Stanford (12-3, 1-1 ACC) upset #16 Louisville (11-3, 1-1 ACC) 80-76 Friday night in Maples.
The Cardinals were the best team to visit Maples to date in the Kyle Smith era. The two teams could not have had more different ACC openers, with Louisville easily pulling away from Cal for a 20 point victory, while Stanford mustered only 40 points for the first time in nearly 20 years in a 7 point loss to Notre Dame. But that’s why you take it one game at a time.
Stanford enjoyed the faster pace that Pat Kelsey and his Cardinals wanted to play. They were able to get into transition and semi transition, turning steals into offense. And after an awful shooting night against Notre Dame, the threes fell early, with the Cardinal quickly jumping to a 29-20 advantage.
A strong finish to the half brought Louisville back to just a 35-34 deficit. Ebuka Okorie, after a 7 point outing against Notre Dame, had 14 points in the game’s first 20 minutes. Louisville’s star scoring guard, Ryan Conwell, went just 2-12 in the first half, including 1-9 from three. Stanford’s perimeter defenders continue to impress.
The game seesawed back and forth in the second period, with neither team leading by more than 6. Stanford led by a single point with 2 minutes to go when Ebuka Okorie converted a pair of free throws. On the next possession, Jeremy Dent-Smith got downhill and around Oskar Giltay’s seal for a layup to go up 5. A quick free throw for Louisville made it a 4 point game, when the Cardinals opted to play it out on defense.
After much time burning off the clock, Benny Gealer went to the line with 8 seconds to go, up 2 points, and iced it with a pair of free throws. Despite a miss earlier in this game, Benny is now shooting 92% from the line on the year.
Ebuka Okorie was once again the best player on the court. After twin 30 point games last week, he had his first real off game against Notre Dame. But Ebuka’s mentality was not going to keep him down. He finished with 28 points on 9-18 from the field, to go with 3 assists and 0 turnovers. Whenever Stanford needed a play, he was there to deliver it.
Chisom Okpara continued his strong senior season with 17 points and a team-high 8 rebounds. His size on the wing was critical in shoring up the defensive glass, and in playing a disruptive brand of defense. Ryan Agarwal scored 12 points on 4-4 from three. He is a true X-factor for this team.
“[Ryan] did not play well against Notre Dame, so he bounced back and he had to,” said Kyle Smith. “That’s part of the process, too and you know, he’s been a very reliable guy and doing his job and he’s a great complimentary player.”
Jeremy Dent-Smith added 9 points off the bench, and played the final four minutes of crunch time. His perimeter defense is strong, and he’s a steady presence offensively.
Stanford has plenty more exciting home games on the slate this season, with North Carolina, Duke, and Cal coming to Maples later this month.