Louisville survives scare from UTEP, 77-74

They won’t write poems about this one.

Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Louisville flirted with disaster for 40 minutes on Wednesday night before finally escaping with a 77-74 win over visiting Louisville.

The Cardinals got a crucial bucket from James Scott off a beautiful pass from Chucky Hepburn, a clutch pair of late free-throws from Reyne Smith, and then were fortunate enough to see a wide open three-pointer at the buzzer from UTEP’s Corey Camper Jr. go wanting.

The visitors from Conference USA led by four points at halftime and by as many as seven in the second half before Louisville dialed up its defensive pressure and dialed up its dedication to attacking the rim. As a result, the Cardinals were able to outscore UTEP by 18 points at the free-throw line, helping to offset yet another dismal evening of outside shooting. U of L made just six of its 34 three-point attempts.

For the second straight game, Terrence Edwards Jr. came off the bench to lead Louisville in scoring. Doing the bulk of his damage in the second half, Edwards Jr. scored a game-high 22 points.

J’Vonne Hadley stepped up big with the game on the line, securing several key offensive rebounds and converting on a handful of attempts around the rim. He finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Scott also notched a double-double, the first of his college career, with 11 points and 11 boards.

Camper led UTEP in scoring with 19.

Yes, this was a game that we probably lose the last couple of years. That doesn’t mean that it was an effort that inspired a great deal of confidence going into Saturday. We were extremely fortunate to not take our first really bad loss (opponent-wise, not margin-wise) of the Kelsey era.

Be grateful. Regroup. Make some shots on Saturday.

Beat UK.