SB Nation - Lee Steiden

What to read while the sound of a bouncing ball in an empty gymnasium gets louder and louder

Mike Rutherford — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00:51 -0000

Two days 'til practice. Eleven days 'til Red/White game. Two weeks 'til Georgetown scrimmage. Thirty-four days 'til game one against Arkansas.

I smiled typing that. One-hundred percent serious.

Terrence Williams has been the subject of much hype in New Jersey during the months leading up to his rookie season in the NBA. He took the floor for the first time as a Net on Sunday and scored three points. He struggled a bit again on Tuesday, netting two points, committing four fouls and turning the ball over three times in a loss to the Celtics.

Still...

ESPN hoops blog NetsAreScorching.com recently took a closer look at T-Will's overall game, and came away extremely impressed.

The world wide leader's Jay Bilas recently answered some questions for a newspaper in Arizona, and spoke candidly when the topic of Rick Pitino was brought up.

Louisville coach Rick Pitino also was in the news for the wrong reasons. He admitted to having an extramarital affair. The woman was charged with trying to extort him. How does Pitino get past this?

"It's kind of hard to assess because I look at so much of it as being self-inflicted. It's kind of like the Letterman thing. You don't want to minimize the potential criminal behavior involved on the part of the alleged blackmailer. But at the same time, the underlying conduct, you can't condone that. Can you imagine if that were a player that was accused of behaving that way in a restaurant after-hours? We'd be talking about a kid being suspended from school. I'm disappointed but at the same time you don't want to be over the top. It's Louisville's decision on how they're going to proceed. And I respect that."

Is this something that will disappear after a few wins or will this hang over Pitino for a while?

"I don't think it will ever go away. I don't think you'll ever be able to look at Rick the same way. I think it will be in the back of everyone's mind. It's unfortunate, but that's the way it is. This first year will be the hardest. As time goes on, it'll fade away and he'll be looked upon as how he proceeds. But this year, everywhere he goes he's going to get an earful. Maybe it will blow over. Who knows? Our attention spans are not particularly long. But it's going to come up as he gets into away games, and I can't imagine that it's not going to be addressed in sit-down interviews until the season really gets going. I don't know how much he can or will say, but the questions are going to get asked. I think just the whole thing is tawdry and unfortunate, and I'm sorry he has to go through the legal side of it. The personal side is bad enough."

The previews for the '09-10 Cardinals are really starting to stream in, and much of the focus is being placed on the new found maturity of senior point guard Edgar Sosa. ESPN's Andy Katz also honed in on Sosa recently, taking a look at the relationship between he and former Cardinal star Francisco Garcia.

Sosa is just 70 points shy of 1,000 in his career at Louisville. He has been a starter for most of his three seasons. But he has had his moments with Pitino. At one point, the coach challenged him about transferring. Pitino knows what buttons to push on players. So Sosa needed Garcia, since he understood Pitino better than most.

"I was trying to guide him through, because I know coach Pitino, I know the program," Garcia said. "I told him I would help him make it. Pitino is a tough coach. He wants to get the best out of his players. He's a big emotional coach and a great, great coach. He can get the best out of you. He did it with me every day, all day."

The communication between the two is constant.

"We became so close once I committed," Sosa said of the start of their relationship. "I always knew about him because we were from the same city, but since I committed we've been like brothers."

...

"I've been working so hard," Sosa said. "[Francisco] told me stories about how him and [former Louisville guard] Taquan Dean would sleep in the gym and use the [shooting] gun all night and never take rest. It's something that I've taken serious about my senior year. I want this to be the hardest year I've worked. I hope it pays off for me."

Garcia is confident it will. And if Sosa does produce in the manner in which he professes, he'll have a potential guide to deal with the anguish of playing professional basketball, regardless of the locale.

Speaking of Sosa, here's a shot of Highly Pleasant And Engaging Edgar and I in a passionate discussion about the controversy surrounding Guinea leader Moussa Dadis Camara while tailgating before the Pitt game.

Either that or the UK game. Definitely one of those two.

He also posed for a shot with Ms. Card Chronicle, who completely botched her story about calling his game-winner against Kentucky.

Lee Steiden declined all picture requests.

John Wooden turned 99 today. Simply awesome.

In case you missed the links earlier this week, both David Padgett and Will Scott have blogs.

