| Game Summary: Global Sports | Score: Global Sports 87, Louisville 86 (2ot) |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Reece Gaines (27) Global Sports: Gary Williams (34) |
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| What could have been a confidence boost against a team that only brought seven players into Freedom Hall turned out be another disaster and confidence-shaker. In front of less than 9,000 fans in Freedom Hall, the Cards suffered their first exhibition loss since 1996. At the first timeout, the Cards were an unbelievable 2-10 from the field. Marques Maybin, U of L's leading scorer, missed his first six shots, and wound up 5-17 from the field for 13 points. Joseph N'Sima and Hajj Turner combined to score no points and collect five rebounds. |
U of L trailed by five twice early in the second half, but Reece Gaines, suffering with a stomach illness, kept the Cards close. When Luke Whitehead hit a basket at the 3:21 mark, the Cards took the lead at 58-56. But U of L missed three of four free throws in the final 30 seconds, and Global Sports was able to send the game to overtime. A three-pointer by Gary Williams with 30.2 seconds left in the OT tied the game at 77, forcing the game into another extra period. Marques Maybin hit a free throw with 11.6 seconds left in the second OT to give U of L an 86-85 lead, but a tip-in by Williams with two seconds left won the game for Global Sports. Whitehead had a solid game for U of L, finishing with 15 points and 17 rebounds, while Ellis Myles had 15 points and 16 rebounds.  |
| Game Summary: Georgetown | Score: Georgetown 70, Louisville 63 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Marques Maybin (28) Georgetown: Mike Sweetney (12), Demetrius Hunter (12) |
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| In U of L's regular season home opener, the tailspin the Cardinals have been riding since returning from Hawaii continued out of control. Yet again U of L opened with a desparate first half, and despite a steady comeback in the second period, U of L dug itself too great a hole to erase. The Cards looked unconfident, confused, bewildered and as if they didn't belong on the same court--in the first half. And for the second year in a row, Georgetown plays by all means an uninspiring game with a lousy field goal percentage only to beat the Cards anyway. The end of the game provided some ray of hope as the Cards crept back into winning position, but yet again reminders of how far this team has to go were more than evident. |
| For the game, the Cards shot only 31%, and had just as many turnovers (18) as field goals. The Cardinals' bench was outscored by the Hoya bench 24-0. Georgetown themselves shot only 36% from the field, was a dismal 22-39 from the free throw line and committed 20 turnovers. It was enough to boost their perfect record to 6-0. In the first half, U of L shot 5-20 and trailed 34-15 at halftime. U of L scored one point in the first six minutes to fall behind by 10. By the third TV timeout, the Cards trailed 28-9, and even though the Hoyas then went five minutes without a field goal, they still extended their lead by three. |
| In the second half, Marques Maybin caught fire for U of L. He opened the period with a three-pointer to set the tone, but the Cards were unable to take advantage of some solid opportunities to narrow the lead. U of L could have cut the lead to 10 with 7:15 left after a personal and technical foul against the Hoyas, but the Cards made only 1-4 free throws. Luke Whithead hit a jumper with 1:54 left to pull U of L within 62-58, Georgetown then hit two free throws. Mac Wilkinson had a shot blocked with 45 seconds left, and it was only a three by Reece Gaines at the buzzer that prevented another double-digit loss by the Cards. Maybin led all scorers with 28, but was only 6-17 from the field, though he really turned it on in the second period. Gaines struggled to finish with 12 points on a terrible 3-15 from the field. Whitehead had 12 points and 10 rebounds while Ellis Myles had seven points and 11 rebounds. Demetrius Hunter and Mike Sweetney each had 12 for Georgetown, while Kevin Braswell dished out nine assists. The Hoyas killed U of L on the boards 58-38, but the Cards had 12 blocked shots compared to Georgetown's four. |
| Game Preview: Western Kentucky | Date: Dec. 9, 2000 |
| Site: Freedom Hall | Records: U of L: 2-4, Western Kentucky: 3-3 |
