40-Year Nole Anniversary: FSU Tops No. 9 Louisville

Florida State’s women’s hoops team did what seemed like the unthinkable early on Sunday as the Seminoles rallied from 15 points down to top No. 2 and previously undefeated Louisville, 50-49.

On this day 40 years ago, the men accomplished a similar feat as FSU went into Freedom Hall and downed the Cardinals, 70-66. Louisville arrived for the home contest with a record of 11-2 and a No. 9 national ranking.

FSU was unranked, but a formidable opponent at 13-2. The Seminoles were paced by Mickey Dillard, who finished with what at the time was a career-high 24 points on an efficient 11-for-18 shooting.

Eugene Harris added 11 points the win for FSU, but on just 3-for-12 shooting. Kris Anderson finished with 12 rebounds in the win.

The Cardinals at the time became the highest ranked team that Florida State had ever defeated on the road. The FSU victory came in the first of three meetings between the teams that season. Florida State also defeated Louisville in Tallahassee less than a month later, but fell by a single point in the Metro Conference Championship in March, 94-93.

Both teams went on to reach the NCAA Tournament and finish in the top 15 in the final polls. FSU was defeated by another team from the Bluegrass State, Kentucky, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinals reached the Sweet 16 where they fell to DePaul, 90-89.

It would be nearly 14 years later before FSU defeated another top 10 team on the road when it topped No. 5 North Carolina in December 1991 in its first conference game as a member of the ACC. Its second ever top 10 road win however, came against the storied program of Louisville and it came on this day four decades ago.

Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson