Tuesday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—NET Rankings update: No. 30 (up three spots from yesterday)

—The Louisville women’s basketball team is hosting UT-Martin this afternoon at 2:30 on the ACC Network. Here’s a preview.

—Both Packer and Durham have Louisville’s Wednesday night opponent as the best team in the ACC right now.

—ACCSports.com has some significant praise for the recent play of David Johnson.

—Louisville women’s golfer Lauren Hartlage is one of 12 players who have been invited by the USGA’s International Team Selection Committee to attend a practice session Jan. 29-30 at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club in Orlando, Fla., for the 41st Curtis Cup Match.

—Carlik Jones is once again your most valuable practice player for the current week.

—Promising Syracuse RB Jawhar Jordan has entered the NCAA transfer portal.

—Louisville football ended the 2020 season tied for the ACC lead in bowl victories.

For much of the regular season, the ACC was the talk of college football. Its original schedule torched by the pandemic, independent Notre Dame joined the conference as a one-year rental, and prior to the playoff, its two clashes with Clemson were the year’s most-watched games.

An 0-6 postseason doesn’t erase the fact that five ACC teams — Clemson, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Miami and N.C. State — were among the CFP’s final top 25, more than any conference and quite the contrast to 2019, when Clemson and Virginia were the lone ACC squads in the CFP rankings. Moreover, the bowl bagel won’t void the $6 million check the ACC will cash for having a second playoff team.

Bigger picture, let’s remember three things: The ACC and SEC are the only conferences that have been represented in each of the seven playoffs; ACC teams have won three national championships in the last seven years; the league staged more games than anyone in 2020.

If a full 2021 schedule is feasible, there will be ample opportunities for the ACC to repair an image dinged by 0-6.

—Cardinal Authority has a Q&A with Georgia Southern QB transfer Shai Werts.

—Louisville holds at No. 22 in Gary Parrish’s daily hoops rankings for CBS.

—The latest Sporting News Bracketology has Louisville as a 4-seed.

—Malik Cunningham officially announced on his Instagram on Monday that he’ll be returning to Louisville for another season.

—Kenderick Duncan believes Louisville will provide a great opportunity for him.

—Pretty good.

—Swish Appeal previews Louisville-UT Martin.

—The Cards Cast pod looks at a big week ahead for U of L basketball.

—Gobbler Country serves up an early preview of Louisville-Virginia Tech.

—There’s zero chance that these region names don’t wind up being atrocious and almost universally loathed.

—The official Virginia Tech website previews Wednesday night’s game inside the Yum Center.

—Both Olivia Cochran and Elizabeth Dixon are off to extremely strong starts in 2020-21.

—Louisville Report likes the Cards in a nailbiter tomorrow night.

- ESPN Prediction: Per ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, Louisville has a 56.0% chance to win against Virginia Tech.

- KenPom Prediction:

Per KenPom.com, the Cardinals have a 62% chance to take down the Hokies, with a projected final score of 67-64 in favor of Louisville. Virginia Tech’s Adjusted Efficiency Margin ranking of 42nd is the highest that Louisville will face until Monday, Jan. 18 vs. Florida State.

- Personal Prediction: Louisville 69, Virginia Tech 68.

—Louisville Report lays out the points of emphasis for Louisville-Virginia Tech.

—Louisville is No. 7 in the latest ACC hoops power rankings from 247 Sports.

—And finally, the NCAA has released some more details on the tournament coming to the state of Indiana.