Game Rewind | Jones rebounds, U of L tops Wake

Refresh regularly (or click here) for updates during the University of Louisville's 8 p.m. Sunday basketball game at Wake Forest.

Final: Chris Jones scored all but two of his 22 points (to go with 10 assists) in the second half of an 85-76 win at Wake Forest.

Montrezl Harrell led the Cards with his 25 points and 13 rebounds, while Terry Rozier chipped in 18 points before fouling out late of the Cards' first ACC game -- an indication of how tough this league will be every night out.

What's concerning for U of L? Big men Anas Mahmoud, Mangok Mathiang and Chinanu Onuaku combined to go scoreless with 7 rebounds and 10 fouls. So yes, Wake coach Danny Manning can coach big men.

See a full box score (http://bit.ly/1wP08PC) and follow @Les_Johns on Twitter for Rick Pitino's postgame remarks.

0:57, 2H: Chris Jones is simply getting it done. Trying to draw contact, he hit a seemingly impossible looking jumper at one end and came up with a steal at the other. That time, he did get the foul and made both free throws. It's an 80-71 Cards lead.

1:18, 2H: Montrezl Harrell got back on the board, and Chris Jones earned his double-double with an assist to the big man. It's 76-71, and with a dribbler caught in the corner, Rick Pitino burned his final timeout on the road.

2:21, 2H: Chris Jones made his free throws, and with Terry Rozier back on the floor with four fouls, his jumper made it 74-69. The two guards have U of L's last 20 points.

3:41, 2H: Chris Jones -- who else at this point? -- drew a foul in a tough situation heading to the under-four timeout, the score still 70-69. He'll shoot two free throws out of the break.

4:44, 2H: Chris Jones' doubters are quiet now. Two games after "The Flop," he's made shot after shot for U of L, the last of which has the Cards back up 70-69. He has 14 points to go with 9 assists, nearing his first double-double at U of L.

5:42, 2H: Wake leads again, 69-68, on a layup by Dinos Mitoglou that followed another deep Mitchell Wilbekin 3-pointer.

7:05, 2H: Mangok Mathiang committed his fifth foul into the under-eight timeout, so it's on to the next big man with the Cards up 68-63. Chinanu Onuaku has three fouls and Anas Mahmoud two.

Since Terry Rozier left the game, Chris Jones has carried U of L, making jumpers on consecutive possessions.

8:42, 2H: Terry Rozier has four fouls to his name now. He's been the best scorer this half with 16 points in all. In comes Anton Gill, though, with the advantage 64-61.

8:51, 2H: The Cards' offense is picking up a bit. Terry Rozier hit a jumper from the top of the key, U of L's sixth make in its last eight attempts. The next trip up the court, Rozier then hit a reverse layup. The lead is out to 64-59.

10:38, 2H: U of L's carousel of centers continues spinning. Mangok Mathiang just picked up his fourth foul and is headed to the bench. For a time, Montrezl Harrell will be the lone big man on the floor with the Cards' lead 60-57.

11:34, 2H: The score remains 56-55 into the under-12 timeout. So is it that U of L's playing poor defense or Wake, which is 8 of 11 this half, is simply on fire?

Cards radio color commentator Bob Valvano has an opinion:

12:40, 2H: On a Codi Miller-McIntyre layup, Wake took its first lead of the half. It didn't last long. Chris Jones hit a tough layup at the other end. The Cards are up 56-55.

13:20, 2H: U of L and Wake exchanged buckets too many times for Rick Pitino's liking before the coach used his second-to-last timeout, the Cards ahead 54-53. Forward Devin Thomas has starred for the Deacons with 22 points on 10 of 11 shooting to go with 7 rebounds.

14:20, 2H: Montrezl Harrell went into the half with 20 points and 6 rebounds. His stat line hasn't changed with the Cards' lead just 52-51.

Wake just pulled to within one on a cherry picking layup, plus a foul, by Codi Miller-McIntyre.

15:55, 2H: Shaqquan Aaron came on to end the run with a jumper that has U of L's lead at 48-45 into the under-16 timeout. Mangok Mathiang just picked up his third foul, however, to go with three on Chinanu Onuaku and Anas Mahmoud's 2.

17:20, 2H: And after another fast break layup and basket, Rick Pitino has called for another timeout. The Deacons are to within a point at 46-45 after leading by 13.

17:41, 2H: It's an 10-0 run now for Wake, which has opened the second half 3 of 3 from the field. U of L is 0 of 2 and struggling at both ends.

18:59, 2H: Timeout, Rick Pitino, as Wake has pulled to within 46-39 to open the half. While a breakaway layup forced Pitino to call timeout, the Deacons notably made their only two free throw attempts as well after going 1 of 9 in the first half. It's 46-39.

19:46, 2H: Quick trigger for Rick Pitino, who brought on Anton Gill after Terry Rozier committed a turnover and his third foul to open the half.

20:00, 2H: Reglar starters, including Chris Jones -- who has more than double his season average for assists -- are back on the floor.

Halftime: U of L 46, Wake Forest 35.

Montrezl Harrell finished with 20 points and 6 rebounds -- wow -- while Devin Thomas' 14 points and 5 boards paced the Deacons, who closed the half by making 6 of their final 8 shots.

By the way, Chris Jones has 8 assists in his return to the starting lineup.

