By Harry Barsan

The Louisville Cardinals look to stop an early season skid as they travel to the Florida State Seminoles in an ACC matchup.

The Cards have lost four out of their last five games, with every loss coming to ranked opponents.

The Seminoles have gone 2-2 in their last four games after starting their season 7-1, all of which were decided by double-digits.

Tough exterior

The Seminoles defend the three with aggression, as they’ve held their opponent under 25% from three-point range in each of their last three games.

Their 26.5% three defense is the best the Cardinals have seen since Tennessee, who held them to a similar mark earlier this year.

While the three is clearly where the Cards want to be, but if they can’t hit their shots after shooting just 28% thus far they may be out of luck.

If it’s any reprieve, the Seminoles are much more average on two-point defense, at around 50. The Cards should have more success if they want to work the ball in closer this time around. This is the clear and obvious recipe for success offensively, we’ll just have to see if Pat Kelsey and company follow it.

The best aspect of the FSU defense is their knack for stealing the ball. They grab a very high 9.6 steals a game, which is the best in the ACC and top-20 nationally. They have five different players averaging at least one steal per game, so the Cards will need to watch their pockets before they get picked.

Tried and true

Florida State won’t surprise you on offense. They shoot double the shots from two than they do from three, with decent and sub-par accuracy, respectively. Yet they have enough threats behind the arc to be dangerous.

Nearly half of their points come from their standouts Jamir Watkins and Malique Ewin, scoring 19.1 and 12.9 points a game, respectively.

Neither are threats from deep, with Ewin being a complete non-shooter, but both will kill a team in the paint.

Besides Watkins and Ewin, the rotational players carry the rest of the weight, joining efforts to be a pretty productive group. Four other Seminoles average at least seven points a game, and at least six of their players shoot over 44% from the field.

The biggest gap in the Noles’ armor is their ability to hold onto the ball. FSU turns the ball over on offense 13.6 times a game, with a turnover rate of 18.6% which is 229th in the country. Chucky Hepburn has been a pest to opposing ball handlers all season long, averaging a career-high three steals a game.

Louisville will need to crowd passing lanes and live in the paint defensively to stop the Seminoles offense.

As was seen in the previous game against Kentucky, this Cardinal team has unfortunately encountered a short bench. Unfortunately, Florida State knows just how to exploit this. They draw a very high 21.2 fouls per game, among the best in all of the sport, and shoot the 10th most free throws per game.

Multiple players fouling out is the last thing this rotation needs going forward, so keeping fouls at a minimum will be essential before anything else in this game.

All things considered, the Cards should be busy with FSU, but not overwhelmed. There’s a path for Louisville to advance to 7-5 on the year and inch closer toward the big dance.

The Cards will tip off in Tallahassee at 2 p.m. this Saturday.

Photo Courtesy // Annabelle Merz, Louisville Athletics