Men's Basketball Hosts NC State on Saturday
February 13, 2015 | Men's Basketball
GAME FACTS - Louisville vs. NC State
Date: Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Site: KFC Yum! Center/Crum Court, Louisville, Ky. (22,000) (79-11 in 5th yr.)
Television: ESPN Dave Lamont, play-by-play; Kara Lawson, analyst.
Radio: WKRD (790 AM) Paul Rogers, play-by-play; Bob Valvano, analyst (Sirius 119, XM 194)
Series History: Tied 8-8 (5-1 in Louisville, 3-4 in Raleigh, 0-3 neutral)
Last Meeting: NC State 101, UofL 89 (Feb. 13, 1988 at Raleigh, N.C.)
UofL National Ranking: 8th USA Today, 9th Associated Press
Officials: Roger Ayers, Bill Covington Jr., Terry Wymer
Next UofL Game: Feb. 18 at Syracuse, Syracuse, N.Y., 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Louisville plays its second straight in the KFC Yum! Center as the Cardinals face the North Carolina State Wolfpack on Saturday. Louisville won for the fifth time in six games in beating Pittsburgh 69-56 on Feb. 11 as Montrezl Harrell (28 points, 12 rebounds, five blocked shots) and Terry Rozier (22 points, 10 rebounds) both produced double-doubles for the Cardinals.
Louisville has four players averaging double figures. Rozier leads the Cards in scoring with 18.5 points per game. Harrell ranks second with 15.8 points, while Chris Jones ranks third on the team in scoring with 13.3 points per game and Wayne Blackshear averages 10.6 points. The Cardinals are solid on the boards, Harrell leads the team with 9.2 rebounds per game. Rozier ranks second on the team in rebounding with 5.7 per game.
Louisville ranks among the nation's top 25 in eight statistical categories through games of Feb. 11. Individually, Harrell is 32nd nationally in rebounding (9.2) and 17th in field goal percentage (.584). Rozier is 38th in steals (2.0) and 40th in scoring (18.5). Jones is 34th in steals (2.0).
NC State (14-11, 5-7 ACC) had eight days off before its 51-47 loss to Virginia on Feb. 11, falling for the fifth time in six games as Trevor Lacey scored 14 points to lead the Wolfpack in the setback. Four of NC State's five most recent losses have been by five or fewer points.
Lacey, a junior guard, leads NC State and is fifth in the ACC in scoring (16.6 ppg, 21 double figure scoring games this season) and has made 57-of-136 three-point goals (.419). Ranked 18th nationally in blocked shots (5.5), NC State is 63rd in the ratings percentage index (RPI) with the nation's fifth-toughest schedule and 44th in the Sagarin Ratings through Feb. 11.
Louisville is tied 8-8 in its series with NC State, last facing the Wolfpack 27 years ago. NC State has won three of the last four matchups, including the last when the Wolfpack prevailed 101-89 on Feb. 13, 1988 as Vinny Del Negro scored 29 to lead NC State (box score and series results on page four of these notes). NC State was the last team to beat Louisville in 1986 before the Cardinals won their last 17 games to win the NCAA Championship.
CARDINAL NOTES:
• Louisville's academic performance in the recently completed fall semester was impressive, with 15 of its 16 men's basketball student-athletes achieving a 3.0 or better grade point average. The Cardinals posted a collective 3.33 GPA for the 2014 Fall Semester, just short of the team record of 3.47 achieved last fall.
• Terry Rozier has averaged 21.8 points and 6.8 rebounds over the last six games, scoring over 20 points in five. He has averaged 18.5 points overall and 20.2 in ACC games, both which lead the league. He is second in the ACC in steals.
• Louisville's 116 victories over the last four years are the most wins in the nation in that stretch. Louisville is the only school in the nation with three straight 30-win seasons, including a school-record 35 victories by its 2012-13 NCAA Title team.
• Louisville has shot a combined 47.9 percent from the field in its last six games, including 50 vs. Pitt in its last outing. Louisville has shot above 47 percent from the field on 12 occasions this season, including eight times in the last 12 games.
• Louisville has a 44-11 record in February over the last eight years (since 2007-08), winning 13 of its last 14 in the month.
• Louisville has produced its 13th consecutive season with 20 or more victories.
• Louisville is seeking its 80th victory in the KFC Yum! Center. The Cardinals have a 79-11 record in their fifth season in the spectacular arena.
