Feb 9, 2026; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals guard Mikel Brown Jr. (0) dribbles against the NC State Wolfpack during the second half at KFC Yum! Center. Louisville defeated N.C. State 118-77. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Preview: Louisville's Neutral Site Showdown vs. Baylor

Originally posted on Louisville Cardinals on SI
By Matthew McGavic | Last updated Feb 12, 2026 6:00 AM ET

Thing are trending in the right direction as of late for the Louisville men's basketball program, and that recent momentum is going to be put to the test in a brief break from ACC action. They will head down to the Lone Star State this Valentine's Day, taking on Baylor in a neutral site non-conference matchup in Fort Worth.

Suffering a 31-point loss at Duke back on Jan. 26 seems to have been a wakeup call for the Cardinals, as they have fired off a four-game winning streak since then - their longest since opening up the season at 7-0. Most recently, they delivered one of their most dominating performances in recent memory, dropping the hammer on NC State for an eye-popping 118-77 win.

The Wolfpack beatdown was brought to you by an otherworldy two-man performance from Mikel Brown Jr. and Ryan Conwell. Brown finished with 45 points, breaking the ACC freshman single-game scoring record and tying the UofL overall single-game scoring record, while also tying the program's single-game made threes record (10). Not to be outdone, Conwell also poured in 31 points.

As for the Bears, things have not gone according to plan this season for Scott Drew's squad. While Baylor did open up the year at 10-2, they have lost nine of their last 12 games - all coming in Big 12 play.

Most recently, BU dropped a 99-94 decision to A.J. Dybantsa and BYU this past Tuesday. Baylor has lost their last six games against top-50 teams in KenPom's rankings and have just two wins against such teams so far this season, not winning since a 91-81 win over San Diego State on Nov. 26 in the Player's Era Festival.

This will be just the second all-time meeting between the two programs. Louisville's first matchup with Baylor came back on Nov. 25, 2016 in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game. Despite a 17-point outing from Donovan Mitchell and an early 22-point lead by the Cardinals, it was the Bears who emerged victorious, capturing a 66-63 win.

No. 24 Louisville Cardinals (18-6, 8-4 ACC) vs. Baylor Bears (13-11, 3-9 ACC)

Date/Time: Saturday, Feb. 14 at 4:00 p.m. EST
Place: Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Tex.
TV: ESPN - Play-by-play and analyst TBD.
Channel (Louisville)/Live Stream: Spectrum: 31; Dish: 140; DirecTV: 206.
Radio (Louisville): 93.9 FM - Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Bob Valvano (analyst).