National Basketball Association
Louisville 91, Virginia Tech 83
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Where: Cassell Coliseum, Blacksburg, Virginia
Officials:
# Brian Dorsey, # Jerry Heater, # Mike Roberts
Attendance:
7084
By The Sports Xchange
Damion Lee was mired in a deep shooting funk earlier this month, including consecutive games in which he missed every one of his 3-point attempts.
That slump appears to be over now.
The senior guard made 6 of 7 3-point attempts and recorded a season-high 29 points on Wednesday to lead No. 16 Louisville to a 91-83 victory over Virginia Tech in Atlantic Coast Conference play at Cassell Coliseum in Blacksburg, Va.
"My teammates were able to find me on drives and open kicks," said Lee, "and I was just knocking down open shots."
Lee's season-best six 3-pointers is one more than his combined output over the previous four games. He was 5-of-26 during a stretch that began with 11 straight misses in games against Clemson and Pittsburgh.
Lee also had six assists and he received scoring help from senior guard Trey Lewis, who scored 20 of season high-tying 22 points in the second half for the Cardinals (17-3, 6-1).
Sophomore forward Jaylen Johnson added career-best totals of 11 points and nine rebounds as Louisville won its fourth straight game.
Sophomore guard Jalen Hudson scored a season-best 27 points to pace the Hokies (12-9, 4-4). Junior guard Seth Allen added a season-high 26 points and junior forward Zach LeDay scored 20 but the trio couldn't prevent Virginia Tech from losing its third straight game.
"I apologized to the team," said Virginia Tech coach Buzz Williams, who took responsibility for the defeat. "(The players) did everything that I asked them to do. I thought they played with great heart and energy."
The Hokies were able to stay in the contest by making 33 of 38 from the free-throw line. Allen was 13 of 14 from the line, Hudson made 12 of 14 and LeDay hit all eight of his attempts.
But Virginia Tech was unable to stop the Cardinals from 3-point range. Louisville connected on 12 of 18 attempts and set a season high for most 3-point makes.
It was Lee doing most of that damage and he was relieved after registering his best all-around effort since scoring 27 points against Kentucky on Dec. 26.
"It was definitely just one of those nights. Once you see it go in once, the confidence just builds up," Lee said. "I can't really take any credit for that. I give all the credit to my teammates, everybody who was out there just finding me. I managed to be the hot hand."
Lee's sixth 3-pointer gave Louisville a 50-43 edge with 15:30 remaining. The Hokies scored the next four to get within three before Lewis tallied 10 points in 2 1/2 minutes -- including back-to-back 3-pointers -- to give the Cardinals a 62-53 lead with 11:35 to play.
Lewis drained another 3-pointer to make it 67-57 with 9:59 to go before Virginia Tech rattled off the next six points. Hudson's basket made it 67-63 with 7:06 remaining.
Lee and freshman forward Raymond Spalding each hit two free throws to halt the Hokies' spurt and Lewis hit a corner 3-pointer to give the Cardinals a 74-65 advantage with 5:05 left. Lee knocked down two more free throws -- he was 11 of 12 from the line -- to make it an 11-point margin with 2:57 remaining.
Virginia Tech made one last run as Hudson and LeDay scored baskets and sophomore guard Justin Bibbs hit a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 80-74 with 1:19 to play. Louisville made 11 of 14 free throws over the final 70 seconds while closing out the victory.
The Cardinals allowed their most points of the season. Coach Rick Pitino said it was because of the nature of Williams' offensive system.
"Everything he does offensively is difficult," Pitino said. "He's really one of our bright young coaches in our game. For his second year at Virginia Tech, he's doing an awesome job. He really is."
Lee scored 16 first-half points as the Cardinals led 38-34 at the break.
Hudson scored six straight points to give the Hokies a 12-7 lead less than five minutes into the contest. A 3-pointer by Bibbs and a layup by LeDay boosted Virginia Tech's advantage to 20-12 with 10:45 left in the half.
Johnson and Lee responded with back-to-back 3-pointers and Lee made two free throws as Louisville tied the score with 7:54 remaining. The Cardinals' spurt reached 19-6 when freshman guard Donovan Mitchell scored on a layup to make it a five-point lead with 3:04 left.
The Hokies were within 35-34 after a dunk by Allen with 18 seconds left. But Lee narrowly beat the halftime buzzer with his fourth 3-pointer without a miss to give Louisville a four-point lead.
NOTES: Louisville has defeated the Hokies 11 consecutive times. ... Virginia Tech has a 3-14 home mark against the Cardinals. ... Louisville sophomore PF Chinanu Onuaku had his streak of six consecutive double-doubles snapped. He had nine points and five rebounds before fouling out. ... Six of Virginia Tech's previous seven ACC games were decided by five or fewer points.
Top Game Performances
Louisville |
|
Virginia Tech |
Damion Lee 29 |
Scoring |
Jalen Hudson 27 |
Damion Lee 6 |
Assists |
Seth Allen 2 |
Jaylen Johnson 9 |
Rebounds |
Jalen Hudson 7 |
Damion Lee 11 |
Free Throws Made |
Seth Allen 13 |
Damion Lee 1 |
Steals |
Seth Allen 1 |
Anas Mahmoud 3 |
Blocks |
Zach LeDay 2 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Louisville
|
91 |
51.9 |
12-18 |
25-34 |
19 |
29 |
7 |
2 |
15 |
Virginia Tech
|
83 |
45.1 |
4-15 |
33-38 |
7 |
24 |
2 |
3 |
10 |