We're about one Preston Knowles-authored site away from bloggers everywhere simultaneously emerging from their mothers' basements, hopping in their Chevy Cavaliers, rolling to the club bumping Ryan Adams and waltzing past the doorman and the 75 other "normies" waiting in line.

I have a friend who works with a guy whose wife's cousin's husband has a really good source who says Eric Crawford gets it.

Good news on the Downtown Arena front, where construction is reportedly one week ahead of schedule,

And finally, I think the past month and-a-half of football coupled with the approaching season and the growing distance of the Pitino scandal should have us all ready to fully appreciate the following.

I just watched the video and then read this write-up of the win over Villanova in the semis. I can't be sure, but I'm pretty sure when I was done I saw a winged Peck Hickman appear in the background of my lap top. He was smiling.

Basketball!

Louisville 95, Seton Hall 78

Mike Rutherford — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 18:43:51 -0000

The amount of text messages I receive on game day is generally a pretty accurate gauge of how important or exciting that contest is, and yesterday my phone was as busy as it's been since the Connecticut loss.

A shot at a Big East title, the abhorrence for Bobby Gonzalez, the love for the quartet of Cardinals playing in Freedom Hall for the last time; it didn't matter that Seton Hall wasn't particularly interested in playing basketball, last night was big.

The game itself wasn't particularly beneficial.

Seton Hall did what Seton Hall does against good teams. They came out hitting anything and everything and put the fear of god into the home crowd. They failed to build a substantial lead by showing no interest in playing defense. They got tired and the miracle shots that were dropping earlier started coming up short. They made a mini-run but wilted the instant their opponent decided to respond.

Controlling emotions is always an issue on Senior night, but I was a little disappointed to see our guys let the way Seton Hall was playing affect them so much. There was far too much joking early in the second half, too many bad shots early in possessions, not enough attention paid to transition defense and T-Will really let Jeremy Hazell get into his head.

U of L buckled down when it had to, but the lead never should have dipped so close to single-digits. I get that this group loves to have fun, but too many times that lack of a killer instinct (Kentucky, Ole Miss, West Virginia, Villanova) has nearly cost them dearly. Teams that aren't able to let foot meet throat generally get a rude awakening at some point in March, and I'd hate to think that we could be one of those squads.

Last night was about honoring the seniors and it was OK to have fun once the game was in hand, I get it, but from now on everything should be about taking care of business. There's going to be a championship on the line every time this team takes the floor from here on out.

Bobby Gonzalez is a massive tool.

There isn't a member of Card nation who hasn't held the hope that Earl Clark would once again take his game up a notch once March rolled around, and last night was a pretty solid indication that it's a wish that may be granted.

I understand that big nights against teams like Seton Hall should be taken with a grain of salt, but Earl looked more focused and confident than he has since the Tennessee game last year. He made smart decisions with the ball, worked hard to get the best shot possible for himself (with rare exception) and never let his effort level be called into question.

Louisville doesn't have any shot at going to the Final Four without Earl Clark being better than he was in February (and he was good in February), so last night was very, very encouraging.

The media made an enormous fuss last year over Kevin Love's ability to flick his wrists and put a 75-foot chest pass on the money, but Terrence Williams can do the exact same thing.

Of course, what can't he do?

It was pretty obvious that he knew exactly what he needed to get a triple double, and it was hilarious to see his teammates get him the ball to give to Will Scott so both senior stat objectives could be met.

I'm really, really, really going to miss this kid.

The senior video was fantastic. Thanks to both TwistedEdge and Jerb for providing those of us who couldn't be there last night the opportunity to see it.

Everyone was hilarious, but the Earl cameo was the highlight for me.

It's ridiculous how happy Edgar Sosa is during these up-and-down no defense games. He carries the same look little kids have on their face during the height of present-opening on Christmas morning.

To his credit, Sosa seemed upbeat even before the game and was the first person on the floor to congratulate his teammates despite not playing for the game's first seven minutes. He also played very well with the exception of a forced jumper in transition and missing a wide-open Preston Knowles on another break (he offered up a "I know, my bad" following the latter transgression).

The national media is going to beat the fact that we don't have a big-name point guard into the ground for the next couple of weeks, but those of us who know better should sleep comfortably with the knowledge that Sosa and McGee - the second one especially - are both playing about as well as they have all season.

