After losing to Duke in blowout fashion, Pittsburgh Basketball was back at home, taking on Louisville in a pivotal matchup for both teams. The Panthers got off to a good start, up 15-7 early and making shots. However, the Cardinals recovered and took the lead, up by one at the halftime break.
It ended up being a back-and-forth affair for the rest of the game, with Louisville making key shots in the final stretch to win 82-78, handing Pitt its first back-to-back defeats for the first time this season.
There was plenty to analyze from what happened in the game. Here’s a closer look at the takeaways from the defeat.
1. Inability to contain Reyne Smith
One of my keys to the game was Pittsburgh limiting Louisville’s sharpshooter. It was okay at first, with Smith making shots off of misses and having nine points in the first half. Unfortunately for Pitt, he went off in the final 10 minutes, scoring a game-high 25 points on 7/11 shooting from deep, including a few daggers in the final minutes. As a team, the Cardinals shot 13/35. But their best pure shooter got just enough room to torch the Panthers.
2. Defensive rebounding woes
Pitt’s offense wasn’t what failed them, shooting 10/21 from deep and 20/22 from the line. Plus, Louisville’s offense wasn’t great until the final four minutes. But what helped them throughout was them grabbing many boards, 44-31 and 17 coming on the offensive end. That 22-7 edge in second-chance points was a key part of Lousiville winning on the road.
3. Going away from Cam Corhen in 2nd half
Corhen was the lone double-digit scorer against Duke, and he continued his great play in the first half versus the Cardinals, leading everyone with 11 points. That was the last we heard from him, as the junior big went scoreless in the final 20 minutes on 0/3 FG, including a couple of painful, easy minutes.
Yes, Pitt’s guards got it going and made some shots but Louisville’s post defense wasn’t containing Corhen early and going away from that made it a game of jumpshots, which Louisville was comfortable going. While it’s great that Damian Dunn is back and scored 15 points off the bench, the Panthers need more than three contributors to win ACC games.