Cards Can’t Slow Wake Forest’s Long-Range Shooting in Road Loss

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Zach Greenwell

Louisville men’s basketball allowed a season-high 18 3-pointers to Wake Forest on Saturday, falling 90-65 on the road.

The Demon Deacons went 18-for-35 from long range and racked up 20 assists, shooting 50% overall from the field.

“There are no excuses,” UofL head coach Kenny Payne said. “At the end of the day, we’ve got to go out and perform. We have to go out and play with a fight and go out and defend. The elephant in the room is if we allow a team to shoot the ball like that, you’re not winning.”

Wake Forest made 10 3-pointers in the first half, including eight of its first 13, while the Cards went 0-for-3 from behind the arc

Louisville (6-12, 1-6 ACC) trailed by three at the 10:24 mark when the Demon Deacons hit three consecutive 3-pointers for a 9-0 run. That lifted their lead to 28-16 with 8:54 remaining.

The Cardinals countered with a quick 6-0 run, but Wake scored eight of the final 11 points of the half to push its advantage to 48-33 at the break.

The Demon Deacons didn’t slow down in the second half, knocking down another eight 3s and building a lead as large as 26 with 8:32 remaining.

Hunter Sallis led Wake Forest (13-5, 5-2) with 19 points. Five Demon Deacons finished in double figures.

Sophomore guard Tre White paced Louisville with 17 points and six rebounds. Redshirt sophomore guard/forward Mike James had 16 points, while junior forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield added 12.

The Cardinals return home for two games next week, starting with No. 7/6 Duke at 7 p.m. ET Tuesday at the KFC Yum! Center. The game will air on ACC Network.