I wasn't able to hear it, but I'm told McGee's postgame speech was pretty awesome. If anyone wants to throw up a brief synopsis in the comments section, I'd appreciate it.

Jeremy Hazell has become even more unlikeable. Beating your chest when your team sucks and is down by 17 is no way to go to through life, son.

Also, you don't breathe T-Will's air let alone talk to him like that. That's awesome that you average so many more points. Enjoy the postseason.

Had Will Scott knocked down the three in the corner that he pushed long by about five feet, I think it would have been the loudest Freedom Hall had been since the Pitt game.

Adrenaline can do crazy things to shooters.

The color guy last night said Louisville was a three seed. Of course he also said that Williams and Clark were in the game with a minute and-a-half to go and a 19-point lead because of Seton Hall's explosive offense, so take that first item for what it's worth.

I love Billy Gillispie.

It was really nice to see George Goode get some quality PT.

Here's a guy who was a really pleasant surprise at the beginning of the season, got hurt, saw the man he beat out for playing time really emerge in his absence, and he's still been one of the most upbeat players on the bench all year.

No one should forget that we probably don't beat Kentucky without Goode. If he continues to improve then he'll be a huge asset to this program if Samuels or Jennings bail early.

Honest question: Is Terrence Jennings our best free-throw shooter right now? Seriously, who has been better from the stripe over the last three weeks?

If Jennings, who was as bad from the line at the Red-White scrimmage as anyone I've ever seen not named Joseph N'Sima, can improve that considerably in such a short amount of time, then there's no reason for guys like Clark, Samuels and Smith to have seemingly gotten worse.

We have zero shot at winning a national title if Clark, Samuels and Williams shoot free-throws the way they have been since mid-February. Zero shot.

Speaking of Jennings, another very solid performance. The progress he's made offensively is almost unbelievable, and it's not ridiculous to say that he might be the second best defensive center in the Big East.

It's scary how good this kid could end up being.

It would have been nice to have seen Samardo make more of an effort to score once he caught the ball down low, seeing as how Seton Hall has no real post presence.

There's going to be at least one game between now and the end of the season where this team really needs him to step up and have a big game offensively. Whether or not he's capable of answering that bell, I'm not sure.

Token

Got this text before the game: "Swop just missed a dunk and then tripped and fell."

It just hasn't been the man's month.

I want Reggie Delk to get an open look from three at a key moment in the Big East Tournament. For some reason, I'm insanely confident that he would drill any open look with the game on the line.

Don't ask me where that faith comes from.

Ladies and gentlemen: your final on-court, in-game Lee Steiden sighting until next year's Red-White scrimmage. Give 'em hell in warm-ups, Lee.

I legitimately could not be more excited about Saturday.

I'll post a reminder tomorrow night, but I think we're going to have to do an open thread here for the Pitt/UConn game at noon, and then we'll all have time to regroup and re-focus for the 9 p.m. tip in Morgantown.

A Big East title and No. 1 seed at stake in the GameDay game of the week would be indescribably cool.

I can't stop smiling, and it's not the drugs.

Go Cards.

Louisville 80, South Florida 54

Mike Rutherford — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 20:23:35 -0000

Maybe it was the snow, maybe it was the fact that it was South Florida or maybe it was just that - for a change - you never really felt like the outcome was in doubt, but Wednesday night's game was sort of unexpectedly fun.

Seeing the team continue to roll, the players on the bench continually jumping around, guys like Jared Swopshire, Kyle Kuric and Reggie Delk have some success, and then being privy to the first Lee Steiden sighting of the season; it all made a win over USF feel better than it probably should have.

Put simply: it's far more enjoyable to follow this team than I ever thought possible seven weeks ago.

I'll be the first to call for his head if he attempts it in another single-digit game this season, but the T-Will between the legs pass to Earl Clark on the break was truly remarkable.

We might not have a player capable of doing the things Terrence Williams can do for quite some time, so my advice is to enjoy the show while you can.

Perhaps the most encouraging thing about last night's game was the way Williams responded after his so obviously inapt start.

When Rick Pitino politely told him at halftime that those types of shots were not to be attempted anymore, Williams reportedly responded: "I got you coach, I was dead wrong." And when Williams appeared determined to head to the hole early on in a second half possession, all it took was a "slow down, T-Will" from his head coach to make the senior co-captain pull the ball back out. The trip ended with an uncontested Edgar Sosa three-pointer from the corner.

