Coming off a road loss to Pittsburgh that ended a five-game winning streak, Syracuse (16-10, 8-5 Atlantic Coast) returns home to play No. 4 Louisville (20-5, 8-4) on Monday at 7 p.m. The Cardinals most recently overcame a 14-point halftime deficit on Saturday to beat Miami, and now head to SU as winners of eight of its last 10 games.

Here’s everything you need to know about Monday’s game.

All-time series: Louisville leads, 16-8

Last time they played: Last time these two teams squared off, the Orange was destroyed in the paint at the KFC Yum! Center during a 72-58 loss. The Cardinals torched the bottom of Syracuse’s zone for 50 points in the paint, largely spearheaded by big man Chinanu Onuaku. Trevor Cooney led SU with 19 points, but the Orange was really hamstrung by a 12-for-21 (57.1 percent) shooting night at the foul line. Tyler Lydon only shot 2-of-7 in his 31 minutes off the bench.

The Louisville report: UofL boasts one of the best defenses in the country. At defending the 3, blocking shots and protecting the paint, the Cardinals are extremely difficult to score on. Kenpom.com rates Louisville’s 87.4 defensive efficiency, a metric that measures points allowed per 100 possessions, as the second-best in college basketball. With Deng Abel and Mangok Mathiang active again after a one-game suspensions last Monday at Virginia, the Cardinals’ frontcourt is once again back at full strength.

How Syracuse beats Louisville: Not only does UofL excel on defense, but it scores at about the same rate the Orange does. That spells out an extremely difficult matchup for Syracuse, perhaps more challenging than previous upsets against UVA and Florida State. Quite simply, SU is going to have to figure out where it can break into the Cardinals’ defense. That’s likely going to be on the inside, given Louisville’s propensity for defending the 3.

That means John Gillon needs to drive as often as he can, drawing in defenders to go for a contested layup or find an outlet pass. That means Taurean Thompson needs to stay out of foul trouble and do what he does best: Get to the basket. That means SU can’t have a repeat of what happened against Pittsburgh, with Tyler Lydon going silent and the offense skidding out until the last 10 minutes of the game.

Stat to know:

28.7 percent — Louisville’s opponents this year have shot only 28.7 percent from 3, which stands as the best mark among ACC teams this year. Andrew White and Tyus Battle, among others, will have to figure something out that few other players have this year against UofL, or find a different source for scoring opportunities.

Player to watch: Quentin Snider, point guard, No. 4

The 6-foot-2 junior point guard returned to the court against the Hurricanes after missing six games with a strained hip flexor. The Cardinals survived the six games with Donovan Mitchell manning the point, but Louisville’s offense is better with Snider out there. He has a knack for hitting 3s, leading UofL’s trio of 3-point shooters with a 38.5 percentage from deep. In the four games before Snider’s injury, he and Mitchell sparked Louisville’s offense by 32.3 points and shooting 41 percent from the field. The Orange will certainly be tested by Snider and Louisville’s frontcourt.

Published on February 12, 2017 at 10:59 pm

Contact Connor: cgrossma@syr.edu | @connorgrossman