By Harrison Plank

Despite missing leading scorers Mikel Brown Jr and Ryan Conwell, the No. 20 Louisville Cardinals were able to rally in a late-game comeback against the Boston College Eagles.

Clear Missing Pieces

The Cardinals won the tip, but their offense looked lost without their dominant ball handlers.

Boston College seized the opportunity, going up early on the Cardinals. Luka Toews would score seven for the Eagles early to put them up 9-5.

Not having a strong facilitator was hurting the cards, but Sananda Fru’s presence in the paint kept the score close.

The Cards tried to rely on what they knew, but had a tough outing from beyond the arc. Issac McNeely attempted to find his footing but would not hit a three-pointer in the first half, missing all four of his attempts.

Boston College’s Fred Payne started to catch fire during the Cards’ drought, scoring 10 straight on his own for the Eagles to put them ahead of the Cards 27-19.

The Eagles Boden Kapke got in on the scoring action, slamming down a monster dunk while taking advantage of the Cards one dimensional offense. His slam would come off of Louisville’s sixth turnover of the half.

The cards still had some fight left in them, going on a 6-0 run spearheaded by Adrian Wooley to trail into the second half, 34-30.

Rally in the Ville

Louisville’s shortcomings would continue into the second half. The Cards turned the ball over three more times while Boston College was able to pull further ahead.

Something had to change if the cards wanted to win this game.

Louisville would commit to a tight, press defense and it would pay off well, with Louisville going on a 12-2 run. Sananda Fru hit a running lay to tie the game and Ali Khalifa’s first made three gave Louisville their first lead of the game.

Aside from those huge shots Louisville wasn’t getting anything else to go. Most of the Cardinals’ points during this run came from the foul line.

Adrian Wooley and Sananda Fru’s presence in the paint got Boston College’s big men in foul trouble late and drew much of the Eagles defensive attention away from the three point line.

Issac McNeely took his opportunity and made the most of it, hitting two threes in quick succession to spark a Louisville run and force Boston College to call a timeout. The YUM Center was on their feet for their Cardiac Cardinals, who extended their lead to 58-53.

After the timeout a Sananda Fru post hook would uncork another Louisville run, where Boston College seemed to be unable to come back.

An and one post shot from Sananda fru put Louisville up 72-59, and the Cards were able to pull away late after being down by as many as 10.

Louisville Won 75-62.

Till the Final Buzzer

Even without Mikel Brown Jr. or Ryan Conwell, the Cards somehow found a way to win.

Adrian Wooley had to step up to fill in for those missing. He rose to the occasion, notching 16 points en route to a Louisville victory.

Sananda Fru recorded a career high 19 points, and his second career double double grabbing 13 rebounds.

Despite the ex G-League Cardinal London Johnson being activated before the game, and Louisville struggling offensively in the first half, he would not play during the Cards comeback victory.

The Cards are now 12-4 on the season and 2-2 in conference play.

Feature Photo by Nolton Alfred / The Louisville Cardinal