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| With a two-game losing streak and a series of games coming up against non-Top 20 teams, U of L faces crunch time in terms of collecting some wins. Despite the loss and terrible first half against Georgetown, the Cards are able to carry over some momentum, knowing that their second half rally against the Hoyas almost got them a victory. One key for U of L in today's game, as pointed out in the Courier-Journal, is to get a more balanced attack on offense. Marques Maybin and Reece Gaines have combined for 54% of U of L's scoring over their last three games; the Cards desparately need more points from the frontcourt from the likes of Hajj Turner and Joseph N'Sima. Luke Whitehead and Ellis Myles are contributing, however. Whitehead is averaging 11.5 ppg and 5.8 rpg, while Myles is scoring 9.0 ppg and pulling down 7.3 rpg. |
| Play in the midde is going to be especially important against the Hilltoppers, as they feature a 7-1 center, Chris Marcus, who averages 14.5 ppg and 12.3 rpg. But the bottom line for U of L is this: they need to come out and play aggressively, from the get-go, for a full 40-minutes. Simply put, the Cards aren't talented enough to not play at full tilt--a minimum effort will lead to instantaneous, insurmountable deficits, as shown in the losses to Alabama and Georgetown. The Cards have yet to reach a level of play they exhibited in Hawaii, but now that the Cards have suffered a few bruises maybe they can refocus and rededicate themselves as to what they need to do. The Cards have a week off after today's game; it would be great to come off a victory in practice before hitting the court again. |
| Game Summary: Western Kentucky | Score: Western Kentucky 68, Louisville 65 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Marques Maybin (22) Western Kentucky: Chris Marcus (20) |
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| And the hits just keep on coming. The Cards remembered to play the first half against Western Kentucky, and it showed: they lead 34-25 at the half. They did forget the second half, though, and that also showed: they lost the game 68-65. And with a record of 2-5, the Cardinals' worst start of a season since going 1-6 in 1980-81, the frustration and despair is now palpable and settled in. Seven games into the season, and the Cards are already near ruin. |
| In Friday's practice, Coach Crum told the players whoever shot the best during the practice would start Saturday's game, and he wasn't kidding. Mac Wilkinson and walk-on Bryant Northern joined guard Rashad Brooks and forwards Joseph N'Sima and Ellis Myles in the starting lineup. Crum was trying to get more production off the bench. The trick worked when Marques Maybin entered the game: he made his first five shots and outscored Western himself 13-2 in a three-minute span to give the Cards a 24-15 lead. U of L maintained the intensity and held onto the nine-point lead until halftime. But once again it was the absence of a frontcourt that doomed U of L. Western's 7-foot-1 center Chris Marcus ate up the Cards, scoring 20 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. U of L lost the battle of the boards 43-30, and to make matters worse, shot only 11-23 from the free throw line. Considering the game's final margin, that poor free throw shooting probably cost the Cards the game. But yet again (and hasn't this been a problem for years now?) the Cardinals could not put together a solid 40 minutes, and it cost them. |
| Western shot 32.3% in the first half, then tore it up in shooting 62.5% in the second period. A pair of three-pointers by Derek Robinson led a 10-0 Hilltopper run, and Western grabbed the lead just five minutes into the second half. WKU made eight of their first 10 shots of the half, and missed only seven field goals the rest of the game. Western also did a much better job keying in on Maybin; after pouring in 18 in the first half, Maybin had only four points in the second period. It's another key problem for U of L: a lack of a balanced scoring attack means if Maybin is shut down, the Cards are in real trouble. Northern hit two three-pointers to give the Cards a 65-62 lead with 2:21 left. WKU then hit a free throw, and Northern missed an open three to really extend U of L's lead. After a scramble for a loose ball, Western got a lay-in with 1:10 left to tie the game. Western got the ball back after a Maybin miss, and Marcus hit a free throw for a 66-65 Western lead with 35.6 seconds left. Reece Gaines then missed a three with 14 seconds left, WKU pulled down the rebound, then converted two free throws for the 68-65 lead with 11.4 seconds remaining. Gaines missed a shot at the buzzer, but his foot was on the three-point line anyway, so it would not have mattered regardless. The Cards shot only 12-31 in the second half. Ellis Myles had 11 points, but paced the Cards free throw woes by making only 3-10 from the line. Brooks finished with 12 points, while Gaines had 10 on 4-13 shooting. |
