LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Don't get bitter, get better.

Sounds like a coaching cliche, but it turned out to be the motivation No. 18 Louisville needed after consecutive road losses to Duke and Notre Dame.

The Cardinals ran off and hid from Syracuse in the second half Wednesday night, turning a one-point halftime lead into a 72-58 Atlantic Coast Conference blowout at KFC Yum! Center.

Some wondered if Louisville (20-6, 9-4) would summon up the motivation to finish the season strong after banning itself from postseason play on Feb. 5. Coach Rick Pitino wasn't one of the skeptics, but he felt compelled to address the issue with his team.

"We're all emotionally drained," Pitino said. "Getting bitter gets you nowhere. Let's all just finish the season like we started it. Let's just execute."

After a shaky first 10-plus minutes in which they fell behind 18-6 as the Orange's trademark 2-3 matchup zone enticed a spate of turnovers and long 3-point attempts, the Cardinals heeded their coach's words.

Entering the ball into the lane at will, Louisville rolled up a 50-20 advantage in paint points. Its other 22 points came off seven 3-pointers and a single free throw. That meant no mid-range jumpers or long 2-point tries.

"The energy in this locker room after the game," offered guard Trey Lewis, "was back to what we're used to."

Lewis was part of the energy surge. Switched to a reserve role after starting 23 of the first 25 games, Lewis got the Cardinals started with a 3-pointer after guard Quintin Snider's 3 as they cut into their double-figure deficit.

With Syracuse still owning a 27-23 edge in the half's final minute, Lewis gave Louisville momentum and the halftime lead. He drained a runner in the lane, then swished an open 3 as time expired for a 28-27 advantage.

Cardinals forward Damion Lee and center Chinanu Onuaku put their stamp on the second half. Onuaku broke a 32-32 tie by accounting for six straight points, four off putback slams and two with a sweet interior pass to forward Jaylen Johnson for a layup.

Lee then drilled three 3-pointers in a 2:59 span to give Louisville a 49-40 lead with 11:47 remaining. After an alley-oop slam by freshman guard Donovan Mitchell, Onuaku and Lewis combined for nine straight points as the Cardinals opened up a 60-44 margin at the 8:45 mark.

Onuaku's behind-the-back bounce pass in the lane to Lewis finished the spurt, bringing their teammates off the bench and inciting an ovation from the crowd of 21,654.

"I knew he had it in him," Lewis said of the pass. "He gave me a look right before he threw it."

The game essentially decided at that point, Louisville spent its remainder tacking on style points. The 6-foot-3 Mitchell delivered a throwdown that might have dethroned two-time NBA dunk champ Zach LaVine, soaring almost to the backboard's top to slam Lee's transition lob pass in the final four minutes.

Onuaku added assists on dunks by Mitchell and Johnson in the last three minutes as the lead reached 19 before the Orange made it a bit more respectable.

"Tonight was the first bad road game we've played," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "We missed six foul shots in the first half and three layups. I thought we had some good shots and didn't make them. You can't afford to do that against a good team on the road, and Louisville is very good."

Lee finished with a team-high 15 points, while Lewis added 14. Onuaku stuffed the stat sheet with 13 points, 15 rebounds and four assists, helping the Cardinals outrebound the Orange 41-30.

Senior guard Trevor Cooney scored a game-high 19 points for Syracuse (18-9, 8-6), which saw its five-game winning streak end. Senior forward Michael Gbinije added 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while guard Malachi Richardson tallied 10 points.

NOTES: Louisville entered the game as the Division I leader in scoring margin at plus 17.1. ... Syracuse F Michael Gbinije ranks third in Division I in minutes per game at 37.55. ... Cardinals G Damion Lee started the night needing only 65 points to score 2,000 for his career, counting his first three seasons at Drexel.