Louisville ties it’s own AAC record of largest margin of victory (39) with the win over USF tonight. The Cards took the lead against the Bulls early and never looked back beating them 86-47. With the win over the Bulls tonight, Cards will improve to 60-10 since that senior night loss to USF on Feb. 29, 2012. Our Cards now move to 6-1 in conference play and 17-3 overall winning four straight. They will have 8 days to prepare for a big home showdown with Cincy for what will be a battle for first place in the conference.

The Cardinals have found their starting line-up with Hancock, Harrell, Mango, Russ and Terry. Hancock has returned to the player that walked off that floor in Atlanta the NCAA Tourney MVP. You can tell that he has got his confidence back and that old man swagger has returned. He went 4 of 9 behind the three point line tonight for 14 points. Harrell has become a double-double machine with his fourth in 5 games tonight with 10 rebounds and 14 points. Mango’s development has been slow, but I think that coach Pitino’s patience with the big fella has paid off. He isn’t stuffing the stat sheet, and he’s not going to dazzle you with his performance, but he is giving this team some good minutes. He is a nice presence down low for the defense. Tonight he had 2 steals, 2 rebounds and 10 points. Russ is back to being Russ but in a good way. He has figured out a way to keep himself under control while at the same time taking over a possession when he needs to. He is always going to have those “Russdiculous” moments but I’ll take the bad with the good all day long in this case. He had 6 assist with 12 points tonight. My admiration for Terry Rozier is well documented in my scribbling. He has brought a sense of control and stability to the offense and since he was injected into the starting line-up the offense has become much more efficient. He had 5 assist, 3 steals and 9 points tonight. Coach Pitino was asked after the game if U of L is better without Chris Jones: “100 percent not true. We need Chris Jones.” So it will be interesting to see how he proceeds with the starting line-up when Chris returns. For the record I also think we need Chris. Just don’t need him in the starting line-up.

It is important to develop a starting line-up, but it is just as important to determine who that sixth man will be. Wayne Blackshear has flourished as that first guy coming off of the bench. Since he jumped in his new role of coming off the bench he is 9-14 from the three point line for 64%, has grabbed 13 rebounds, has 4 assist and 48 points. He has also led the team in scoring in two of the last three games coming off the bench. When we look back on this season this may be considered the best decision that Coach Pitino made. Very happy for Wayne and hope his good play continues.

This was the farewell game in this series vs the USF Bulls in South Florida. We only have one game remaining with them and I can gladly say that I won’t miss playing them in any sport. They may finally get it together but right now that just isn’t a very good athletic program. They need a lot of work. But I wish them well. Biggest thing to take away from this dominate performance tonight was how the Cardinals maintained their intensity throughout. Even with a big lead they never stopped playing hard. That stays a lot about this teams development over the past couple of weeks. And that attitude will pay off down the road. Usually if you continue to play hard good things happen. A lot of good thing are ahead for this group of Cards. Can’t wait to play those Bearcats in 8 days! Go Cards !

(Photo cred USA Today)

The Cards went on the road tonight needing a quality win and they got it beating the Huskies 76-64. This was a game in the newly formed AAC but it had that Big East feel. It was a treat watching these teams go at it in the main event of ESPN’s college basketball day. And even better that our guys got the win. UConn hadn’t lost at Gampel Pavilion since being beaten by a point in double overtime by Georgetown last season. The Cardinals have now won seven of the last eight matchups against the Huskies and three of last four in Storrs. Louisville is now 5-1 in conference play and they have started at least 5-1 in league play for the fifth time in Rick Pitino’s 13 years with the Cardinals (also 2003, 04, 05, 09). The win tonight also gave coach Pitino his 680th victory.

It was great seeing the Cardinals follow up the great effort they had on Thursday night. Coach Pitino said in his post game that the win tonight was “a great collective effort.” With this team that’s what it is going to take every night they hit the floor. They have put together two great wins and they did it playing together and playing to their strengths. Russ Smith led the way with 23 points tonight but it was far from a flawless effort from the Russdiculous one. Coach Pitino told Paul Rodgers after the game that he was going to ask for “a million dollar raise” after coaching Russ tonight. I’ll give him the benefit of doubt because his dad was in the building tonight and I think that always messes with him a little. Who wouldn’t want to show out in front of their dad. We’ve all had those moments.
In what coach Pitino called his “best game of the season” Montrezl had his 3rd double-double in the last four games and was in beast mode tonight with 18 points, 13 rebounds and three blocked shots. He seems to be building confidence with every game the Cards play and he is vital to this teams chances at a March run.
I have raved, written articles, and boasted about Terry Rozier for the last two years and boy has he lived up to everything he was supposed to be. The kid shows so much poise for his age and I have to think his having to grow up fast has a lot to do with that. You can tell he is wise beyond his years on and off the court. Tonight he led the offense in a hostile environment had 5 points, 7 rebounds and only had one turnover in 33 minutes. You hear about quarterback controversy but Louisville has a starting point guard controversy. Competition only makes players better so Jones and Rozier should flourish for the rest of the season.
The old man prowess in Luke Hancock’s game has also returned for its curtain call. He had 13 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assist tonight and was making some of his patented moves we have grown to love over the last couple of years. I love his game and I’m glad he is back to business as usual.