| Game Preview: South Alabama | Date: Dec. 16, 2000 |
| Site: Mobile, AL | Records: U of L: 2-5, South Alabama: 6-3 |
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| The Cards return to action after a week off, and oh, what a week it's been. On Friday, the Cards learned that 6-5 guard Erik Brown was made academically eligible to play; he made the flight down to Mobile and will see his first action as a Card against the Jaguars. U of L hopes he can provide another offensive threat to help relieve the pressure on Marques Maybin and Reece Gaines. Brown led all freshmen in scoring two years ago at Morehead State; the Lexington native should be able to provide more depth for the Cards, hopefully some more experience and a much needed new offensive weapon. On the Muhammed Lasege front, a court hearing lasted over nine hours of testimony yesterday. Lasege's case against the NCAA remains unresolved, but frankly, it doesn't look good for him to regain his eligibility. It's a sad case and the only one who truly loses hear is the student-athlete, a victim of the system of college athletics and unmerciful and indiscriminate policies of the NCAA. |
| Now to the game at hand. U of L has not lost to South Alabama in seven games, but that streak could be in jeopardy tonight. Although this is U of L's only road contest during the month, they have their work cut out for them. The Jaguars this season have defeated Marquette and Auburn, and had close losses at Indiana and Southern Mississippi. It's U of L's second consecutive game against a team from the Sun Belt Conference after playing Western Kentucky last week. The Jags are led by 6-10 senior center Virgil Stanescu, who leads the team with both 13.7 ppg and 6.8 rpg. Great. Just what U of L needs to see--a 6-10 center. More frontcourt woes await the Cardinals. Does anyone on U of L's schedule not have a huge big man in the middle? And, yes, we said this last week, but at 2-5, the Cards are in such desparate need of a win it's almost frightening. Just a sign to turn things around. Hopefully, a full 40-minute game should do the trick, but who knows if that's even possible with this bunch. The Cardinals are still seeking their first win of the season in the continental U.S. after their two victories in Hawaii in November. |
| Game Summary: South Alabama | Score: South Alabama 72, Louisville 65 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Marques Maybin (15) South Alabama: Ravonte Dantzler (16) |
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| Finals were over, and the Cards had Erik Brown back in the lineup. A time for a fresh start was instead wasted on maintaining the Cardinals' already stale begining of a season as they lost to South Alabama for the first time in school history. The Cards now have a five-game losing streak, one shy of the longest such streak in Coach Denny Crum's 30-year tenure as head coach at U of L. At 2-6 after another game in which U of L looked to have a hand-up only to endure a horrid stretch of not scoring that cost the game for the Cards, the milestones of losing look like they might mount over the 2000-2001 campaign. The Cardinals are bleeding and it's simply not stopping. |
| The game opened with trouble for U of L, another first half of disorientation and inefficiency. South Alabama hit two wide open three-pointers; on the other end, the Cards missed 2-4 free throws and committed four turnovers to open the contest. As they have already this season, the Cards trailed early, this time 18-10 at the 11:46 mark of the first half. But then Brown started his U of L career, and he came out firing. He pulled U of L to wihin five after hitting a three only 21 seconds into the game. He converted on an old-fashioned three-point play to cut the lead to three a few minutes later, and led the Cards with 11 points at the half, at which the Cards trailed 34-31. But like the rest of the team, he struggled in the second half, going only 1-6 from the field, and finished with 13 points. U of L led 44-42 with 12:46 left in the game when South Alabama went into a 3-2 zone. It marked the beginning of the end for U of L, as they simply could not convert from the outside and withstand the defensive pressure on the perimeter. U of L went an eight-minute stretch without scoring, missing six straight three-pointers, and the Jaguars opened up a 14-point lead to seal the victory. The Jaguars used a full-court press to cause eight turnovers during the eight-minute drought, in which the Jaguars went on a 15-0 run. The run extended South Alabama's home winning streak to 18 games. All told, U of L was 2-12 from three-point range in the second half, 4-18 for the game. |
