The West Virginia Mountaineers held a 44-37 lead over the Louisville Cardinals coming out of the half, but Louisville managed to overtake West Virginia in the second half. The Mountaineers made a late rally. but it wasn't enough, as Louisville was able to ward off the late surge and hold on to win 77-74. Kyle Kuric led the Cardinals in scoring with 17 points, while Russ Smith picked up 16 points off the bench.
In the loss for West Virginia, Kevin Jones did all he could for the comeback putting down 22 points and grabbing 11 rebounds for the double-double. Deniz Kilicli added 17 points and five rebounds, while Darryl Bryant added another 13 points.
The Mountaineers have now lost five of their last six games, and they'll likely need a strong regular-season finish or a deep Big East Tournament run to make it to the NCAA Tournament.
For more on the West Virginia Mountaineers, visit SB Nation's Mountaineers blog The Smoking Musket. For more on the Louisville Cardinals, visit SB Nation's Louisville blog Card Chronicle.