No. 8 Louisville Cardinals Cruise Past Lamar, 68-48

Rick Pitino got his 601st win when his Louisville Cardinals beat the Lamar Cardinals 68-48 at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.

Lamar proved to be more difficult for the No. 8-ranked Cardinals than their last opponent Tennessee- Martin.  Lamar took control of the pace for the first few minutes, and less than four minutes in, Louisville had four turnovers and trailed by two. 

The tide changed quickly, however, when junior guard Peyton Siva put up a three pointer, and Louisville regained its composure and led by two. 

Lamar coach Pat Knight, son of Bobby Knight, was a chip off the old block, vehemently protesting calls and ended up hit with a technical foul in the first half in response to Anthony Miles being called for a charge.

Devon Lamb led Lamar with 10 points and eight rebounds. 

Jared Swopshire led Louisville in scoring with 13 points and added eight rebounds. He looks stronger and played aggressively, giving the Cardinals a big boost off the bench. 

Gorgui Dieng and Siva have tremendous talent but don't always play with their heads. Both racked up four personal fouls apiece, and these two players are integral to a successful season.  They're a fantastic framework for freshman Chane Behanan, who had his second double-double in as many games.

Behanan is proving to be a beast for the Cardinals. He's playing smart basketball, which the Cardinals don't always do, but is a freshman.  He needs his more experienced teammates to watch their fouls and stay in the game. He got seven points by the half and finished with 13 rebounds and 10 points. There is no doubt he will be fun to watch this season, especially in the deep Big East conference.

Louisville's biggest improvement was making 79 percent of its free throws. Granted, it had fewer steals and more turnovers, but finished strong with a final score of 68-48. 

All things considered, it wasn't a bad second game. The Cardinals will have to watch their tendency of getting complacent and underestimating their opponents, especially with some less-than-stellar opponents coming up with which they will be heavy favorites.

But for such an emotional team like Louisville, is there really such a thing as a "comfortable" lead? Fans of last year's team don't think so and nervously watched as Lamar got back within nine points with just over six minutes left to play. That's an eternity in college basketball.

Louisville turned it back on, however, and won its 11th straight at home.  It's in the midst of playing 12 of its first 13 games at home with its lone road game next Saturday at Butler.

The news wasn't all good for the Cardinals as Mike Marra injured his left knee and will be out for an unspecified amount of time.

 
Next game: @ Butler on Nov. 19