| The Cards also committed 23 turnovers, with 14 of those coming on a South Alabama school record 14 steals. Marques Maybin led the Cards with 15 points, but struggled shooting like everybody else in going only 5-13 from the field. The senior guard also led the team in turnovers with seven. Both Maybin and Gaines were in early foul trouble for U of L, as they both missed the final ten minutes of the first half. Gaines scored all nine of his points in the second period, while Luke Whitehead finished with 10. Four Cardinal players fouled out: Whitehead, Maybin, Gaines and Hajj Turner. For South Alabama, Ravonte Dantzler led all scorers with 16 points on 4-6 shooting from three-point range. Center Virgil Stanescu also had foul trouble and limited playing time, but wound up with 14 points and nine rebounds before fouling out. South Alabama shot only 22-37 from the line, which could have made the margin even worse for the Cards. Needless to say, the woes continue unabated. |
| Game Preview: Loyola-Chicago | Date: Dec. 18, 2000 |
| Site: Freedom Hall | Records: U of L: 2-6, Loyola-Chicago: 2-6 |
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| OK, now. U of L is now playing a team with an identically pathetic record as ours at 2-6. Loyola-Chicago has lost to such college basketball illuminaries like Stephen F. Austin and Canisius. Frankly put, if the Cards drop this one, then UofLHoops.com might not publish any more this season. It can't get any easier for the Cards, and if the Ramblers still prove to be too much a task for this bunch of Cardinals U of L will drop off the Sagarin ratings like a pebble being flicked away from the top of Mt. Everest. If the Cards had any more of a cupcake game just to guarantee a win than this one, they'd go into diabetic shock. |
| Pacing the way this season for the Ramblers is 5-8 guard David Bailey, who is pouring in 18.6 ppg and dishing out 6.0 apg. He also shoots over 44% from three-point range. Finally, a team whose best player isn't a center, not that Loyola-Chicago lacks frontcourt presence. They have a 6-8 forward, Schin Kerr, who scores 14.8 ppg and pulls down 7.4 rpg, plus a 6-10 Croatian center, Silvijie Turkovic, who averages 10.0 ppg and 5.0 rpg though for some reason does not have a block all year. Even as bad as this year has been and looks to continue to be, a loss is unfathomable--and would point to a complete inability for the University of Louisville basketball team to compete this season at the Division I level. |
| Game Summary: Loyola-Chicago | Score: Louisville 86, Loyola-Chicago 70 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Reece Gaines (26) Loyola-Chicago: David Bailey (13) |
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| Finally, the losing streak is over. The Cards break eighty points, and as usual when doing so, come out with a victory. Yes, even the Cards were able to outmatch another team, but hey, when you've lost five in a row, beggars can't be choosers. The Cards win their third game of the year, and their first this season in Freedom Hall, with an 86-70 triumph over Loyola-Chicago. Sophomore guard Reece Gaines came out of a recent slump to lead all scorers with a career-high 26 points. Guards Gaines, Marques Maybin and Erik Brown, in only his second game for U of L, combined for 61 of U of L's points as the Cards avoided what would have been Denny Crum's second career six-game losing streak. U of L also avoided becoming the first Cardinal squad to lose their first three games in Freedom Hall. |
| U of L led 26-24 with just under eight minutes to play in the first half. From there, Gaines and Maybin contributed nine points to a run that gave U of L a 40-25 lead with 2:44 left in the opening period. Gaines went 7-10 from the field in the first half and had 18 points by halftime. Maybin shot only 3-10 in the first half, but had two three-pointers to open the second period to lead a 10-2 run that gave the Cards a 52-29 lead. Maybin finished with 24 points on 5-7 shooting in the second half. The Cards shot 44.6 percent for the game, and finished a blazing, and season-high, 10-20 from three-point range. Gaines shot a season-high 8-14 from the field and was instrumental in holding Loyola-Chicago's leading scorer, David Bailey, to only 13 points. Erik Brown had 11, his second double-digit performance in as many games for U of L. |
