Revised 12/06 6:20 am

When U of L telegraphed in a performance like this during the previous coaching administration, Denny Crum was wont to say, “You need to have a healthy respect for your opponent.” One early reader of this blog recalls Denny’s admonition as “honest respect for your opponent.” Could be my memory is faulty. Whichever, I trust you get my point.

Obvious from the moment the squad tonight sauntered onto the court for warmups, was that the Cardinals had no focus whatsoever.

They looked bored. They played bored.

The word that comes to mind: Deplorable. And, yes, boring.

There is only one number from the stat sheet that needs to be examined.

Thirteen (13).

That’s how many times Louisville turned the ball over in the first half. Against a team ranked five spots behind the cast of “The Golden Girls.”

U of L coughed it up an additional 7 times after the break.

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I’ll chalk up the dismal performance to 1) Post Ohio State hangover, 2) Anticipation over the impending extended road trip to the Big Apple for a game in the Gahhhhden, and 3) A lack of healthy (or honest) respect for Florida International.

There really aren’t a lot of nice things to be said.

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The Rick, as is his wont, was loathe to give props to Anton Gill, despite the kid posting what was clearly his best performance as a Cardinal.

Of course, AG’s dazzle came on the offensive end.¹ He led Louisville scoring with fifteen, 6/10 from the field, including 3/5 from treyville.

Gill fashions himself a scorer. It was his forte as a prepster, even when riding shotgun with Terry Rozier. Thus, it seems to me, his whole game is likely to improve now that he’s had a big scoring game. We’ll see.

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Anas Mahmoud is clearly the best passer on the team.

Any number of times, especially in the second half, the Cards ran a set where the ball went into the high post, where the catcher (Onuaku, Harrell, Mahmoud, Matz) would turn, look for a cutting guard or a shooter stationed in a corner.

Only “the Egyptian” turned fully toward the hoop, saw the whole half court, then quickly and intuitively fired the ball to the open corner. Usually the one opposite the side of the court from which the first entry pass came. The other three hesitated, not seeing all the possibilities, which allowed the defense to shut down the preferred initial options.

I can’t recall the Cards making a reverse pass all season, where the ball is immediately returned to the original passer as the defender relaxes.

I can’t recall the ball going into the post, then immediately returning to the feeder for another entry. It’s a common ploy, fundamental really, which often allows the man posting up to have a bit more space to maneuver.

Passing on fast breaks is non existent. Which is one of the reasons U of L’s assist numbers have plummeted.

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Jaylen Johnson continues to improve.

He appears to have quick hands. Late in the game, he got the ball close to the hoop, fumbled it, but quickly recovered it, swooping the rock into the bucket.

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Other than Louisville’s lack of focus and intensity, there’s no explanation how the visitors tallied so many layups. It’s not like Tyus Jones was ballin’ for FIU.

The Cards did have nine swataways.

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Louisville did shoot better.

Even at the FT line, where it went 10/15.

The Cards hit 57% (32/56) from the field, including 8/20 from beyond the arc.

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So, it wasn’t all bad.

But, I simply can’t get over that first half turnover number.

This W was a throwaway. Literally. Figuratively.

— Seedy K