Report Card: Florida State 82, Louisville 67
It's harder to find a game between elite teams with greater contrasts in halves than the one Louisville played at Florida State. To be outscored 50-27 in the second half, to lose the team's captain and defensive leader early to injury, and to ultimately lose their collective cool and be blown out in celebratory fashion was the fate that greeted Louisville in a game with tremendous postseason significance. That being said, here are CardinalSports.com's grades for the individual players in a losing effort.
MALIK WILLIAMS
Grade: Incomplete
Williams was forced from the game due to what has thankfully turned out to be a less than serious injury. It's impossible to measure how much his defensive and aggressive presence was missed down low, especially in the second half.
JORDAN NORWA
Grade: C-
I don't want to discount his first-half effort. He was a part of the 40-point first half that Louisville put on one of the better defensive teams in the country. But, with the game slipping away from the Cardinals, Nwora played 19 second-half minutes, went 0-6 from the field, 0-4 from three-point range, and added just a single rebound. To say nothing of his being on the receiving end of Trent Forrest's thunderous dunk (for which Nwora deserves credit for not giving up). It was the direct opposite of the Florida State game at the Yum, Center where he kept the team afloat.
STEVEN ENOCH
Grade: C-
With Malik Williams out due to injury, Enoch was forced to play more than usual and somehow he managed to produce less than usual. Some of it is obviously matchup driven. Florida State is a gifted team with great size. Enoch was also forced to be somewhat restrained on the defensive end with him knowing he couldn't get into foul trouble. But even when none of that was even a possible issue, Enoch recorded no points and no rebounds in the first half. His game was sadly another reminder why Malik Williams had surpassed him and become a starter.
DWAYNE SUTTON
Grade: B-
He was never the focus of the offensive effort, but, his energy and effort level were as consistent as ever. A game like this he could've been a better rebounder, but, anything close to a double-double should be enough from Sutton. He wasn't an issue.
DAVID JOHNSON
Grade: B-
There were issues, certainly. Johnson is still an unsure defender whose hesitation gets him out of position and makes him a foul magnet. He's not a dependable three-point shooter yet. And against a team that's exceptionally good at forcing turnovers, he was loose with the ball. But, he was also the team's only reliable playmaker yet again. He was the only player to finish with a positive plus/minus for the game.
FRESH KIMBLE
Grade: C+
He scored nine points and attacked the basket more and better than he has at times. But he also dribbled the hell out of the ball in a game crying out for more ball movement and unselfishness. He can't finish with one assist and Louisville hope to beat elite opponents. How much of that is him vs teammates not moving? It's hard to say. But Louisville fell back into patterns dating back to Texas Tech where the point guards just didn't initiate good offense often or quickly enough.
RYAN MCMAHON
Grade: C
Ryan was one of the main reasons Louisville had a good first half offensively. So it saved me from being overly harsh. But in the second half, he was swallowed up and it become clear to all that he was the focal point of FSU's offensive attack. Unable to stay in front of Seminoles players, he was constantly beaten or fouling and was a non-factor in the second half. If Syracuse was a great circumstantial matchup for Ryan, Florida State is an equally bad one.
DARIUS PERRY
Grade: D
He played just seven minutes and didn't score. While he's not ideally sized to play against FSU, he is deadly quick and even that wasn't put to good use. Worse, he seems to be regressing to the pouting body language he showed at times in 2018-19. His minutes will continue to shrink as that happens because it's a pet peeve of Mack's to have players sulk.
SAMUELL WILLIAMSON
Grade: C
I have such a hard time grading Williamson because he never seems to get enough time to get into anything and it isn't always clear to me what he's being asked to do. If anything. Last night seemed like a place where his length and athleticism might have helped. I'm additionally confused why he can't pick up some of the minutes Darius Perry is shedding. Nevertheless, I gave him a "C" simply because he didn't seem to hurt the team and didn't pour in anything exceptional either.