BOZICH | Not Rock Bottom: Louisville blows past Florida State, 101-92

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — This was the team that Kenny Payne envisioned last fall when he said his second University of Louisville men's basketball squad would pass the eye test with fans in ways that his first team failed.

The ball moved. The energy was relentless. They didn’t settle for contested shots. They attacked. They shared. They defended. They helped. They entertained.

They scored. Boy, did they score.

They benefited from a once-in-a-lifetime show by freshman point guard Ty-Laur Johnson. Boy, did they benefit from that.

The Cards jumped on Florida State early, built a 15-point lead, let the lead shrink to five in the final 40 seconds and then defeated the Seminoles 101-92 Saturday night at the KFC Yum! Center. It's the most points Louisville has scored since its 104-point performance against Southern on Nov. 13, 2018.

A week ago I believe I wrote that the Cards delivered a ROCK BOTTOM performance in their one-sided loss to Virginia in a game where Louisville fell behind, 41-11.

This was decidedly not rock bottom. This was as good as it's been all season for Payne’s team. Better than the win at Miami. Better than dominating Pepperdine.

"It's the reason you don't give up on young people," Payne said, whose team improved to 7-15 overall, 2-9 in the league. "Young people, you can't predict what they're going to do. No matter how bad it gets, you can't give up. You've just got to keep fighting."

"You see what they're capable of, they just haven't sustained it for 40 minutes," FSU coach Leonard Hamilton said. "Tonight they sustained it. Even when we cut it closer, they flexed their muscles."

Johnson missed the Cardinals' last game, a loss Tuesday night at Clemson, after he injured an ankle at a morning shooting practice. Johnson also missed another day of practice after the team returned to town.

Johnson played like a guy with rocket fuel in his ankle against the Seminoles. Florida State could not stay in front of him. The Seminoles could not find him. They certainly could not control him. 

Johnson entered the game for Curtis Williams after 2 minutes and 14 seconds. Louisville trailed, 2-0. They did not trail long. Johnson found Kaleb Glenn for the first of his 11 assists only 12 seconds later. He had more assists (11) than the entire Cards team had against in their last two games against Clemson and Virginia.

"It changed our offense a lot," U of L forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield said. "He's a pass first point guard, always looking to facilitate, trying to get his teammates going, first and foremost."

"That was just a ploy, letting him sit there and watch (the start of) the game," Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said. "He's very clever and he's only going to get better."

In 37 dazzling minutes Johnson delivered 27 points, 11 assists, 6 rebounds and a pair of steals. That’s the most assists any Louisville player earned this season. Louisville, as a team, managed only nine total assists in its two previous games.

Move over Darrell Griffith, Butch Beard, Reece Gaines, Lancaster Gordon, Milt Wagner, Peyton Siva, Russ Smith, Terry Rozier and Donovan Mitchell. This was the first 20-plus point, 10-plus assist, 5-plus rebound game in U of L history.

"I'm just happy to make history," Johnson said. "And I'm glad we got the win."

"When Ty-Laur went in the game it totally changed the dynamics," Payne said. "He put them on their heels. He makes all of our lives easier when he's that type of player."

Huntley-Hatfield benefited from the way Johnson flashed through the FSU defense and shared the ball. He finished with 29 points and 7 rebounds.

Don’t overlook Mike James and Curtis Williams. Playing in front of 18 friends and family members, including his parents and grandparents, James had 18 points, 14 from the free throw line. Credit Williams with 19.

This was a Florida State team that won 6 of its first 9 Atlantic Coast Conference games and came to the KFC Yum! Center with wins in 8 of its last 11 games.

"Sometime we find ourselves have one half but not put two good halves together in games," Huntley-Hatfield said. "Tonight we did that."

The first half was the best first half the Cardinals played in 11 Atlantic Coast Conference games. Their 47-35 halftime lead was the first time the Cards had the advantage at intermission since the Pepperdine game on Dec. 17.

The Cards visit Syracuse (5-6 in the league) Wednesday night before returning home to play Georgia Tech (3-8) next Saturday.

With the schedule tilting in Louisville’s favor, the Cards will get their chance to become the team that Payne envisioned.

"A program doesn't get down and need improvement overnight," Hamilton said. "But most of us are expected to come and turn it overnight."

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