Kenny Payne Louisville vs. Appalachian State 11-21-2022 Photo by William Caudill, TheCrunchZone.com

Cards Fall at Home to Chattanooga, 81-71

Mark BlankenbakerNovember 11, 2023

Louisville men’s basketball gave up 14 3-pointers to Chattanooga and allowed the Mocs to shoot 58% in the second half Friday night, falling 81-71 at the KFC Yum! Center.

The Cardinals (1-1) trailed 33-27 at halftime, but Chattanooga (2-0) opened the second half on an 8-0 run and led by as much as 21 with 6:52 remaining.

“They walked in not afraid of us and executed their game plan,” UofL head coach Kenny Payne said. “I thought they were the aggressors tonight. I felt like we were behind the action a lot at times, and they attacked. They made a bunch of 3s and played with good energy. Their big guys played with a tenacity that we didn’t make or exceed. That falls on not just the players but coaches as well. I take accountability for that. I told them that we were playing a very good team that had a lot of veteran players that could beat us. They came in here and did that.”

The Cardinals went on a 12-0 run in the final minutes to cut their deficit to seven after a three-point play by sophomore guard Skyy Clark at the 2:16 mark. Chattanooga’s Jan Zidek countered with a 3 to end the threat.

Sophomore guard Tre White and redshirt sophomore guard/forward Mike James led Louisville with 17 points apiece. Junior forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield added six points and a career-high 14 rebounds.

Honor Huff led Chattanooga with 25 points, including a 7-for-13 performance from 3-point range. Myles Che chipped in 22 points.

The Cardinals conclude their homestand against Coppin State at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday. The game will stream on ACC Network Extra.

“I’ll just say something’s got to change,” James said. “Something’s definitely got to change. Between us, we have to come together as a group, get better at practice and attacking in practice. We need to come out and give a better effort in the next game for sure.”