The UNC men’s basketball team (8-6, 1-1 ACC) fell to Louisville (9-5, 2-1 ACC), 83-70, on Wednesday evening in the KFC Yum Center, leading to the Tar Heels first loss in the ACC.
Despite finding their offensive flow in the second half and crafting a response, UNC was unable to overcome the deficit due to defensive lapses and foul trouble. A late push to overcome the deficit fell just short thanks to late errors, resulting in the Cardinals’ first win over the Tar Heels since 2020 fueled by a 22-9 to close out the game. Louisville guard Chucky Hepburn scored 26 points with 19 coming in the second half.
Both teams traded baskets to begin the game. Louisville forward Noah Waterman started off with five early points giving the Cardinals a 5-2 lead.
The Tar Heels finally broke through offensively with back-to-back driving layups by first-year forward Drake Powell and first-year guard Ian Jackson – cutting the Cardinals’ early five point lead to one.
Neither team could buy a basket for the next two minutes before Louisville rattled off a 5-0 run capped off by an and-1 layup by Louisville guard Reyne Smith with fourteen minutes to go.
On the ensuing possession, junior forward Ven-Allen Lubin found Jackson open who drained the Tar Heels’ first 3-pointer of the game. Lubin then snatched the ball on a faulty pass and found Powell in transition, who converted on a pullup jumper to tie the game, 12-12.
A back-and-forth ensued to characterize the last half of the first 20.
With 10 minutes remaining, junior forward Cade Tyson drained a wide open 3-pointer to give the Tar Heels their first lead of the game, 15-14, but it didn't last long.
A slick turnaround jumper by Louisville guard J’Vonne Hadley on the next possession kicked off a 7-0 run for the Cardinals. Smith converted on two 3-pointers in the following minute to put Louisville up 24-18 with 7:28 remaining.
