Louisville - Pregame Links

Consecutive losses had University of Louisville coach Rick Pitino encouraging seniors Chris Smith and Kyle Kuric to literally move their way out of the shadows.

The Cardinals (12-2, 0-1 Big East) travel to St. John’s needing a bit of an offensive boost, having scored below their current season average of 72 in their last four games.

Aside from Russ Smith’s 30 points on Saturday, no other U of L player reached double figures in scoring. Smith and Kuric combined for nine points on 3 of 14 against Kentucky.

“Kyle and Chris are not playing real well right now,” Pitino said. “They’re playing into the hands of the defense by not playing to their skill level.”

http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20120102/SPORTS02/301020044/Louisville-basketball-St-John-s?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CHome

Mike Dunlap is the anti-Steve Lavin.
He does not have a glistening white smile, doesn’t rattle off wonderfully entertaining TV sound bites. On first glance, he might look more a cross-country coach than a basketball coach.
But Dunlap is known in basketball circles as one of those savants who has forgotten more about basketball than some coaches ever learned.
His role, as Lavin’s lead assistant, seemed a perfect fit. While Lavin played the role of the face of the St. John’s program with ease, Dunlap could often be found at the end of the bench, a yellow legal pad in hand, looking like a principal observing a class.


Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/college/basketball/dunlap_likes_sju_hot_seat_sBt4RJGsAfBNonV6I6nMXP#ixzz1iOwJ2gaa

When St. John's sophomore Amir Garrett rolled his ankle in the final minutes of Saturday’s loss to then-No. 9 Connecticut, the Red Storm had to hold its breath.

With only seven players in their rotation, the Johnnies don’t have as much depth as most Big East teams and a proposition like Tuesday night’s Garden meeting against No. 11 Louisville and its full-court press would be even tougher with just six.

But St. John’s (7-6, 1-1) can exhale. While the ankle is still tender, the 6-7 Garrett is going to play. And against the Cardinals (12-2, 0-1), who come off back-to-back losses, his role is going to continue to expand.

When the Storm switched to a man-to-man defense, Garrett took on Huskies star Jeremy Lamb and helped limit him to 15 points, four under his average.

“If you want to win, you’ve got to play defense,” said Garrett, who became eligible two weeks ago and has proved a quick study at learning the Johnnies’ complex defensive scheme. “I like being on (the other team’s) best guy and shutting them down.”



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/college/injury-won-t-prevent-red-storm-amir-garrett-playing-major-role-louisville-tuesday-night-garden-article-1.1000221#ixzz1iOwTMHax

When St. John's sophomore Amir Garrett rolled his ankle in the final minutes of Saturday’s loss to then-No. 9 Connecticut, the Red Storm had to hold its breath.

With only seven players in their rotation, the Johnnies don’t have as much depth as most Big East teams and a proposition like Tuesday night’s Garden meeting against No. 11 Louisville and its full-court press would be even tougher with just six.

But St. John’s (7-6, 1-1) can exhale. While the ankle is still tender, the 6-7 Garrett is going to play. And against the Cardinals (12-2, 0-1), who come off back-to-back losses, his role is going to continue to expand.

When the Storm switched to a man-to-man defense, Garrett took on Huskies star Jeremy Lamb and helped limit him to 15 points, four under his average.

“If you want to win, you’ve got to play defense,” said Garrett, who became eligible two weeks ago and has proved a quick study at learning the Johnnies’ complex defensive scheme. “I like being on (the other team’s) best guy and shutting them down.”



Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/college/injury-won-t-prevent-red-storm-amir-garrett-playing-major-role-louisville-tuesday-night-garden-article-1.1000221#ixzz1iOwTMHax

“It’s crazy but you do what you have to do,” Garrett said. “It’s what you do to reach your ultimate goal. You can’t sit and be sad. It’s part of growing up.”


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/college/injury-won-t-prevent-red-storm-amir-garrett-playing-major-role-louisville-tuesday-night-garden-article-1.1000221#ixzz1iQ43ewuE

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