Louisville Basketball Struggles to Build on Promising Trip, Disappoints in Return to Yum! Center

The Louisville men’s basketball team faced a challenging match against New Mexico State on Sunday. Despite making only three of its 18 attempts from beyond the arc, the Cardinals managed to secure a 90-84 overtime victory at the KFC Yum! Center.

Their win came in the midst of their recent struggles, with an apparent turnaround in defeats against No. 17 Texas and Indiana at the Empire Classic.

More concerning is that Louisville, previously seeming capable of competing with the best in the country, struggled against a team predicted to finish eighth out of nine in Conference USA.

Skyy Clark, with 29 points, and JJ Traynor, with 20, led their team to victory, while Tre White added 22 points. The game was ultimately won at the free-throw line. U of L made 36 of 49 attempts from the charity stripe, while New Mexico State went 9 for 17.

Next, Louisville faces Bellarmine at the Yum! Center, seeking redemption from a one-point loss to the Knights in the previous season opener.

This story will be updated.

Reach Louisville men’s basketball reporter Brooks Holton at [email protected] and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville MBB vs New Mexico State basketball: Kenny Payne, Cards 3-3