Freshman Ebuka Okorie leads Stanford to an 80-76 win over No. 16 Louisville

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Stanford guard Ebuka Okorie (1) drives to the basket against Louisville guard Isaac McKneely (10) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Stanford, Calif., Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

The Stanford bench celebrates after a 3-point basket against Louisville during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Stanford, Calif., Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar) — Stanford guard Ebuka Okorie (1) drives to the basket against Louisville guard Isaac McKneely (10) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Stanford, Calif., Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)

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11:02 PM on Friday, January 2

By MICHAEL WAGAMAN

STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Freshman Ebuka Okorie scored 28 points, Benny Gealer made a crucial pair of free throws with 8.2 seconds left, and Stanford beat No. 16 Louisville 80-76 on Friday.

Okorie shot 9 of 18 and went 8 of 10 on free throws in 38 minutes to pace Stanford (12-3, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) to its first win over a ranked opponent since beating then-No. 4 Arizona on Dec. 31, 2023.

It was Stanford’s first victory in five meetings with Louisville, an ACC rival as of last season.

Chisom Okpara scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half for Stanford, and Ryan Agarwal added 12 points.

Ryan Conwell scored 18 points on 6-of-21 shooting for Louisville (11-3, 1-1), which fell short in coach Pat Kelsey’s first attempt at his 300th victory. Isaac McKneely added 17 points, Sananda Fru scored 15 and J’Vonne Hadley had 14.

Louisville's Khani Rooths made a 3-pointer with 4:49 left to tie the game at 65-all, but Agarwal responded with a 3 for Stanford and the Cardinal held on from there. Gealer's free throws made it a two-possession game after Louisville had moved within two.

Louisville didn’t look very sharp when it beat California on Tuesday, and things didn’t get much better when Kelsey’s team traveled across the San Francisco Bay.

Stanford took control early and benefited from Conwell’s slow start.

Louisville’s leading scorer at 27.8 points per game, Conwell missed his first nine shots, including eight from behind the arc. Conwell's first point came on a free throw and he didn’t make his first basket until late in the first half. He finished 2 of 14 on 3-pointers.

Up next

Louisville: Hosts No. 6 Duke on Tuesday.

Stanford: At Virginia Tech on Wednesday.

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