Russ Smith broke out of a slump with 25 points and No. 15 Louisville ended a two-game losing streak with a 76-59 victory over visiting DePaul on Saturday.

Chris Smith added 20 points for the Cardinals (14-4, 2-3 Big East), who avoided losing three straight at home for the first time in 11 years despite missing leading scorer Kyle Kuric.

Louisville entered this contest in a state of turmoil, having lost four of five, including a 31-point loss to Providence on Tuesday, its worst loss in nearly three years. The Cardinals were also without Kuric, who suffered a high ankle sprain in Thursday’s practice and is out indefinitely.

They picked up a much-needed win thanks to Russ Smith, a sophomore guard who regained his scoring touch at the prefect time. Smith had managed just five points over the last two games after averaging 20 in the previous seven contests.

The Cardinals led by nine at the half and by double digits for most of the second half, but the Blue Demons (10-7, 1-4 Big East) didn't go quietly. DePaul hung around thanks to 10 3-pointers, and pulled to within 56-51 with 7:24 left on the strength of an 11-2 run. But the Cardinals responded with a clinching 15-6 run.

Brandon Young scored 14 points for the Blue Demons, who have three straight. DePaul has also lost 34 straight to ranked opponents and fell to 4-59 against Big East foes since 2008.