STANFORD, Calif. – Opening the calendar year with a statement on the national level, Stanford men’s basketball earned an 80-76 victory over No. 16/13 Louisville at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal improves to 12-3 this season and 1-1 in the ACC.
Ebuka Okorie led the Cardinal with 28 points, finishing 9-for-18 from the floor with a pair of 3-pointers and an 8-for-10 mark at the free throw line. The outing was the eighth of the season for Okorie with at least 20 points and seventh with at least 25. With the eight free throws, Okorie moved into a tie for seventh in Stanford’s freshman history with Howard Wright (1985-86), passing Adam Keefe and Chasson Randle during the game.
Chisom Okpara stuffed the box score with 17 points, a season-high eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals while Ryan Agarwal scored 12 points, including a perfect 4-for-4 mark from beyond the arc. Jeremy Dent Smith added nine points while Benny Gealer had seven.
The Cardinal defense limited Louisville to just 6-for-27 shooting beyond the arc – season lows in both categories – as the visitors entered the evening in the top-five nationally in 3-point makes and attempts per game, and first in 3-point attempts per field goal attempt.
Stanford earns its first ranked win under Kyle Smith, the Anne and Tony Joseph Director of Men’s Basketball, and its first since beating No. 4/4 Arizona on Dec. 31, 2023. Stanford has won three consecutive battles against ranked foes at Maples Pavilion, also including a win over No. 4/4 Arizona on Feb. 11, 2023. The win was also the first in program history against Louisville in five tries.
After a back-and-forth start with Louisville (11-3, 1-1 ACC), Stanford took a seven-point lead, 20-13, after a 13-3 run that spanned nearly four minutes until the midpoint of the first half. The Cardinal led by as many as nine in the first half, with Okorie scoring 14 points in the opening frame, but Louisville cut the score to just one point at the half.
The game featured 18 total lead changes and 14 in the second half. Neither team led by more than two possessions over the entire period, but Stanford ended the game on a 15-11 stretch to earn the win. Agarwal gave Stanford a lead it wouldn’t relinquish with a 3-pointer with 4:26 to play, 68-65, and Dent-Smith scored a clutch basket in the paint to give Stanford a five-point edge with 1:07 to go. Gealer and Dent-Smith scored at the free throw line in the closing seconds to secure the win.
Stanford returns to the road – where it is 4-0 away from home this season – when it takes on Virginia Tech on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 4 p.m. The action will air on ACC Network.