Orange to Play at #3 Louisville Thursday

Syracuse (8-7, 1-3 ACC) travels ot No. 3 Louisville (13-1, 3-0 ACC) Thursday night for a midweek conference matchup. The Orange look to win for the first time at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville while also snapping a three-game losing streak in conference play. The Cardinals have won 13-straight games since a 61-59 overtime loss to No. 22 Arizona to start the season.

Acting Head Coach Vonn Read has his entire starting lineup averaging double figures in scoring with Teisha Hyman leading the way (14.8 ppg). The Orange are the only team in the ACC with all five starters scoring ten or more points per game. The well-balanced offense is complemented by Syracuse's high-pressure defense which ranks No. 2 in the ACC in steals and steals per game. Syracuse has a 5.1 turnover margin on its opponents forcing 20.5 turnovers per game while committing 15.4 of their own.

Louisville is led offensively by Kianna Smith with 11.2 ppg. Former Syracuse player and 2021 ACC Sixth Player of the Year Emily Engstler is the Cardinals leading rebounded with 8.4 boars per game including 6.4 on the defensive end. The Cards are outscoring their opponents by 22.5 points per game and are shooting an impressive 44.7 percent from the field this season and are holding opponents to 25 percent from three-point range. Louisville is 4-1 against top-25 opponents this season and has earned wins over #12 Michigan, #14 Kentucky, #7 UConn and most recently snuck past #16 Georgia Tech on an Engstler buzzer beater for the 50-48 win.

Syracuse is 7-15 all-time against Louisville and has lost the last three meetings. The Orange last beat Louisville, 59-51, on Feb. 9, 2020 in the Carrier Dome. The last time 'Cuse won a road game at Louisville was back in the BIG EAST days on Jan. 23, 2010, when Cardinals were still playing at Freedom Hall. Tip-off for the 23rd meeting in program history between the two is set for 7 p.m. on ACCNX Thursday, Jan. 13. Fans can stream the game live through the ESPN app.

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Players Mentioned

Emily Engstler

Teisha Hyman

Syracuse University Athletics