J’Vonne Hadley’s career-best 32 points propelled Louisville to a 74-64 victory over visiting Clemson on Tuesday in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup.
With their fifth straight triumph, the Cardinals (11-5, 4-1) exceeded their conference wins mark from last season and have their most ACC victories since 2021-22. They got there thanks in large part to Hadley, the fifth-year transfer from Colorado, whose previous career high was 24 against Washington on Jan. 24, 2024.
Hadley scored 18 in the first half on 6-of-7 shooting, including seven straight during a Louisville 14-1 run over the final 3:06 in the half. That run turned a 34-28 deficit into a 42-35 halftime advantage.
Louisville built the lead to 51-39 before the Tigers (12-4, 4-1) whittled it to 56-54 with 10:45 left on a Jake Heidbreder 3-pointer. That would be as close as Clemson would get as the Cardinals answered with nine straight. Hadley got the last six, capping the spurt on a jumper with 7:21 remaining.
Besides going 10-for-12 from the floor, Hadley grabbed 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season and dished a season-high four assists.
Teammate James Scott recorded his second double-double of the season. Perfect on five attempts, he added 11 points and 10 rebounds. It’s the second time this season Scott and Hadley posted double-doubles in the same game.
Chucky Hepburn, Louisville’s leading scorer, scored just nine on 1-of-10 shooting but contributed seven assists and three steals.
Clemson outrebounded Louisville 38-32 and held the ACC’s second-best offensive-rebounding team to just nine while grabbing 16 on its own glass. That was not enough to overcome 40 percent field-goal shooting and 13 turnovers.
Chase Hunter led the Tigers with 15 points and Jaeden Zackery added 12. Heidbreder, from nearby Floyds Knobs, Ind., and Ian Schieffelin added 10 points.
–Field Level Media
