No. 15 Syracuse (17-4, 6-2 Atlantic Coast) is traveling south for a Thursday night tip with No. 2 Louisville (21-1, 8-1). The Cardinals have only lost one game this season, in a primetime matchup with then-No. 1 Notre Dame. SU has won its last two games, holding off Duke and Virginia in recent contests.

Here’s what to know about the Cardinals matchup before Thursday.

All-time series: Syracuse trails, 10-6

Last time they played: On Feb. 4 last season, the Cardinals marched into the Carrier Dome riding the play of Asia Durr, who led the ACC in scoring at 19.9 points per game in league play. The Orange kept the game close with 22 points from then-freshman forward Digna Strautmane and a 20-point, 10-assist double-double from star point guard Tiana Mangakahia, but ultimately fell by seven, 84-77. Then-junior point guard Durr scored 27 to lead the Cardinals and Mangakahia had 10 turnovers, four of them coming in the second half of the game.

The Louisville report:Durr is back. And that’s bad news for SU. She’s upped her scoring from a season ago to 20.8 points per game to lead the team by a wide margin. But the Cardinals are well-equipped in a variety of other areas. Redshirt senior guard Arica Carter is shooting at a scorching 43 percent clip from 3-point range as the only other player on Louisville aside from Durr to record at least 100 attempts from beyond the arc.

Beyond its play from the outside, Louisville has capable forwards in Sam Fuehring, Bionca Dunham and — despite playing just 19.0 minutes per game — 6-foot-4 Kylee Shook has blocked 30 shots in 22 games. The Cardinals have scorers, defenders and rebounders at all levels of the floor, and will require the Orange to tap into their versatility.

How Syracuse beats Louisville: Stop Asia Durr. It seems obvious that the key to beating a top-ranked teamwould be to limit its top scorer, but the senior can score from all over the floor. Wednesday, SU head coach Quentin Hillsman didn’t hide that was a major part of the Orange’s gameplan.

“We want to know where she is. She’s had games where we’ve played her and she’s taken the game over. Pretty much won the game for them,” Hillsman said. “I’m not one of those guys — those coaches — who’s like, ‘No, we’re not worried about one person.’ No, we’re worried about her. She’s a really good basketball player.”

The Orange will also have to burst out of their shooting slump with a performance that more efficiently makes use of their fast-paced 3-point heavy offense. A strong defensive gameplan centered around limiting Durr, coupled with a shooting performance that’s on par with some of the best the Orange have had this season should be enough to pull off a resounding upset against the Cardinals.

“You’re going to make shots or you’re not,” Hillsman said.

Stat to know: 80 — The amount of points per game Louisville scores

Louisville, behind the second-best scorer in the ACC in Durr, is second in the conference in points per game. They stand one spot in front of Syracuse, who averages 78.1 points per game.

Player to watch: Asia Durr, point guard

Durr is among the top scorers in the ACC and already shredded the Orange last year. She’s scored 30 points three times this season and has eclipsed the 20-point mark in 13 games. Expect a high-scoring performance from Durr.

Published on February 6, 2019 at 11:10 pm

Contact Michael: mmcclear@syr.edu | @MikeJMcCleary