| Hajj Turner started his second straight game and finished with six points, six rebounds and four assists. |
| Game Preview: Murray State | Date: Dec. 21, 2000 |
| Site: Freedom Hall | Records: U of L: 3-6, Murray State: 4-3 |
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| Not that a win over Loyola-Chicago is a tremendous amount of success, but it's been awhile since the Cards have entered a game coming off a win, so it should be interesting to see how they handle it. Murray State lost to South Alabama two nights ago, and a week ago knocked off Western Kentucky, which of course U of L failed to do. The game should pose both a physical and psychological challenge for the Cards. The recent ruling overturning the NCAA and reinstating Muhammed Lasege's eligibility cannot be a distration. Fact is, no one knows if Lasege will actually take the court, as his case winds its way through the legal courts. |
| Murray State is led by 6-6, 215-pound senior forward Isaac Spencer, who averages 23.5 ppg. 6-5 forward Antione Whelchel averages 15.1 ppg and leads the team in rebounding with 9.3 rpg. The Racers do have a 7-footer, but Andi Hornig averages only 3.3 ppg and 5.7 rpg. One key issue for U of L tonight will be defense. Both starting guards for Murray State score in double figures: Chris Shumate (15.7) and Justin Burdine (11.8). So with four players in double-figures, U of L will really have to work on the defensive end if they want to keep the game close. Hopefully the Cards will have some confidence after the Loyola win, and can come out and make a tough, concerted effort. |
| Game Summary: Murray State | Score: Louisville 89, Murray State 86 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Marques Maybin (30) Murray State: Isaac Spencer (30) |
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| It was a night that saw three U of L players score career-highs, the total reinstatement of center Muhammed Lasege (who is likely to play in Saturday's game vs. Dayton), a fierce U of L comeback, a late rally by Murray State that scared the dickens out of U of L fans, and a last-second heave that somehow still seems like it might go in. Murray State opened the game with a 13-0 run--another poor start for the Cardinals. Murray hit its first four shots, and with 12 minutes left in the first half was shooting 11-15 from the field and led 23-11. Murray led 24-15 before Marques Maybin, who scored 22 points in the first half and finished with a career-high 30 points, hit two straight three-pointers. Bryant Northern, who had a career-high himself with 10 points, also knocked down a three, and the game was tied at 24. U of L continued its run and led 47-43 at the half. |
| The Cards led by as many as 11 in the second half, but Murray made a late run that almost tied the game. With U of L up 87-79, Murray's Antione Whelchel hit a lay-up with 2:09 left; that was followed by a three-pointer by the Racers' Chris Shumate with 1:25 left to cut the lead to 87-83. U of L's Erik Brown, who finished in double-figures for the third straight game with 11 points, missed a running jumper in the late, and Shumate hit a deep three with 45 seconds left to pull Murray within one. After a U of L timeout, Ellis Myles fed Marques Maybin for a lay-up that provided the final margin. Murray's Justine Burdine missed a three-pointer to tie the game with 5 seconds left, and after Rashad Brooks missed a free throw, a desperation heave by Whelchel bounced off the top of the backboard as the buzzer sounded. |
| As one would expect in an 89-86 game, there was a lot of impressive scoring numbers. Hajj Turner has probably his best game as a Cardinal, scoring a career-high 12 points on 5-10 shooting to go along with eight rebounds. Ellis Myles had nine points and nine rebounds, and found his form again from the free throw line in going 5-6 from the charity stripe. U of L also had a season-low nine turnovers, and had 21 offensive rebounds compared to Murray's 11. For Murray, their leading scorer was Isaac Spencer, who like Maybin had 22 at halftime and finished with 30. He was 10-19 from the field and 10-14 from the line. Also scoring for Murray was was Burdine with 17 points and Whelchel with 18 points and 14 rebounds. It was U of L's 26th straight win when scoring at least 80 points or more. |
