It’s On – Louisville Cards vs. North Carolina at 2 Today

Want to see a city shut down? Around here, we close schools for the Kentucky Oaks, but basketball stops most activity as Louisville, every year, leads the nation in stopping what you’re doing because the game is on. Today, it’s U of L’s first time in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. Don’t worry, your boss is probably watching it too.

GAME FACTS – ACC Quarterfinals – Louisville vs. North Carolina
Date: Thursday, March 12, 2015
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Site: Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum (23,500)
Television: ESPN – Sean McDonough, play-by-play; Shane Battier, analyst; Allison Williams, reporter. Also – ACC Network (WAVE-TV in Louisville) – Tim Brant, play-by-play; Mike Gminski, analyst.
Radio: WHAS (840 AM) Paul Rogers, play-by-play; Doug Ormay, analyst (Sirius 218, XM 193)
Series History: UofL trails North Carolina 4-10 (3-0 in Louisville, 0-3 in Chapel Hill, 1-7 neutral).
UofL National Ranking: 14th USA Today, 16th Associated Press

The Last Meeting
NORTH CAROLINA 68 Louisville 78 OT
January 31, 2015
KFC YUM! CENTER
No. 10 Men’s Basketball Surges Past No. 13 UNC 78-68 in OT
Terry Rozier scored No. 10 Louisville’s first six points in overtime and the Cardinals erased an 18-point second-half deficit to beat No. 13 North Carolina 78-68 on Saturday.

ACC Tournament NotesLouisville will be participating in its first Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament in Greensboro on Thursday when they face North Carolina in the quarterfinals at 2:00 p.m. Louisville has won three straight league tournament titles and four over the last six years (since 2009). Louisville has won its last 10 straight conference tournament games and 15 of its last 17.

The Cardinals have three players averaging double figures. Rozier leads the Cards in scoring with 17.0 points per game.  Montrezl Harrell ranks second with 15.8 points, while Wayne Blackshear averages 10.7 points. The Cardinals are solid on the boards, Harrell leads the team with 9.4 rebounds per game. Rozier ranks second on the team in rebounding with 5.4 per game.

acctourneyLouisville ranks among the nation’s top 30 in nine statistical categories through games of March 7. Individually, Montrezl Harrell is 28th nationally in rebounding (9.4) and 21st in field goal percentage (.573). Terry Rozier is 27th in steals (2.0) and 80th in scoring (17.0).

North Carolina (22-10, 11-7 ACC), ranked 19th by both the Associated Press and in the USA Today poll, has won four of its last six games, including an 81-63 win over Boston College in the ACC Tournament. Marcus Paige, an All ACC third team selection, leads North Carolina in scoring (13.5 ppg, 74-of-192 three-pointers) while Brice Johnson, also an All-ACC third team choice, is their top rebounder (12.6 ppg, 7.9 rpg).

The Tar Heels have held 19 opponents to 40 percent or lower field goal percentage this season and rank seventh nationally in rebound margin (+8.4), 14th in scoring offense (78.2 ppg) and second in assists (17.7).

Louisville trails 4-10 in its series history against North Carolina, with four of the meetings coming in the NCAA Tournament, including twice in regional finals. The teams split their two matchups this season, winning on their home courts. The Cardinals came from 18 points down in the second half to win in Louisville.

CARDINAL NOTES:
• Cards Finish Fourth in ACC — Louisville posted a 12-6 record in its first season in the Atlantic Coast Conference, finishing fourth in the league with five of its members ranked among the nation’s top 20 teams. Louisville has won at least 10 league games for eight straight seasons. The Cards have finished in the top three in its conference six of the last nine years. The Cardinals’ have won 22 regular season conference championship (regular season conference championships: American 1, Big East 2, Conference USA 1, Metro 12, Missouri Valley 6). Louisville has won its conference championship or finished second in 26 of the last 39 years.

• Cards Have 13 Straight 20-Win Seasons — Louisville is one of four Division I schools in the nation which has won 20 or more games in each of the past 13 seasons. Reaching 20 victories already this year and extending their streaks are Kansas (26), Duke (19), Gonzaga (17), and Louisville (13). Three others can keep 20-win seasons alive including Florida (16), Memphis (14), and Pittsburgh (13). UofL Coach Rick Pitino has won at least 20 games in a season on 23 occasions, ranking him fifth among active coaches in 20-win seasons and 11th overall. Pitino won 30 in a single season for the sixth time last year. UofL has won at least 19 games in 41 of the last 45 years.

• Cardinal Spurts — In its 31 games this season, Louisville has produced 49 runs of 8-0 or better, including a 10-0 run in its last game against Virginia. The Cardinals had a season-best 29-0 run to open the game vs. Savannah State on Nov. 24. Louisville has forced its opponents into 80 scoring droughts of three minutes or more, including holding Virginia scoreless for separate stretches of 4:10 and 4:41 in its last game.