I really enjoyed this game tonight and when I think about the adversity this team has overcome to get where they are it really makes me feel optimistic about where they are going. I’m not booking any trips to the Dallas area just yet, but I have put my boss on notice that I may need some time off around the first of April. I will never again doubt the magic of Rick Pitino and I think he might have a few tricks left up his sleeve. He obviously has figured out the direction he wants his guys to take. Now it’s just up to them to stay on the path. Go Cards!

Coach Pitino after the win:

Tonight was just one of those nights where everything seemed to be going the Cardinals way. They put their foot on the gas from the very beginning of this one and never let up beating Houston 91-52. Very impressive all around team effort from the whole team great passing, good shot selection, and solid rebounding. The Cards will now hit the road again for a few weeks. The game at UCONN on Saturday the guys of ESPN College GameDay will be in the house.

Coach Pitino said after the game “Really good night for us. Our enthusiasm was off the charts.” With enthusiasm usually comes great confidence and tonight that confidence translated into some very good shooting. The guys scorched the nets in the first half shooting 70% from the field and 73% from the three point line. Those percentages did go down in the second half but the Cards still ended the game with a solid 52% from the field and 54% from the three.
Usually when there is good ball movement it translates to more high percentage and easy baskets. You won’t see many nights were a team shares the ball like Louisville did tonight. Coach Pitino said of this effort “We had 23 assists on 34 buckets which is outstanding.”
The defensive effort was much Breyer tonight as well and the Cards got 9 steals, and forced 16 turnovers. They would score 21 points off of those turnovers. And they actually out rebounded the Cougars 41 to 37. Something that hasn’t happened much this season.

As I mentioned above tonight was a true team effort and 9 guys played 15 minutes or more. 10 guys made it into the scoring column. Leading the way for the Cards was Wayne Blackshear with 23 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assist, Russ with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assist, Luke with 10 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assist. Terry Rozier continues to really impress me with his solid play and tonight he had a solid stat line 9 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assist and 1 turnover in 26 minutes. You really can’t play much better than that. I love this kids moxie!

I have been quick to jump on Wayne Blackshear in these post game entries, and I would be remiss if I didn’t say how impressed I was with his effort and performance tonight. Coach Pitino said after the game “He was very aggressive tonight. Very proud and happy for him.” I think we are all happy for him and I hope that he continues in an upward swing. Luke said about Wayne’s performance after the game “Wayne had a big game because he stayed aggressive. Also coming off the bench helped him stay out of foul trouble.” Really think it helps him coming off the bench. He seems to be the kind of player that does better with less pressure to perform. Regardless, if we get this Wayne for the rest of the year Dallas is still a real possibility.

This one was really fun to watch. And yes maybe it was fools gold to a certain extent but the opponent had nothing to with how the Cards hustled, focused and executed tonight. It was a great performance. We’ll find out a lot about this team Saturday. UCONN got a big road win against #17 Memphis tonight and its College Gameday. That place will be rocking.

Coach Pitino after the win tonight:

Luke after the win tonight:

Terry Rozier after the win tonight:

Wayne after his big career night:

(USA Today)

The Cards came in to the AAC battle with SMU today desperate for a quality win and looking to get things back on track. It was mission accomplished as the Cardinals beat the Mustangs 71-63. The win today gave the Cardinals their 3rd win in the AAC but more importantly gave them that all important win over a top 50 RPI opponent. Cards improve to 14-3 on the season and 3-1 in the AAC.

Today was the first time all season that I had seen any resemblance of the great defense Louisville is known for playing. Coach Pitino would say after the game: “It’s rare you see as good a team statistically as SMU. Our 1st half defense was the best I’ve seen all year. 2nd half, we fatigued.” The guys actually looked like they knew where they were supposed to be and what they were supposed to be doing. They looked much more in sync than they really have all season. Maybe Coach Pitino finally reached this group after that loss to Memphis. Just maybe that game was the wake-up call they needed. Coach Pitino after the game: “We talked a lot this week about unbridled enthusiasm. Just being the best team we could be.” Pitino said he told them “Stop trying to live up to last year’s team. Be yourself. Stop trying to be last year’s team, because we’re not.” Today it looks like they got the message and got a very good win over a very good SMU team.

