NC State vs. Louisville: Score, Twitter Reaction for Wolfpack's Upset Win

The ninth-ranked Louisville Cardinals (20-5, 8-4 ACC) lost for the second time in three games, falling 74-65 to the North Carolina State Wolfpack (15-11, 6-7 ACC) Saturday inside the KFC Yum! Center.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, it's the first time in a decade that a Louisville team in the Top 10 lost at home:

ESPN.com's Brett Edgerton added that North Carolina State hasn't beaten two Top 10 teams in the same season for an even longer period of time—the Wolfpack upset then-No. 2 Duke on Jan. 11:

After the game, NC State head coach Mark Gottfried credited his team's defense for the win, per Pack Pride:

Much of Louisville's problems stemmed from Terry Rozier's inability to make any sort of impact. He was averaging 18.5 points entering Saturday but only shot 3-of-11 against NC State, scoring seven points.

Even worse, Rozier fouled out with a little less than five minutes to play and Louisville down 62-52, which meant the Cardinals would have to close a 10-point gap without their leading scorer.

The somewhat ironic aspect of Rozier's fifth foul was that it came so shortly after he re-entered the game. 

After Rozier's dismissal, Louisville continued hanging around, but the Cardinals couldn't string enough defensive stops together to tie the game. They got to within four points with 1:22 remaining after a jumper by Wayne Blackshear.

On the next possession, Louisville doubled up on NC State guard Anthony Barber in an attempt to force a steal and get a quick bucket.

However, BeeJay Anya was left wide open underneath the basket, and he threw down a two-handed jam to give the Wolfpack a six-point lead with 1:03 to play, which all but ended the Cardinals' comeback attempt.

Barber was one of the driving forces behind the upset. Although he shot 5-of-15 from the field, he knocked down 10 of his 13 free throws and led the Wolfpack in scoring with 21 points.

More importantly, the confidence Barber exuded on the court was infectious. His teammates picked up on it, which gave NC State the impetus necessary to pull off the win:

Anya and Caleb Martin also played pivotal roles. Their 10 rebounds apiece helped to give NC State a 47-37 advantage on the boards against a Cardinals team that ranked 17th in rebounds per game.

Looking at the bigger picture, it's hard to say for sure how much this win will mean for the Wolfpack.

NC State's conference title push ended long ago, but the Wolfpack still have a chance of getting into the NCAA tournament. On ESPN.com's "Bubble Watch," Eamonn Brennan wrote that "Mark Gottfried's team might need to conjure something special at Louisville Saturday just to stay in the conversation."

NC State did exactly that and thus remains in the conversation for the Big Dance. Sports Illustrated's Seth Davis thinks spots remain up for grabs in the ACC:

This defeat likely signals the end of Louisville's bid for a regular-season conference title. The Cards fell three games back of the Virginia Cavaliers, who lead the ACC with an 11-1 conference record. Still, Louisville will want to finish the season strongly to help its seeding for both the ACC and NCAA tournaments.