Louisville had one last punch in it, but the drought before it proved fatal. The Cardinals went the final 2:49 without a made field goal, and by the time Mikel Brown Jr. finally buried a contested three with two seconds left, the math had already turned cruel. North Carolina survived 77–74 at the horn, escaping a game it controlled late despite shaky free throw shooting that kept the door cracked until the final second.
The deciding stretch was defined by efficiency versus volume. Louisville fired 39 shots from three on the night but couldn’t buy a basket when it mattered most. North Carolina, meanwhile, leaned into shot quality, finishing 54-percent overall and getting just enough stops to offset a brutal 9-for-19 night at the line. Even then, the Tar Heels nearly handed it back. After Brown Jr.’s deep three cut it to 76–74, UNC missed the front end of a one and one, setting up one last possession that never materialized.
Individually, Louisville got everything it could reasonably ask for from its backcourt. Brown Jr. poured in 24 points on sheer volume and nerve, while Ryan Conwell added 23 with five perfect free throws and four triples. Jvonne Hadley was hyper efficient, scoring 14 on 6-of-8 shooting and pulling down a team high six rebounds. But the cold nights elsewhere including an 0-for-5 showing from Isaac McKneely loomed large as the Cardinals finished under 39-percent from the floor and stalled out late.
North Carolina’s difference maker was Seth Trimble, who carved up Louisville for 30 points on 11-of-16 shooting, repeatedly getting downhill when the game tightened. The Tar Heels didn’t dominate the glass and didn’t protect the ball much better, but their shot making especially inside the arc carried them through the Cardinals’ final push. Louisville led by as many as 10 in the first half, but couldn’t extend the lead. They eventually lost it and never regained it. Even in defeat, the Cardinals made UNC sweat every second until the buzzer.
The Cards head to Clemson to play Saturday at 2 pm.
