INDIANAPOLIS – The national stage was not too big for No. 15 seed Jacksonville State in its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
 
The OVC champion Gamecocks led for much of the first half before second-seeded Louisville's relentless pressure began to take its toll as the Cardinals claimed a 78-63 win in the Indianapolis Regional at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Junior Norbertas Giga exploded for a career-high 30 points, but it wasn't enough as Jacksonville State's season ended with a 20-15 record.
 
First-year JSU coach Ray Harper couldn't fault the effort from his squad.
 
"I think the entire country got an opportunity to see how hard our guys play," Harper said in the post-game news conference. "I think we represented our university, our city and the OVC in a class manner, which we said we would. The bar's been set. Hopefully, we can do it again someday soon."
 
Veteran Louisville coach Rick Pitino, whose team advances to face Michigan in the second round, praised the way the Gamecocks dealt with his squad's full-court intensity.
 
"(Jacksonville State) never stopped, kept staying in the game," Pitino said. "Really happy for Ray because he did a terrific job in his first year. They have very good basketball players."
 
Giga, the 7-foot forward/center from Lithuania whose previous JSU high was 20 points against Tennessee Tech in January, was spectacular in defeat.
 
Giga poured in his game-high 30 points on 11-of-13 shooting, including making all five of his 3-point attempts. He also led the Gamecocks with nine rebounds.
 
"My teammates kept finding me. I kept shooting. The ball kept going in," Giga said. "I think we fought – Louisville is a good team and I think they're going to go far this season."
 
The sellout crowd of 18,255 and national TV audience witnessed Jacksonville State jump out to a quick 10-2 lead in the game's five minutes.
 
The Gamecocks didn't relinquish their lead until Deng Adel hit a long 3-pointer to put Louisville (25-8) in front 21-19 at the 6:44 mark of the first half. The Cardinals closed the half on a 20-12 run and led 38-31 at intermission.
 
"I figured they were eventually going to make a run," said freshman guard Tyrik Edwards. "I felt we had to stay calm and keep playing like we were."
 
Louisville led by as much as 17 with just over 12 minutes remaining, but Giga – who had 17 points after halftime – kept Jacksonville State within striking distance with his outside shooting.
Junior Malcolm Drumwright joined Giga in double figures with 12 points while senior added 11 in his final JSU appearance.
Louisville out-rebounded the Gamecocks 36-23.
 
"The game was determined by our inability to rebound the ball," Harper said. "It wasn't because of a lack of effort. Their length and athleticism caused us some problems."
 
For more information on the JSU men's basketball team, follow the Gamecocks on Twitter (@JSU_MBB). For more on all Gamecocks sports teams, follow the official social media accounts of JSU Athletics on Twitter (@JSUGamecocks), Facebook (Facebook.com/JSUGamecocks), Instagram (@JSUGamecocks) and Snapchat (@JSUGamecocks).
 
Notes • 2017 NCAA Tournament: First Round
#15 Jacksonville State vs. #2 Louisville
March 17, 2017 • Bankers Life Fieldhouse • Indianapolis, Ind.
- Today marked Jacksonville State's first NCAA appearance at the Division I level and the first by the Gamecocks since advancing to the Elite Eight in the 1992 NCAA Division II Tournament.
-  Greg Tucker went 3-for-6 from behind the arc, giving him at least one 3-pointer in his last 14 games and at least two in six-straight games.
- In the race for JSU's Division I single-season rebounding record, sophomore Christian Cunningham extended his school record to 274, while junior Norbertas Giga is second in school history with 267. The duo both passed Pat Armour's previous school record of 255 from the 1995-96 season.
- His 30 points today gave Norbertas Giga double-digit points for the 21st time this season.
- With his five blocks today, Christian Cunningham has broken Amadou Mbodji's school record (57 in 2007-08) for blocks in a season with 59.
- Louisville's 24 second-chance points are the most against the Gamecocks this season, passing Tulsa's 18 in the season opener on Nov. 11.
- Norbertas Giga's 30 points are a career high, surpassing his previous high of 20 at Tennessee Tech on Jan. 14, 2017.
- Giga becomes the first 30-point scorer for JSU since Greg Tucker had 36 in the final game of the 2015-16 season.
- Giga's 5-for-5 day from behind the 3-point line was the first time in his JSU career the center has made more than one 3-pointer in a game.
- Senior Greg Tucker's 11 points gave him double figures for the ninth-straight game and for the 22nd time this season. It marks his 36th career double-digit scoring performance.
- Junior Malcolm Drumwright reached double digits in the scoring column for the 22nd time this season and the 47th time in his career. He now has 956 career points, seventh on JSU's Division I scoring list. He enters his senior season needing just 44 points to become JSU's seventh 1,000-points scorer in Div. I.
- Today's crowd of 18,255 is the second-largest to ever see the Gamecocks play basketball. The largest was also against Louisville, when a crowd of 20,479 saw JSU play the Cardinals in The Yum! Center in Louisville on Nov. 17, 2014. Here are the top five crowds to see the Gamecocks play:
20,479 at Louisville (11/17/14)
18,255 vs. Louisville (3/17/17) - NCAA 1st Round in Indianapolis
15,924 at Arkansas (12/29/04)
15,316 at UNLV (11/17/12)
14,759 at Michigan State (12/28/02)
13,646 at Maryland (12/12/16)