Louisville vs. Virginia Game Recap - Jan. 13, 2026

Louisville (#20) hosted Virginia (#16) in what was a highly anticipated ranked matchup. Both of

these teams revamped their rosters through the transfer portal this offseason and are looking to rely on their veteran rosters to make deep runs come March.

Virginia had a scorching hot start to this game, getting out to a 14–0 lead as Louisville took a

timeout with 16:23 left in the 1st half. Seven-footer Johan Grunloh hit two threes from the top of the key during this run, contributing to Virginia's 4/5 start from downtown. Three-pointers from Louisville guards Ryan Conwell and Isaac McKneely helped Louisville go on an 8–0 run of their own after the timeout, but Virginia's balanced attack kept Louisville at bay for most of the 1st half. Junior guard Sam Lewis led the way for Virginia, finishing the first half with 10 points on 3/6 shooting. Despite a hot shooting stretch from Isaac McKneely, who had 11 1st-half points on 4/8 shooting, Louisville was down 28–33 at the break.

The Cavaliers outrebounded the Cardinals early in the 2nd half, and they capitalized with

long-range jumpers to extend their lead to 43–32 with 16:30 remaining. Virginia continued to

move the ball around and get quality looks on the offensive end as they slowly built on their

lead. After a sloppy stretch of basketball for Louisville, they cut the lead to single digits with a

strong take to the rim by J’Vonne Hadley with under 9 minutes remaining. After a back-and-forth sequence, Ryan Conwell hit a spot-up three-pointer from the left corner to cut Virginia's lead to single digits with under 3:20 to play. Johan Grunloh halted Louisville's late run with a three of his own, extending the lead back to 10. Despite a late rally and pressing effort from Louisville, they ultimately fell to Virginia with a 79–70 final score. Malik Thomas stood out for the Cavaliers, finishing the game with 19 points and 6 made threes. Isaac McKneely was the leading scorer for the Cardinals with 23 points. This marked a big win for UVA and should age well for them come Selection Sunday.

Contributor: Adam Simmons