Virginia defense leads Cavaliers to win against Louisville

With two of the best defensive teams in the country squaring off, it’s no surprise the matchup between No. 3 Virginia and No. 9 Louisville turned into a defensive slugfest. The Cavaliers proved to be the stingier team, shutting down the Cardinals for long stretches en route to a 52-47 win.

Virginia’s defense was the star of the first half. While Louisville found a little offensive traction early on, the Cardinals quickly went cold. Louisville scored just 13 points in the first half and went scoreless for the final 10:32 of the period. That scoring drought continued into the second half for 91 seconds, with Virginia holding the Cardinals without a point for more than 12 minutes overall. Louisville’s defense held its own as well, but the Cavaliers used the opportunity to build an 11-point advantage.

The offenses got going in the second half and Louisville was able to muster a few scoring runs to cut into the lead, but the Cardinals never got over the hump. They cut Virginia’s lead to three with less than a minute to play, in part due to a huge closing stretch from Montrezl Harrell. That included a huge dunk in transition.

It’ wasn’t enough, though, as Virginia made its free throws and held on for the victory.

With the win, Virginia remains on top of the ACC standings. The Cavaliers improved to 9-1 in conference play, two games ahead of the Cardinals, Notre Dame, North Carolina and Duke in the loss column. Louisville could have tied Virginia at the top with a win, but instead dropped to 7-3.