No. 6-seed Louisville looks to reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2015 when it faces No. 3-seed Michigan State at KeyBank Center in Buffalo this afternoon
Louisville basketball has not been to the Sweet 16 in 11 years. Standing between the Cardinals and that long-awaited return is the same program that denied them a Final Four trip the last time they came this close.
No. 6 seed Louisville faces No. 3 seed Michigan State today, March 21, at approximately 2:45 p.m. ET at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. The game airs on CBS, with streaming available through the NCAA March Madness Live app and Paramount Plus. Brian Anderson will handle play-by-play duties, with Jim Jackson providing analysis and Allie LaForce on the sideline. Louisville radio listeners can find the call on the Cardinal Sports Network at WLCL 93.9-FM and WGTK 970-AM.
The winner advances to next week’s East Regional, beginning March 27 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., where they will face the winner of the No. 2 UConn and No. 7 UCLA second-round matchup.
How each team got here
Louisville’s path to this moment was hard-earned. The Cardinals defeated No. 11-seed South Florida 83-79 in the first round on Thursday, a game they led by as many as 23 points before watching the Bulls stage a furious late comeback. Coach Pat Kelsey’s team held on, and in doing so secured his first March Madness win as a head coach and the program’s first tournament victory since 2017. Isaac McKneely was the driving force, scoring 23 points and connecting on seven three-pointers to keep Louisville afloat when things got uncomfortable down the stretch.
Michigan State had a considerably smoother afternoon. The Spartans dismantled No. 14-seed North Dakota State 92-67 in their opener, with big man Carson Cooper leading the way with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Only one Spartan, Jeremy Fears Jr., played more than 30 minutes in that game, leaving Tom Izzo’s team rested and confident heading into today. The win was Izzo’s 60th in the NCAA Tournament, a number that underscores just how deep his Hall of Fame roots in this event run.
The injury concern Louisville cannot ignore
The most pressing question surrounding the Cardinals ahead of tip-off is the status of freshman Mikel Brown Jr., who missed the South Florida game and is considered doubtful again for today. His absence puts additional pressure on McKneely and senior guard Ryan Conwell to carry the offensive load against a Michigan State defense that limited North Dakota State to just 67 points in a relatively comfortable win.
South Florida’s late-game press visibly rattled Louisville in the final minutes on Thursday, exposing a vulnerability that Michigan State’s experienced coaching staff will almost certainly look to exploit. The Spartans, playing with a deeper roster and more rest, arrive as the fresher team by almost any measure.
Michigan State enters the game as a 4.5-point favorite, with the over-under set at 150.5 points.
The history between these programs
There is no shortage of emotional weight attached to this matchup. In 2015, in an Elite Eight overtime game, Michigan State ended Louisville’s run to the Final Four, a loss that stings harder when you consider the Cardinals have not been back to the second weekend of the tournament since. For Kelsey’s players, most of whom were in middle school when that game was played, the history may not land the same way it does for the fan base. But the program’s desire to finally push past this particular ceiling is real, and today’s opponent is the most fitting possible test of whether this team is ready to do it.
A win would put Louisville in its first Sweet 16 since 2015 and give Kelsey the signature March moment his tenure has been building toward. A loss would extend one of the more painful droughts in a program with genuine championship history. Either way, the Cardinals have earned the right to be here, and this afternoon in Buffalo will go a long way toward defining what this season actually means.