| Game Preview: Dayton | Date: Dec. 23, 2000 |
| Site: Freedom Hall | Records: U of L: 4-6, Dayton: 6-4 |
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| It's going to be some kind of scene today in Freedom Hall, a unique vibe to what is a very tough game for U of L, but a game of opportunity as well. Dayton defeated the two teams in Maui to whom U of L lost: Maryland and Connecticut. The Flyers were in the Top 25 for awhile, but some surprising losses have dulled their record a bit. Nonetheless, they are a talented team, and one that could pose some tough match-ups for the Cards. The real draw of today's game, however, is, of course, the first appearance of Muhammed Lasege in a U of L uniform playing in Freedom Hall. The University of Louisville has backed up its words that Lasege was a student-athlete worth fighting for, and in doing so, are willing to defend and promote the cause of Lasege, in the hopes and honest desires that this young man deserves to play college basketball and receive a scholarship for it. Heck, with a 3.9 GPA, he could get an academic scholarship. |
| What an emotional scene it will be. True, Lasege will most likely not start; after all, he hasn't practiced in three weeks and is probably drained from flying around so much lately. He will be pumped up, though, as is the entire Cardinal community. At the start of the season, it seemed we wanted Lasege to play because we needed him in the middle. We still do. But now we want him to play because he deserves to and it's the right thing to let him play. Who knows what physical contributions he'll make (either way, after he gets back to practice, he will most certainly be improved), but the emotional ones have already been made. |
| 6-4 senior guard Tony Stanley leads the Flyers in scoring with a 16.9 average, while Dayton's best rebounder is 6-8 freshman Keith Waleskowski, who pulls down 7.8 rpg to go along with his smooth 10.2 ppg. Dayton also has a 6-7 senior center, Yuanta Holland, who scores 11.9 ppg. It should be an intriguing match-up, an exciting game, and a huge win if the Cardinals can prevail. |
| Game Summary: Dayton | Score: Dayton 91, Louisville 68 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Bryant Northern (13) Dayton: Tony Stanley (28) |
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| Well, what a letdown that was. Muhammed Lasege entered the game with 7:19 to play to a standing ovation. Dayton then went on a 14-2 run to add to an already growing lead. And that was pretty much that. Lasege finished with six points on 3-5 shooting, grabbed one rebound, had one block and three fouls in 11 minutes of action. He put in 15 minutes, however, on a treadmill after the game to try and get back in shape. The rest of the summary, I warn you now, is ugly. |
| Dayton hit 11-16 on three-pointers, led by senior guard Tony Stanley's 5-8 from three-point range. Stanley led all scorers with 28 points, and put on a dominating performance. Stanley had 20 of his 28 points by halftime. Dayton shot 64 percent from the field overall, sending Denny Crum to his most-lopsided home non-conference loss since the 81-55 shelacking by Kentucky on Dec. 27, 1986. And we're not exactly coming off a national championship this time around, are we? U of L guards let the team down. Senior Marques Maybin had a rough go at it, scoring only seven points on 2-9 shooting. Reece Gaines shot only 3-10 from the field and wound up with only seven points as well. The Cards were led in scoring by walk-on guard Bryant Northern, as no U of L starter finished in double-figures. |
| When Lasege entered the game, Dayton led 26-21. Dayton's run gave it a 42-23 lead with 3:21 left in the half. The Cards were able to trim the lead to 13 on some foul shots, but Stanley hit a three immediately thereafter to quash that rally. Erik Brown, who finished with 10 points, then made two free throws, but another Dayton three, by Brooks Hall, at the buzzer gave the Flyers a 50-35 halftime lead. One key point to take out of this game is a definite nemesis of this Cardinal team: the 3-2 zone. Dayton entered into it when Lasege came in, and the effects were devastating. South Alabama used a 3-2 zone, and like yesterday the Cardinals freaked out and couldn't handle it. Could be a problem that needs to be worked on. Dayton outrebounded U of L 33-21, and missed only nine shots in the second half. |
| Game Preview: Oregon | Date: Dec. 30, 2000 |
| Site: Freedom Hall | Records: U of L: 4-7, Oregon: 8-1 |
