DURHAM, N.C. — David Johnson lit a fire under the Cardinals on Saturday, scoring 19 points before leaving with a late injury and helping Louisville pick up a massive 79-73 win at Duke.

Louisville (15-3, 6-1 ACC) is now one of just two conference teams with one loss in league play.

Johnson made the difference with 19 points, 17 in the first half, but had to be helped off the court late after a hard fall. He returned to the bench to watch the Cardinals close out the win over Duke.

Malik Williams made clutch plays late in the game and finished with 12 points and 7 rebounds. Dwayne Sutton played with hustle and gave the Cardinals 13 points and 5 boards, while Steven Enoch chipped in 10 points. Jordan Nwora shook off a quiet start to put up 6 points and 8 rebounds in the victory.

Johnson caught fire off the bench in the first half. He hit 7 of 8 attempts from the field and entered the break with 17 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal. He dished it to Malik Williams for a 3-pointer at the buzzer that gave Louisville a 42-32 lead heading into the locker room.

Saturday's showdown in Durham, North Carolina, marked the final chapter of a three-game road stretch for the Cardinals. Louisville will be back in action Wednesday night at home against Georgia Tech.

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This story will be updated.

Lucas Aulbach can be reached at laulbach@courier-journal.com, 502-582-4649 or on Twitter @LucasAulbach. Support strong local journalism and subscribe: www.courier-journal.com/lucasa.