NEW YORK — The college basketball season is only six weeks old, but it’s already headed for the fifth No. 1 team of the season.
The top-ranked Louisville Cardinals lost their first game of the season Tuesday, falling 70-57 to the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden.
Louisville struggled at both ends of the floor, going nearly 10 minutes in the first half without a field goal and shooting just 3-for-17 from 3-point range for the game. Jordan Nwora led the way with 14 points, but the Cardinals’ guards couldn’t get going against Texas Tech’s defense. They turned it over 13 times in the second half.
Texas Tech, last season’s national runner-up, entered Tuesday’s game on a three-game losing streak — after losing five regular-season games all of the previous season. The Red Raiders got 18 points from Davide Moretti and 13 points from Terrence Shannon, as well as unlikely production from walk-on Avery Benson, who had 10 points and two momentum-changing blocks in the first half.
With Louisville falling, expect No. 2 Kansas to move up to the top spot if the Jayhawks can beat UMKC on Saturday. No. 3 Ohio State received more first-place votes than the Jayhawks in this week’s AP poll, and the Buckeyes play at Minnesota on Sunday.
