LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) --Â When it rains, it pours. And sometimes it drips. The University of Louisville basketball team had lost three straight heading into Wednesday night's matchup with Boston College. Eager to get back into the win column, the Cardinals had to wait when a leak in the KFC Yum! Center roof delayed the game for nearly an hour and 20 minutes.
But the skies cleared a bit, the leak was fixed, and Louisville found its legs, using a 10-0 run after the final media timeout to pull away for a 67-54 victory.
A leak in the roof postponed the UofL and Boston College men's basketball game for approximately 77 minutes.
What you need to know about Louisville's 11th win of the season, against 8 losses.
WHY IT MATTERS: The game stopped the bleeding. Louisville was reeling and desperate for something good to happen, not to mention a win. The victory ended a 3-game conference losing streak, and kept the Cards from losing a second straight home game to a team ranked above 100 in Ken Pomeroy's efficiency rankings. And Louisville's late-game execution on both ends was some of its best since early in the season. It should be a confidence builder.
WHO PLAYED WELL: Returning from a one-game injury absence (left ankle sprain), junior forward Sydney Curry gave Louisville a spark, finishing with 13 points on 6-for-6 shooting and 7 rebounds. He drew the start on the front line with Malik Williams, as Chris Mack threw out a 3-guard lineup that included El Ellis, Mason Faulkner and Noah Locke. Jae'lyn Withers, who has struggled all season, scored 8 points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field in the first half and finished with 10 and some big defensive plays late. Locke finished with 10 points, with a trio of 3-pointers on his 3-for-10 shooting line, and Faulker had 8 points and a team-best 7 assists.
WHAT HAPPENED: After the delayed start, neither team got much going in the first half. A 7-0 run put Louisville up by six midway through the half, but they could not extend that margin and led 32-30 at the break. A quick start in the second half put Louisville up 38-30, but again it couldn't extend (though it was, according to Louisville stat guru Kelly Dickey, the first time in 8 games Louisville had won the first segment of a second half). After Boston College pulled back within one, Curry and Matt Cross each scored on 3-point plays when fouled. The Cards took a 9-point lead to the under-4 media timeout, and extended thanks to a couple of big steals by Withers in the midst of a late 10-0 run that put the game away. After the last media timeout, Louisville held BC without a field goal until seven seconds remained.
WATCHING THE STAT SHEET: Louisville outscored Boston College 21-8 off turnovers – even though the Eagles turned the ball over only 10 times.
WHAT WAS SAID:Â Louisville coach Chris Mack remarked, "We just needed to win. I mean, it beats, you know, a nailbiter at the very, very end. But Boston College gave us all we could handle for a large majority of the game, and so I knew they wouldn't have any quit in them. You watch them go to Clemson, S.C., and do what they did. They've got a new coach, who is doing a really good job and their kids play hard. So, yeah, it beats the alternative, I can tell you that. My wife will let me in the house now."
WHO'S GOT NEXT? Louisville will play host to Notre Dame on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Freedom Hall, when the university honors former Cardinal All-American Russ Smith by hanging his number in the KFC Yum! Center rafters.
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