(Photo Nick Stover @ULFlyingCard)
Our Cardinals came out a little sloppy against the Hilltoppers today but got it going in the second half to cruise by the in-state rival 79-63 in 12th annual Billy Minardi Classic. The Cards have now beaten the Toppers 22 out of the last 25 games and are now just one more win away from a series tie. Cards move to 9-1 on the season and have now won 4 straight.
As coach Ray Haper said in his post game “if this had been a 20 minute game Louisville would have been in trouble.” They would have been in trouble as they seemed very out of sorts during the entire first half of play. But the game does last longer than 20 minutes and the a Cardinals came out of the locker room after the half and looked like a different team. There were so many positives that came out of the win today, but perhaps the most promising was the play of Mango and Van Treese. They would combine for 18 points and 9 rebounds and that is very promising production from the biggest question mark on this team. CBS Sports Jon Rothstein tweeted after the game:“Remember the name Mangok Mathiang. Another productive day for the Louisville big man. 13 points, 5 boards, 1 block in win vs. WKU.” Very positive indeed.
The positives don’t stop there. The Cardinals without their starting point guard Chris Jones only had 7 turnovers today and 3 of those came from players stepping on the end lines. Rozier who filled in for Jones had 10 rebounds in this game. Coach Pitino called Russ Smith “the premier player in the country” today after he had a double-double with 14 points and 10 assist. Chane Behanan put together another solid performance and was named the MVP of the Minardi Classic after finishing with 11 points and 7 rebounds. The best Walk-on in the country Tim “HENDO” backed his title up today by making 4 of 6 from 3 point range finishing with 12 points. And Wayne Blackshear showed up today with 12 points, 1 block and 2 steals.
You have to love how this team came out today and faced adversity then overcame it with a true team effort. If they can keep some consistency at the 5 spot, keep adjusting to the new defensive rules, and Luke finds his groove this will be a very dangerous squad.
Rick Pitino after a win over WKU:
Terry Rozier on a win over WKU:
Tim Henderson on his expanded role against WKU:
Wayne Blackshear after U of L’s win over WKU:
Mangok Mathiang after a win over WKU:
Russ Smith on the win over WKU:
