All Entries Tagged With: "Basketball"
Cards, We Barely Know Ye
Crunch time has arrived in Rick Pitino's most recent chapter.
The time has finally arrived.
The exhibition games, the embarrassing early-season loss, the coming back down to earth for inflated players and fans, the uncomfortably close games and run-away wins against no-chance schools.
Done.
Time for testing, time for growth, time to take the real measure of this year’s University of Louisville basketball team. The results during the early going really haven’t revealed much about how the Cards will perform. What we do know is that this is a team missing the leadership skills of David Padgett, and still waiting to see who will fill the void.
Rick Pitino says he likes this team but it’s obvious he has been using the early season to find the best player combinations. The question is whether he has found a few solutions or whether questions still outnumber answers.
The Cards have gotten off to slow starts in most games, even against lesser talented teams, largely relying on superior depth to wilt the opposition. No evidence whatsoever of a team that will dominate even average teams and little indication of a killer instinct.
At least, not yet.
Time to see how quickly a group of freshmen with vast potential will mature against real competition. Thus far, the Cards have played down to the level of the competition, or even below the level in the loss to Western Kentucky.
The real season begins against Mississippi in the Big East-SEC basketball challenge at Cincinnati. Conference pride at stake, time to salvage some of it after the the Big East lost the first two games in the challenge. Not good to lose to SEC schools; they will never let you forget.
Next in quick succession come Minnesota, UAB, Las Vegas, and Kentucky.
The time has arrived.
Francisco Garcia Returns To Kings’ Starting Lineup
Francisco Garcia finally returned to the starting lineup for the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday after missing six weeks due to a calf injury. It was a long time for Coach Reggie Theus who has seen his team lacking energy and passing up shots at crucial points.
As the Sacramento Bee reported, it was going to be difficult to tell who would be happier, the former University of Louisville star or the former UofL assistant:
“His competitiveness is something we need desperately,” said Theus, whose team has lost seven of its last eight games. “It’s his attitude. He’s one of the leaders on this team, a verbal, emotional leader.
“He wants the ball down the stretch. He’s a guy who stretches the defense. Last year, he was one of the best on-ball defenders we had.”
Garcia didn’t disappoint, accumulating 11 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal and zero turnovers in 31 minutes during a 99-95 loss to Utah. As he rounds back into shape, watch for continued improvement.
The Kings currently have a 5-15 won-lost record and are in fifth place in the Pacific Division of the NBA’s Western Conference.
The Missing-David Padgett Syndrome
A new attitude has to be permeating University of Louisville basketball practice sessions, now that the worship and adulation has been replaced by realism and disappointment. If the UofL basketball team were the stock market, a depression would have been declared.
The first clues that all was not well should have been picked up when Jerry Smith and Edgar Sosa were not introduced as the starting guards. Smith apparently focused on something other than weight and basketball during the summer. Sosa had that familiar look of frustration and an inability to manage a dribble drive.
Based on Sunday’s performance, this team closely resembles last season’s team before David Padgett returned to the lineup. Samardo Samuels is playing, to be sure, but at least one opposing coach has figured out how to stop Padgett’s replacement. Other coaches will be applying the same measures to stop Samuels.
Padgett bequeathed his ability to manage the floor and find open shooters to Terrence Williams but T-will apparently left it on the bus.
Excluding Samuels with 36 minutes in the game, the other additions to the active roster accumulated only 11 minutes of playing time — Reginald Delk had five, Terrence Jennings had three, Jarod Swopshire had two, and George Goode had one.
Coach Rick Pitino’s apology is accepted. This team has to be reshaped and reinvented. The tools are available but he’s got a lot of work to do. David Padgett is not walking through that door.
Game Watching For Shawn Bowen
Come on down to the BBC in St. Matthews to watch the University of Louisville square off against Pittsburgh in football from Noon till 3:30 today and help raise funds to help defray Shawn Bowen’s medical expenses. Shawn is the 5-year-old son of Justin “Jerb” Bowen, the video wizard who provides so many highlights of U of L sports.
The event will go all day, with the BBC donating part of the proceeds to the cause. All day also includes a game watching event for the Basketball Cards in their exhibition against Northern Kentucky University tonight, starting at 8 p.m.
More details at Hell In The Hall, and you can bid online for silent auction items at Inside The Ville.
Earl Clark Day: Louisville 80, Providence 72
An Earl Clark day, the big guy leading all scorers with 20 points — including a triple-edged dagger with 2:30 on the clock to give U of L a seven-point lead — nine rebounds and four assists.
Does Earl Clark ever change expressions? Looks cool whether he’s having a bad game or a good one. Just another day at work for him, he’ll be out of the on-the-job training mode any day now. Maybe starting today, break out.
David Padgett, meanwhile, continues to define the term “quarterback on the floor,” knowing where everybody is, giving them the best opportunity to succeed. Fans saw just how important DP is to the Cards when he goes to the bench early with two fouls in the first half. Dogfight, for sure, when he has to sit.
Now that everybody knows what Jerry Smith can do, he doesn’t get much breathing space. So he makes his own, moving without the ball, catching a David Padgett bullet for an easy lay up at a critical point, swiping the ball and increasing U of L’s lead to six, giving fans a chance to exhale.
Terrence Williams, welcome to the 1,000-point club. Running out of superlatives for a super player.
Juan Palacios brings enthusiasm and plays good defense, but every basket is a nice surprise.
Speaking of surprises, always amazed how Edgar Sosa can sometimes slices through slow-collapsing zones with ease. Make it a habit Edgar.
Preston Knowles is earning more playing time, making the most of every second.
Derrick Caracter looks intense during games. Time is passing Derrick, clock running down. Work, man, work to get better, the time is now.
