Date: Jan. 2, 2018
Time: 9:05 p.m. EST
Site: KFC Yum! Center/Crum Court, Louisville, Ky. (22,000) (124-16 in 8th year)
Television: ESPNU - Kevin Fitzgerald, play-by-play; Dino Gaudio, analyst.
Radio: WHAS (840 AM) Paul Rogers, play-by-play; Bob Valvano, analyst (Sirius
channel 81, XM 81, Internet 81)
Series History: UofL leads 14-5 (8-1 in Louisville, 6-1 in Pittsburgh, 0-3
neutral)
Last Meeting: UofL 106, Pittsburgh 51 (Jan. 24, 2017 at Pittsburgh, Pa.)
UofL National Ranking: unranked (receiving votes in the USA
Today & AP polls)
Officials: Bill Covington, Jr., Jeff Clark, Michael Stephens
Next UofL Game: Jan. 6 at Clemson, Clemson, S.C., Noon ET (ACC Network/ WAVE-TV
in Louisville)
Louisville will play its first ACC game of the season as the Cardinals face the
Pittsburgh Panthers in the KFC Yum! Center on Tuesday. Louisville (10-3) lost
for the first time in seven games as the Cardinals fell 90-61 at Kentucky last
Friday in their final non-conference game of the year. Ray Spalding produced his
sixth double-double this season and eighth of his career with 12 points and 11
rebounds against the Wildcats. UofL suffered through its second-worst shooting
performance from the field (.348) and worst from three-point range (3-of-25,
.120).
Deng Adel leads the Cardinals in scoring with 15.4 points per game. Quentin
Snider ranks second on the team, averaging 11.8 points per game while dishing
out a team best 51 assists. Spalding leads the team on the boards with 9.7
rebounds per game and ranks third on the team in scoring with 10.8 points per
game. Sophomore V.J. King leads the team from behind the arc, shooting 41.9
percent on the year.
Pitt (8-6, 0-1 ACC) has won seven of its last nine, but fell to No. 15 Miami
67-53 in its ACC opener on Dec. 30. Shamiel Stevenson scored 16 points off the
bench to lead the Panthers, who committed 19 turnovers and allowed 40 points in
the paint.
Pitt is one of the Cardinals' four ACC repeat opponents this season. The
Panthers are No. 159 in the Sagarin Ratings, No. 170 by Ken Pomeroy, and No. 150
in the RPI through Dec. 30.
Louisville has a 14-5 series advantage over Pittsburgh and the Cardinals have
won the last 10 matchups. It is UofL's second-longest current winning streak
against an ACC opponent, as the Cardinals have won their last 12 against
Virginia Tech. UofL won both games last season. Louisville prevailed 85-80 in
Louisville (1-11-17) as Quentin Snider led the Cardinals with 22 points and five
assists and Pitt's Jamel Artis poured in a KFC Yum! Center record 43 points.
UofL posted the largest margin of victory for a road team in
ACC history and the third-largest margin for any league game in their 106-51
victory at Pittsburgh (1-24-17). Donovan Mitchell's career-high 29 points led
the Cardinals in the last meeting which was Pitt's second-worst loss ever and
its worst since 1906.
CARDINAL NOTES
Louisville has won its conference opening game in seven of the last nine
seasons.
The Cardinals have won four of their last five conference home openers.
Louisville is second in the nation in blocked shots (8.2 bpg) and ranks 21st in
field goal percentage defense (.384) and 38th in free throw percentage (,755).
Center
Anas Mahmoud is third in the nation in blocked shots (4.08).
Louisville has won seven of its last nine games in its first game of a new
calendar year.
Quentin Snider has averaged a team-high 14.7 points, made 12-of-24
three-pointers and handed out 27 assists with just seven turnovers over the last
seven games. The Most Outstanding Player of the Gotham Classic, Snider needs 62
points to become the Cardinals' 68th career 1,000-point scorer.
Louisville has a 37-8 record in its conference home games over the last six
years (.822), including an 8-1 record last year.
Louisville is one of just four schools which have won 20 or more games in each
of the last 15 seasons (also Kansas, Duke and Gonzaga).
Louisville has a 39-17 record during the month of January over the last eight
years, including a 23-8 record in the last five years.