Never any doubt, a leisurely win on a quiet Sunday afternoon, the University of Louisville taking out South Florida 59-41.

Confirmation, perhaps, that Rick Pitino’s troops aren’t taking any opponent lightly, picking up a second win in the string of seven, the ultimate goal of the coach in finishing out the regular season. Aware maybe that second place Georgetown had lost in Tampa three weeks ago.

Against a South Florida team, which like numerous teams in the Big East, likes to milk the clock, wanting to lull Louisville into a snoozer. UofL having none of it, coming up with 10 steals and 23 points off USF turnovers.

  • Russ Smith exhibiting rare discipline, looking for his teammates, handing out four assists. He’s good even when he’s under control, four of seven field goal attempts, all seven of his free throws.
  • The play of the day, Chane Behanan deflecting a pass, chasing the missile downcourt, flipping the ball behind his back across court to Smith for a dunk. His free throw shooting, however which appeared to improve for a couple of games, is back to the zero-confidence level, turnovers waiting to happen.
  • Disappointing that Peyton Siva would attempt only two field goals. One would think he could use a situation like this to work on weak points, Gonna need more shots from him down the stretch, even if only to create more free throw opportunities for a team leader in that category.
  • Gorgui Dieng getting more rest, playing only 32 minutes, managing only four points. Not quite the offensive promise he displayed before the wrist injury. But he remains a major deterrent to opposing offenses, officially blocking five shots, intimidating untold others. Seemed like more than 10 rebounds.
  • Wayne Blackshear showing no signs of shoulder discomfort while scoring 12 points. Imagine what he could be doing if he had a scorer’s mentality.

Six days before UofL plays Seton Hall at the KFC Yum! Center Saturday, plenty of time to reflect on where the team has been or has yet to arrive. Time for becoming more creative and hungrier on offense, and even less forgiving on defense.

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By Charlie Springer

Charlie Springer is a former Louisville editor and sportswriter, a public affairs consultant, a UofL grad and longtime fan.

One thought on “South Florida goes quietly”
  1. Russ learned, (for one game anyway), from his mistake versus ND, that there is value in running out the clock. How better our record/standing/confidence would be if he and all of the team had known how to hold a lead earlier in the year.

    Let’s hope this is the start of a trend, and not a one-off happenstance.

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