 p.m.

Photo by Anna Claire Will // The Louisville Cardinal

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Nwora propelled Cardinals past Golden Eagles Friday, Jan 31 2020 

ACC basketball and basketball and darius perry and david johnson and dwayne sutton and Fresh Kimble and jordan nwora and Louisville Cardinals and No. 6 and Ryan McMahon and Samuell Williamson and sports and steven enoch Cole Emery 11:15 am

By John McCarthy —

The No. 6 Louisville Cardinals men’s basketball team defeated the Boston College Golden Eagles 86-69 Jan. 29 at the Silvio Conte Forum. 

This is the sixth straight in-conference win for Louisville (18-3, 9-1). They have not lost a game since Jan. 4 when Florida State downed the Cardinals at home. Florida State and Duke both sit a game and a half back from Louisville in the ACC standings heading into February.

Junior Jordan Nwora chalked one up first for the Cardinals, hitting a mid-range jumper. Seconds later, Nwora sank another jump shot off an assist by graduate Fresh Kimble. Junior Darius Perry was next to mark the scoreboard with a contested layup in traffic. 

Freshman Jay Heath hit two three-pointers for Boston College (10-11, 4-6). Perry answered with a three-pointer of his own. After a 6-0 Boston College run beginning at the 16:34 mark, Louisville began to fire back. 

Perry bottomed another three-pointer to silence the Golden Eagles run. A minute later, Nwora sank a three-pointer off an assist by freshman David Johnson.

Johnson has been a much-needed spark of the Cardinals bench, providing vital assists to fuel Louisville’s offense. 

With 8:49 left in the first half, Nwora made a free-throw to tie the game 25-25. The Cardinals finished the half shooting 4-5 from deep, helping them take the lead at halftime 45-43.

In the second half, the seasoned dominance of Louisville took center stage. 

Senior Dwayne Sutton got the Cardinals started by converting both of his free-throws. A minute later, Nwora fought for two offensive rebounds in a single possession, on the second offensive rebound he tipped the ball in for two.

This momentum-swinging moment brought the Cardinals together. 

Senior Steven Enoch showed the same class of hustle soon after, grabbing an offensive board and tipping the ball in for two. 

At the 15:30 mark, Johnson stole the ball from the Boston College offense and made a timely pass to Nwora for the transition dunk. 

With five minutes left to play, freshman Samuell Williamson and Senior Ryan McMahon swished back to back three-pointers to solidify the lead for the Cardinals.

The Cardinals offense chemistry was too much for the Golden Eagles.

Nwora dazzled with 37 points and nine rebounds. Sutton had 10 points and three rebounds. Perry contributed 14 points and a pair of assists. Johnson dished out six assists and grabbed eight boards. 

The Cardinals will travel to North Carolina State Feb. 1 to play the Wolfpack at PNC Arena at 2 p.m. on ESPN. 

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