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| The Cards have one final tune-up before the big game against Kentucky and then the start of conference play. Judging by their performance against Dayton, the Cards are in more need of an overhaul than just a tune-up. The Pac-10's Oregon Ducks come into Freedom Hall to face the Cards for only the second time in history; the Ducks bring with them an impressive 8-1 record, with their only loss being to Auburn. The Cards can only hope that a week's worth of practice will have gotten Muhammed Lasege back into physical shape, and that the practice time together as a team could produce a more cohesive unit. U of L's guards are bursting at the seams. The pressure on Marques Maybin and Reece Gaines to produce is weighting them down, especially when opposing defenses focus primarily on Maybin. The Cards need other scoring threats, and if Gaines can dish out some assists to players like Luke Whitehead and Lasege, and if Erik Brown can be a more assertive scorer, the Cards might have a better shot to open things up a bit. |
| The Ducks are led by 6-7 senior forward Bryan Bracey, who leads the team in scoring with 19.8 ppg (tops in the Pac-10) and in rebounding with 7.9 rpg (tied for fifth in the Pac-10). Who knows how Louisville will stop him--several players have already torched the Cards for career games, and this could be another one. 6-4 junior guard Frederick Jones scores 15.2 ppg and pulls down 6.0 rpg, and 6-3 junior guard Anthony Norwood scores 14.3 ppg. Those are the only three Ducks scoring in double-figures. |
| Game Summary: Oregon | Score: Oregon 88, Louisville 65 |
| Leading Scorers: U of L: Reece Gaines (17) Oregon: Bryan Bracey (17) |
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| The facts and figures speak for themselves, and the University of Louisville basketball program continues on the path towards its worst sesaon since World War II. The team is setting records for futility, bickering with each other, bickering with the coaching staff, and the fans are staying away from Freedom Hall. There are no bright spots whatsoever for this basketball team, and everyone would just assume that this season end sooner rather than later. The facts from yesterday's game show what a shambles the Cardinals are. After a week to prepare for a solid Oregon team, the Cardinals suffer their second straight 23-point loss at Freedom Hall. |
| Combined with last week's 91-68 loss to Dayton, yesterday's defeat matches the worst consecutive home losses in Freedom Hall's 45-year history, and the worst back-to-back defeats in the Denny Crum era. The Cardinals are also off to their worst 12-game start under Coach Crum as well. The Cards totally broke down yesterday, on both offense and defense. U of L shot only 37% from the field, and dished out a total of eight assists, two in the second half. Reece Gaines led U of L with 17 points, as he and Luke Whitehead, who finished with 11, were the only two Cards to hit at least half their shots (Hajj Turner did go 1-1 from the field). Senior guard Marques Maybin had 15 points on 4-13 shooting from the field and 7-12 from the line. For Oregon, team leader Bryan Bracey led five Oregon Ducks into double figures, finishing with 17. Luke Ridnour had 15, and was one of three Ducks to hit three three-pointers. Had Oregon not shot a pitiful 16-30 from the line, the final margin could have been even worse. |
| U of L fell behind 16-7 on three straight Duck three-pointers, but pulled back into it after a three by Gaines and back-to-back layups by Whitehead. The Cards trailed by seven for the bulk of the first half, then pulled within 38-34 with 2:33 left in the period. U of L went 0-4 to finish the half as Oregon scored six straight to take a 44-34 halftime lead. Already, the game was lost and the Cards were history. The margin was in single-digits after Maybin opened the second half with a bucket, but that was the last time Oregon led by less than 10 points. Oregon scored on six of their first seven possessions of the second half; Bracey had four straight hoops for Oregon during that run, scoring nine points in a 15-6 run that gave Oregon a 57-40 lead with 16:08 to play. Following a Whitehead jumper and two free throws by Gaines, Oregon hit three straight three-pointers to open a 66-44 lead at the 11:48 mark. U of L never got closer than 15 the rest of the way. For the game, and despite their concentration on defense in practice this week, U of L gave up season-highs in three-pointers made with 12 and overall field goal percentage with 57% shooting by the Ducks. |