See a full box score: http://bit.ly/1wP08PC

1:00, 1H: Wake's now 1 of 9 from the free throw line, effectively the difference in a 41-33 game.

3:26, 1H: On a layup called for goal-tending on Montrezl Harrell, Wake has pulled to within 36-29 of U of L at the under-four timeout. The Cards' press has looked vulnerable, while the Deacons have hit their last three shots.

4:29, 1H: Fouls are piling up, and it's not as if Rick Pitino prefers to play Anas Mahmoud, who he just chewed out on the bench but returned to the floor when Chinanu Onuaku picked up his third whistle. Wake isn't making the most of the fouls. The Deacons are 1 of 6 from the free throw line and trail 36-25.

5:34, 1H: Montrezl Harrell's line, still with plenty of time left in the first half -- 14 points on 5 of 8 shooting, to go with 2 rebounds. His bucket snapped a brief 4-0 Wake spurt. U of L's lead is 32-23.

7:22, 1H: Freshman Mitchell Wilbekin has been the bright spot for Wake so far for Wake. The team's leading scorer has 8 points as the host Deacons trail 29-17. Get used to hearing about the talented younger brother of former Florida standout Scottie Wilbekin. Mitchell's just a freshman.

8:07, 1H: Wake is officially struggling -- on both ends. U of L's on a 19-4 run over the last six minutes, during which the Deacons have missed 8 of 10 shots and trail 29-17. Off 7 Wake turnovers, the Cards have generated 9 points.

9:41, 1H: A set play out of the timeout jump-started U of L's offense. First, Montrezl Harrell moved into double figures with an old-fashioned 3-point play. Chris Jones nabbed a steal off the press -- Wake's 7th turnover -- and then hit a layup as well. It's 27-16 Cards.

U of L signee Donovan Mitchell may never play alongside Harrell, but he also added this:

9:48, 1H: Timeout, Rick Pitino -- more for a sub than anything. Chinanu Onuaku is getting his first minutes now, though Anas Mahmoud was serviceable, grabbing 3 rebounds to go with an assist and no fouls so far.

11:27, 1H: U of L's on a 6-0 run into the under-12 timeout, as Wake has hit just 1 of its last 5 shots from the field. To add, big man Dinos Mitoglou just picked up his second foul. And are we seeing a new Chris Jones? More than eight minutes in, the senior hasn't attempted a shot but does have 4 assists.

11:55, 1H: Another Montrezl Harrell 3-pointer -- this one from straight away -- led to a Deacons timeout. It's 21-14 with the Cards 5 of 6 from beyond the arc.

12:38, 1H: Terry Rozier's touch carried over into the New Year. A wing 3-pointer off Wake's sixth turnover pushed the Cards' lead to 18-14, their largest so far. Four of U of L's field goals so far are 3s, including one by Montrezl Harrell.

14:54, 1H: Shaqquan Aaron, flashing shades of fellow Seattle native Peyton Siva, followed a Terry Rozier basket off a turnover by forcing a steal in the back court. He finished, moving to 5 points already, and gave the Cards an 11-10 lead -- their first advantage.

15:40, 1H: Shaqquan Aaron was the first sub off the U of L bench, coming off a screen to hit a quick 3-pointer. But Wake Forest is on a shooting tear and leads 10-6 into the first media timeout. The Deacons, behind a pair of Scottie Wilbekin 3-pointers, are 4 of 6 from the field. U of L is off to a 2 for 6 start.

18:01, 1H: From a couple feet behind the 3-point arc, Mitchell Wilbekin made Wake's lead 5-0. It didn't last. At the other end, Wayne Blackshear hit a triple of his own to mark the Cards' first points. It's 5-3 early.

19:31, 1H: On a Greg McClinton layup on Wake's first trip up the court, the Deacons are on the board and leading 2-0.

20:00, 1H: It's confirmed, via live stats, that Chris Jones and Anas Mahmoud will start for U of L in this one. Notably in Wake Forest's lineup is guard Mitchell Wilbekin, younger brother of former Florida star Scottie.

Follow the box score of tonight's game here: http://bit.ly/1wP08PC

PREGAME: U of L's Atlantic Coast Conference debut is finally here, and with it may come another change to the Cards' starting lineup.

After point guard Chris Jones sat out most of U of L's win over Long Beach State -- that because of his flop versus Kentucky -- he's listed in game notes as a probable starter. With Jones is Anas Mahmoud, the freshman big man who could make his second straight start.

In the first meeting between these teams since an NCAA tournament game in 1996, the Cards enter a 12 1/2-point favorite at Vegas Insider.

We have Les Johns, a former Kentuckian now working in North Carolina, on coverage of this on. Check him out on Twitter (@Les_Johns) or see tweets included in the widget above -- desktop only.

For more pregame reading, check out a preview (http://cjky.it/1xqhzeb) and column (http://cjky.it/17bMIII) both based on this marking U of L's first ACC game, plus more story lines (http://cjky.it/14bjsjl).

Probable U of L Starters

G Chris Jones

G Terry Rozier,

F Wayne Blackshear

F Montrezl Harrell

C Anas Mahmoud

Probable Wake Forest Starters

G Mitchell Wilbekin

G Codi MIller-McIntyre

F Greg McClinton

F Devin Thomas

C Darius Leonard