BC Men’s Basketball Falls to Louisville 80-70

There is no rest for the weary in the ACC basketball schedule, and BC ran into another talented team on the road tonight. It was a wild game that swung from a double-digit BC lead, to a 20-point deficit, and almost all the way back in the final minutes. Unfortunately, the final push was just not enough and BC was handed their fifth consecutive loss with a 80-70 Louisville win.

After a sleepy start by the Cardinals that allowed BC to build a 12-point lead, Louisville absolutely lit up offensively. Dwayne Sutton and Jordan Nwora led the way for Louisville, combining for 38 first half points and hitting threes from all over the floor. The Eagles seemed to lose their confidence during the Louisville push and could not withstand the surge. After leading 28-16, the Eagles would be outscored 17-5 in the final seven minutes. Except one Jared Hamilton free throw, the Eagles went scoreless in the final 4:30.

The Eagles were not able to regroup in the second half as Louisville kept clicking on offense. Louisville pushed the lead over 20 as the half wore down and the Eagles were all but out of it. Despite some flashy plays, Ky Bowman had a relatively quiet offensive night coupled with 5 turnovers. With Wynston Tabbs unavailable and Bowman routinely double teamed, Jordan Chatman took the reins in a 16-0 run that drew the Eagles back within 5. Chatman hit six threes on the night for 21 points in his best game of conference play this year. The comeback was aided by an effective full court press, led by the feisty play of a clearly still hurting Steffon Mitchell. Down 5 with under 2:00 to play, BC put together a strong defensive stand but just missed the defensive rebound and Louisville was able to run down the shot clock and hit a three that put the lead just out of reach.

It was nice to see a big game from Chatman and always heartening to see the team stay mentally tough enough to make a run late in the game. Still, it’s hard to look past 0-4 start to conference play and shake the feeling that this season slipping away. The Eagles will be back at Conte Forum on Sunday afternoon to face #11 Florida State.