Russ and Luke looked and acted like the leaders of this team today leading the way with 23 points each. It was a new career high for Luke and he has now played two very good games with his shooting touch looking like it’s finally coming around. Pitino on Luke after the game: “not until the last two games has Luke been 100%.” then says jokingly “his defense isn’t 100% but that has nothing to do with his Achilles (laughs).” I’m just glad that jump shot is coming around.
Russ made some mistakes today and did look out of control on some of his plays to the basket but he had that look in his eyes that he did not want to lose the game and was going to do whatever he could do to keep that from happening. That’s the Russ that I love!
Montrezl had a double-double today with 12 points and 13 rebounds and backed up his words after that last game coming out today with a lot of purpose and passion. The Cards got out-rebounded 48-35 and would have really been in trouble without Harrell’s effort on the glass.
Terry Rozier had 8 points with 5 rebounds today and got extended minutes with Chris Jones out with a hip injury. Every time I see Rozier play I get giddy thinking about the contributions this kid is going to have during his Cardinal career and I think he could be one of the best we’ve seen. Coach Pitino said this about him after the game: “The best thing about Terry Rozier is his professional attitude. Never gets high, never gets low. He’s going to be a great player.”

There were some areas of concern today against SMU. The Cards got out rebounded 48-35 and shot just 52.4% from Free throw line. But those things aside this group took a good step forward and it really was a great win. This SMU team is one that you’ll be seeing make a deep run in March and was by far the best team statistically that Louisville has played this season. I hope the guys can keep building on this one as they head into the grind of the conference schedule. Coach Pitino after the game: “we are going to lose games, that is OK, we just need to keep getting better all the way until March.”

The other attraction today was the first-ever collegiate meeting between Hall of Famers Pitino and Brown, who brought 2,554 combined victories and three NCAA titles into the contest. Congrats to Coach Pitino for taking the first college victory in this Hall of Fame match-up.

Coach Pitino After Win Over SMU:

Montrezl After His Double-Double against SMU:

Russ After His 23 Point Effort Over SMU:

Luke Hancock After His Career High Against SMU:

Terry Rozier After a His Solid Outing Against SMU:

(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The 89th chapter of the Louisville and Memphis rivalry has been written and undoubtably it will be title “The Memphis Blues” after the Cards lost to the Tigers 73 to 67. The Cardinals still maintain a comfortable lead in this series 53-35 and had won four straight in the series, but this one tonight was a important game for conference implications and resume implications. The Cardinals head into Sunday’s AAC game with SMU still in need of a signature win.

Not many things to celebrate in this game and our Cardinals just look lost on the court. I would best describe it as if you tried to run a world class thoroughbred without the blinders on in a big race. Just like that horse our guys have no clear direction when they are playing in these tough games. They have the talent and the ability to overcome their lack of direction when they play teams with less talent, but in games where teams can match their talent and ability they can’t slide by. This team had enough of an obstacle to overcome losing the guy who was their leader in Peyton Siva, but add to that the Chane drama along with Kevin now being out for the season, and it really has overwhelmed these guys. Russ and Luke aren’t being leaders on the court and this team just doesn’t have an identity. They must get back to basics and refocus or it could be a long year.

Luke Hancock had a season-high 20 points to lead the team and it looked like he might be starting to find his groove, but still needs to be a more vocal leader on the floor. Russ Smith had 19 points moving him to 19th on UofL career scoring list with 1,520 total points. He also had 4 steals moving him into 6th place on UofL career steal list. I think Russ needs to focus on what he needs to do to help this team win games and stop focusing on what he needs to do to impress the NBA scouts. Teams success should be his first goal. Montrezl Harrell had 14 points and is a force on the offensive end of the court. He just needs to duplicate that on the defensive end.

Memphis was more physical and more aggressive for most of the game and it showed not only on the floor but the box score as well. They out rebounded the Cards 37 to 35, and out scored them in the paint 42 to 34. You aren’t going to see a Louisville team get out hustled too many times but they did tonight and it was a big reason they lost this game. Usually they are the team that takes over after wearing down the other team but tonight those roles were reversed and it was Memphis who put their foot on the gas and closed this game out in a flurry.

Like most Cardinal fans I’m extremely disappointed by this teams play, but when you take an objective look it’s easy to understand why. I don’t think its time to toss in the towel, but it is the third round and Louisville has one eye swelling shut after this one. We need to come out swinging to avoid the TKO and I am confident in coach Pitino’s ability to get them going. Just hope these guys can start to believe in themselves.

Rick Pitino following Memphis loss:

U of L senior Luke Hancock after a loss to Memphis:

U of L guard Russ Smith after a loss to Memphis:

Montrezl Harrell following Memphis loss: