NCAA Basketball Power Rankings: Baylor rolling, Ohio State tumbling

Louisville dropped down the rankings last week after back-to-back losses but appears to be back on the rise. During this past week, the Cardinals returned to their usual form in a dominating home victory over Miami-FL and then proceeded to win a hard-fought road battle over Notre Dame. These two performances moved Louisville to 13-3 (4-1 ACC) for the season and gave the team a pair of Top 100 KenPom victories.

With that said, I am yet to truly believe in this team as a national title contender. I am still wary about the Cardinals’ losses so far this season as they have struggled against top-tier competition.

Given Louisville’s consistent floor, this team feels like it will be a second-weekend team without too much trouble in a couple of months. The Cardinals have shown very few signs of struggle against lower-level competition and they can thank their two-way abilities and the star play of Jordan Nwora for that.

With that said, though, the team is just 1-3 against Top 60 opponents on KenPom. They have not played a ton of elite competition nor have they have been all that successful in those games.

Considering the ACC is in the midst of a down season, there won’t be that many opportunities for Louisville to prove itself. The Cardinals will only face Duke and Florida State once each this season and that also limits their chances. Considering Louisville’s resume only features one Q1 win so far this season, it is going to have a hard time landing a favorable seed.