CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Stanford men’s basketball was locked in a tight battle with No. 13/13 Louisville but fell after a buzzer-beater from the Cardinals, 75-73, at the Spectrum Center in the ACC Quarterfinals. The Cardinal moves to 20-13 on the season with the result
Oziyah Sellers led the Stanford offense with 22 points, making seven of his 12 field goal attempts and four of his six 3-pointers, to go with four rebounds, three assists and a career-best three steals. Maxime Raynaud scored 17 points, while Ryan Agarwal and Chisom Okpara were in double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
The loss at the buzzer is the first for the Cardinal since Feb. 27, 2010, when Lamont Jones scored as time expired for Arizona.
Stanford led at the half by three points, 33-30, led by 11 points from Raynaud and 10 from Sellers. The first half included seven lead changes and six ties, with the Cardinal taking a three-point lead on two occasions. Agarwal and Okpara ended the half with 3-pointers to put the Cardinal on top at the intermission.
The Cardinal jumped out to a 15-point led with 14:36 to play, 52-37, after an 11-0 run that spanned 2:05. Louisville (26-6) responded with a 12-0 run of their own and eventually took a one-point lead with 5:40 to play, 63-62. The second-seeded Cardinals held an eight-point advantage with 1:56 to go, but Stanford tallied an 8-0 run after a triple from Agarwal, two free throws from Sellers and an and-one from Okpara to tie the game.
Stanford forced a Louisville miss on the final possession, but the rebound found its way to the Cardinals’ Chucky Hepburn for the game-winner at the elbow as time expired.
Finishing its first season in the ACC, Stanford awaits its postseason fate on Sunday.