The man has gotten the message, and his team is the hottest in the country because of it.

We may never have a player more willing to hug his teammates than Jerry Smith, and I couldn't love him more for it. The only thing more pleasant than Overly Excited Jerry is Unnecessarily Affectionate Jerry.

Also, Jerry, you and the mildly contested three-pointer could have a really great relationship. I'm telling you. I know she's not quite as sexy as the wide-open trey, but the girl can cook, clean and seamlessly carry on a meaningful conversation. Plus, her easy going family loves you.

Great to see George Goode back in action and looking like the lay-off is not going to have any seriously adverse effect on his game. It was nice to see him stroke those two free-throws, because being semi-reliable from the stripe could make him really valuable in a situation where Samuels has fouled out and having Jennings on the floor for any stretch of time is too risky.

Not a bad follow-up dunk, either.

Does anyone else get the feeling that Dominique Jones thinks he's just a tad bit better than he actually is? Don't get me wrong, Dominique, you're a solid player - you've definitely got me in a game of 1-on-1 or "Can You Dunk?" - but you're a solid player on the University of South Florida basketball team...chill out.

The defense of Andre McGee and Preston Knowles has been praised at length on here in recent weeks, so I just want to take this opportunity to compliment McGee on his two big three-pointers, and Knowles on his short jumper and great assist on one of Samardo's dunks.

Also, watching you two play defense gives me a massive erection.

I'm sorry, I couldn't help it.

Watching Jared Swopshire on Wednesday was like getting a glimpse of what he's capable of doing night in, night out in the Big East if he puts on a decent amount of muscle. The strides he made over the summer prove he's dedicated enough to make it happen, which is exciting.

Pop, lock and Swop it.

Someone told me that Terrence Jennings blocked the shot of an athletically-lacking center in the LSU/Tennessee game last night. It happened. His arms are that long.

Even more encouraging than the 12 points and three monster blocks was the fact that Earl Clark turned the ball over just once against a team known more for its speed than its size.

If Lee hadn't have gotten in last night, I would have lost it. If Lee had made that three from the corner last night, I would have lost it times two.

You would have thought the fact that it was the 800th game being played in Freedom Hall would have been more publicized, especially since it's the last big, round number that the arena will ever see. Oh well.

Seven Big East wins should have about 12th place in the conference locked up. Let's go ahead and shoot a little bit higher.

It's Huggy time.

Louisville 71, South Florida 57

Mike Rutherford — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:17:02 -0000

I was really hoping that Sosa's shot (the time has come for "Sosa's shot" to be given an appropriately catchy official title...feel free to share your thoughts) would propel the boys to a start-to-finish throttling of the only sure thing in the Big East, but I'm willing to accept the fairly decisive, albeit not aesthetically pleasing, victory since "nothing is easy in the Big East" and this was actually our first true road game of the season.

Hope everyone enjoyed last night, because the comfortable viewing experience is on vacation until the Bulls come back to the Hall on Jan. 28.

At the risk of sounding like someone with unrealistically high expectations, Earl Clark should score 18-25 points against teams like South Florida. The Bulls have absolutely no talent in their frontcourt and even less of an answer for Clark than 95% of the teams on Louisville's schedule, which means he's basically going to be given the outside shot and he should still be able to beat his man to the tin.

Take the uncontested shot if it's given to you, go straight to the bucket if it's not. This can really be a simple game for Earl Clark.

Not that Clark's effort Wednesday night doesn't deserve to be applauded. Thirty-six minutes, nine boards, four steals AND he smiled.

Dante Cunningham awaits.

If someone out there could make this happen, I'd love to be able to juxtapose Edgar Sosa's stats from games in which he made his first shot with those from games where he missed his first shot. I said it for the first time somewhere around the halfway point of his freshman season, but the kid just plays at a considerably higher level when his first shot drops than he does when his initial attempt finds iron.

Sosa drilled a three right off the bat again on Wednesday, and just like that Good Edgar took his shoes off, put his feet up on the ottoman and got ready to read stories to adorable sick children for 40 minutes.

