CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – For the first time since 1990, University of Louisville men’s basketball leaves Charlottesville victorious after a 0-0 win over Virginia on Saturday evening. The Cardinals snap a nine-game losing streak against the Cavaliers that dates back to 2020.

“I have a lot of respect for Coach (Ron) Sanchez, first of all,” said head coach Pat Kelsey. “We've known each other for a long, long time. Kind of came up in the business together. I used to call him all the time for defensive questions when they were at Washington State and they were here at Virginia. He’s a great guy and he’s done a phenomenal job. [Virginia is] so tough defensively. We knew we had to execute to win tonight. I’m proud of our guys. Kader (Aboubacar Traore) had an awesome game. He’s faced a ton of adversity. [He] cracked his arm in half about seven, eight weeks ago. He had surgery, came back, and it's taken him a little bit of time to get back into rhythm. He was just terrific tonight. In 16 minutes, he had 15 (points) and eight (rebounds). I'm so proud of him. We’re fortunate to get the win.”

Louisville won the tip for the ninth time this season and scored first for the eighth.

It was a back-and-forth battle for the first nine minutes or so before Louisville used a 7-0 run, that included four points from Aboubacar Traore, to take an 18-11 lead with 8:46 remaining. Virginia wouldn’t back down so easy and used a 9-2 run to tie it back up at 20-all with just over four minutes to go.

The Cards scored seven straight points to regain a 27-20 lead, but the Cavaliers wouldn’t let them get further away. Virginia scored a layup at the buzzer to cut the score to 32-27 Louisville at the break.

Traore did a little bit of everything in the first half, leading Louisville with nine points on 4 of 6 shooting at halftime. He added one steal and four rebounds in his eight first-half minutes.

Louisville scored the opening four points of the second half but Virginia quickly retaliated with seven straight of its own, cutting the score to 36-34 and forcing the Cardinals to call a timeout.

Out of that timeout, UofL scored the next five and used a 9-3 run to bring its lead to 45-37 with 12:59 remaining in the game.

Virginia stayed within a few possessions before the Cardinals really ramped it up to finish the game.

The Cards closed out the final 6:53 of the game on an 18-5 run, holding the Hoos to just two field goals in that time, to win the game 70-50. The final 20-point differential was Louisville’s largest lead of the game.

Louisville is now 7-1 this season when leading at halftime and 10-0 when leading with five minutes to play. The Cardinals doubled Virginia’s points in the paint, scoring 36 to their 18. They also outrebounded the Cavaliers 42-25.

Traore and Reyne Smith led the way in scoring for the Cardinals. Traore made 6 of 10 from the floor to score 15 points total in his 16 minutes on the floor. He added eight rebounds, a block and a steal.

Smith netted five 3-pointers to total 15 points as well, while dishing out two assists and grabbing a steal.

Virginia’s Andrew Rohde had 16 points on 6 of 12 shooting. He added three assists, three steals and four rebounds.

Louisville returns home for a Tuesday night game against Clemson. The game will begin at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPNU.