Louisville vs NC State odds, prediction, pick for UofL basketball game
- Entertainment
ThePostMaster- 0
- 16 minutes read
Feb. 9, 2026, 5:10 a.m. ET
- Louisville basketball hosts N.C. State at 7 p.m. Monday in a Quad 1 game at the KFC Yum! Center.
- Pat Kelsey’s 23rd-ranked Cardinals have won three in a row, while Will Wade’s Wolfpack have racked up six straight victories.
- Who has the edge in this ACC showdown? Here’s our prediction.
For better or worse, we’re going learn a lot about Louisville basketball today.
Pat Kelsey’s No. 23 Cardinals (17-6, 7-4 ACC) will put their three-game winning streak to the test in a Quad 1 tilt against red-hot N.C. State, winners of six in a row, at the KFC Yum! Center. It’s a white-out.
UofL is coming off an 88-80 win at Wake Forest over the weekend. It led by as many as 15 points during the second half but allowed the Demon Deacons to draw level with 4:44 remaining in regulation before holding them scoreless the rest of the way.
“Playing desperate,” Khani Rooths said to describe Louisville’s defensive stand down the stretch. “We knew what we needed to do to win. We got stops; and we just had to finish it with the boards.”
N.C. State will be the best test of the Cards’ ceiling since their last appearance on Big Monday, which ended in the most lopsided loss of Kelsey’s tenure — 83-52 at then-No. 4 Duke. Led by first-year coach Will Wade, the Wolfpack improved to 11-2 since Dec. 17 and 24th on KenPom.com’s adjusted efficiency rankings with an 82-73 win against Virginia Tech over the weekend.
Preseason ACC Player of the Year Darrion Williams leads N.C. State in scoring with 14.7 points on 42.5% shooting (41.7% from 3-point range) to go along with 5.3 rebounds, three assists and a steal per game. Point guard Quadir Copeland, meanwhile, has the ACC’s second-best assist rate (44.8%, seven per game) in addition to averaging 14 points on 52.9% shooting and 1.9 steals. The big man to watch: Ven-Allen Lubin, who leads the Wolfpack with seven rebounds per game and is fourth in scoring (13.3).
Here’s what you need to know to follow today’s game from home — then a score prediction:
UofL and N.C. State are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. today inside the Yum! Center.
The game between the Cards and the Wolfpack will air on ESPN, which is channel 602 on AT&T U-Verse; channel 206 on DirecTV; channel 140 on Dish; and channel 506 on Spectrum.
Dave O’Brien (play-by-play), Jay Williams (analyst) and Molly McGrath (sideline) will be on the call.
If you subscribe to a cable package, you’ll be able to livestream the game via ESPN.com and the ESPN app. If you don’t have cable, you can livestream the game via Fubo, which offers a free trial here.
Louisville is a 6⅟₂-point favorite (-110) on DraftKings, which set the over/under at 162⅟₂ points (-110).
No. 23 Louisville 79, N.C. State 73: The Cards’ frontcourt has been playing better of late, and I think Ryan Conwell and Mikel Brown Jr. are due for a big scoring night — although the Wolfpack’s backcourt is going to be a problem on both ends of the court. After siding against Kelsey’s team the past few times I’ve done these predictions for big games, I think tonight’s the night they get it done. Because they’ve never needed it more than they do now.
- Friday, Oct. 24: vs. Kansas (exhibition) | SCORE: Kansas 90, Louisville 82
- Tuesday, Oct. 28: vs. Bucknell (exhibition) | SCORE: Louisville 99, Bucknell 76
- Monday, Nov. 3: vs. South Carolina State | SCORE: Louisville 104, South Carolina State 45
- Thursday, Nov. 6: vs. Jackson State | SCORE: Louisville 106, Jackson State 70
- Tuesday, Nov. 11: vs. Kentucky | SCORE: Louisville 96, Kentucky 88
- Saturday, Nov. 15: vs. Ohio | SCORE: Louisville 106, Ohio 81
- Friday, Nov. 21: vs. Cincinnati | SCORE: Louisville 74, Cincinnati 64
- Monday, Nov. 24: vs. Eastern Michigan | SCORE: Louisville 87, Eastern Michigan 46
- Wednesday, Nov. 26: vs. NJIT | SCORE: Louisville 104, NJIT 47
- Wednesday, Dec. 3: at Arkansas (ACC/SEC Challenge) | SCORE: Arkansas 89, Louisville 80
- Saturday, Dec. 6: vs. Indiana (at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis) | SCORE: Louisville 87, Indiana 78
- Saturday, Dec. 13: vs. Memphis | SCORE: Louisville 99, Memphis 73
- Tuesday, Dec. 16: at Tennessee | SCORE: Tennessee 83, Louisville 62
- Saturday, Dec. 20: vs. Montana | SCORE: Louisville 94, Montana 54
- Tuesday, Dec. 30: at California | SCORE: Louisville 90, California 70
- Friday, Jan. 2: at Stanford | SCORE: Stanford 80, Louisville 76
- Tuesday, Jan. 6: vs. Duke | SCORE: Duke 84, Louisville 73
- Saturday, Jan. 10: vs. Boston College | SCORE: Louisville 75, Boston College 62
- Tuesday, Jan. 13: vs. Virginia | SCORE: Virginia 79, Louisville 70
- Saturday, Jan. 17: at Pittsburgh | SCORE: Louisville 100, Pittsburgh 59
- Saturday, Jan. 24: vs. Virginia Tech | SCORE: Louisville 85, Virginia Tech 71
- Monday, Jan. 26: at Duke | SCORE: Duke 83, Louisville 52
- Saturday, Jan. 31: vs. SMU | SCORE: Louisville 88, SMU 74
- Wednesday, Feb. 4: vs. Notre Dame | SCORE: Louisville 76, Notre Dame 65
- Saturday, Feb. 7: at Wake Forest | SCORE: Louisville 88, Wake Forest 80
- Monday, Feb. 9: vs. N.C. State, 7 p.m., ESPN
- Saturday, Feb. 14: vs. Baylor (at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas), 4 p.m., ESPN
- Tuesday, Feb. 17: at SMU, 7 p.m., either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU
- Saturday, Feb. 21: vs. Georgia Tech, 2:15 p.m., The CW
- Monday, Feb. 23: at North Carolina, 7 p.m., ESPN
- Saturday, Feb. 28: at Clemson, TBA, either ESPN or ESPN2
- Tuesday, March 3: vs. Syracuse, 9 p.m., ACC Network
- Saturday, March 7: at Miami, 2 p.m., either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU
- Tuesday, March 10, through Saturday, March 14: ACC Tournament (Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina)
Reach Louisville men’s basketball reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.
Our team of savvy editors independently handpicks all recommendations. If you purchase through our links, the USA TODAY Network may earn a commission. Prices were accurate at the time of publication but may change.
Gambling involves risk. Please only gamble with funds that you can comfortably afford to lose. While we do our utmost to offer good advice and information we cannot be held responsible for any loss that may be incurred as a result of gambling. We do our best to make sure all the information that we provide on this site is correct. However, from time to time mistakes will be made and we will not be held liable. Please check any stats or information if you are unsure how accurate they are. No guarantees are made with regards to results or financial gain. All forms of betting carry financial risk and it is up to the individual to make bets with or without the assistance of information provided on this site and we cannot be held responsible for any loss that may be incurred as a result of following the betting tips provided on this site. Past performances do not guarantee success in the future and betting odds fluctuate from one minute to the next. The material contained on this site is intended to inform, entertain and educate the reader and in no way represents an inducement to gamble legally or illegally or any sort of professional advice.
Gannett may earn revenue from sports betting operators for audience referrals to betting services. Sports betting operators have no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. Terms apply, see operator site for Terms and Conditions. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, help is available. Call the National Council on Problem Gambling 24/7 at 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ, OH), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN). Must be 21 or older to gamble. Sports betting and gambling are not legal in all locations. Be sure to comply with laws applicable where you reside. It is your sole responsibility to act in accordance with your local laws.