Sosa's been fantastic for two games, but neither Michael Porter nor Jesus Verdejo present anywhere near the challenge that the Scottie Reynolds/Corey Fisher combination will on Saturday. If Edgar plays within himself and delivers another stellar effort in a victory over 'Nova, then the "turned the corner" talk will have that much more legitimacy.

Kudos to our guards for wearing down Dominique Jones, who finished the night 1-of-10 and looked like he had zero legs after the first six or seven minutes of both halves.

I love the idea of wearing the black unis against South Florida. You can't just topple a curse in one game, you have to eat away at it slowly. During the '04-'05 season - commonly referred to as "The Year the Black Uni Curse Was Backpacking in Europe" - Louisville actually wore its black jerseys and scrimmaged the KCD junior varsity team every Wednesday from the start of practice up until the first round of the NCAA Tournament. You can't just take the power out of the jersey, you have to trick the jersey into believing that it has no power.

It was pretty obvious that Pitino was trying to get Samardo some work during the last four minutes of the game, and why not since the big man has been in foul trouble for about 110 of the team's last 120 minutes. He still looked like a man whose confidence has been considerably shaken for most of the night, but maybe that late jumper will serve as a solid boost heading into a game against another team that lacks a true center.

A very, very encouraging performance from Terrence Jennings, who seemed to be getting his hands on everything when South Florida had the ball. TJ got a chance to shine only due to Samuels' foul trouble and the fact that George Goode was resting the stress fracture in his right shin, but he played about as well as any of our big men have this season during his 17-minute stint on the floor.

Still, I don't think Jennings is a real option to play considerable minutes at the five just yet. The sloppy, up-and-down style that's always going to be prevalent in a game against South Florida allows for Jennings' raw skill to show itself, but outside of maybe Rutgers and St. John's, no one else in the league is going to allow the game to fall off to that level.

Last night showed exactly why Jennings can be a terrific center in this league, but it's going to take time and it's going to take effort, a pair of factors that are difficult to grasp for the modern prep basketball "star."

How much a power trip do you think the kid who undoubtedly spent at least one Halloween as a minor Star Wars character gets when he puts on the USF Bull costume every game? I could meet the kid before the game, know full well that he's 5-foot-3, 112-pounds, and if he told me to get him a pack of airheads while he was in that suit, I'd still sprint to the concession stand, knock over any woman or child in my way, give him his airheads, and then start bawling the moment it became obvious that he was going to let me live.

What a friggin' bad ass.

Jared Swopshire: weights and cake this summer, weights and cake.

Our first Reggie Delk experience in a couple of weeks was certainly a pleasant one. It was nice to see him have no qualms about pulling the trigger from deep, because that's an area where he might really be able to help us at some point down the road.

T-Will: still fully capable of dunking a basketball.

I wonder if Lee Steiden asked if he could dress for the game because he'd heard so many people ask who the manger was that prematurely ran on the floor after Sosa's game-winner. I'm not sure my heart is going to be able to take it if I don't witness a Lee shot attempt before the Big East Tournament.

Preston is second in the Big East in three-point field goal percentage, but I'm still not sure he's earned the right to launch an off-balance, contested trey one pass into a possession. He has, however, earned the right to a handful of any bag of candy I ever have in my possession. It's a big deal. I love candy.

"You gotta pick up your attitude or you're gonna deal with me in the locker room" instantly goes into the vault of Pitino classics. Apparently he was talking to McGee, whom he'd just gotten on for picking the ball up in the corner during the previous possession.

'Twas just not Andre's night.

Loved the pair of audible C-A-R-D-S chants at the beginning of the second half and near the end of the game. If you were in attendance, a tip of my cap in your direction.

And now we begin the two month "every night is going to give me a heart attack and I can tell that I'm driving everyone around me insane but I can't help it" tour of the Big East. I'd say that Villanova is an enormous game, but I feel it's a description that's going to be worn out before we even get into February.

Please check at this time to make sure your seat belts are securely fashioned, and that your tray tables are in their full and upright position.

Louisville sweeps Marques Maybin Classic

Mike Rutherford — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 16:50:40 -0000

It wasn't quite the Big East Tournament, but the last three days provided exactly what Louisville fans needed to see after the disaster in Nashville: three convincing wins over a trio of outclassed opponents. That's the good news. The bad news is that after Saturday's tilt with Austin Peay - a team that lost to Ohio by 11 last month - the talent level of the opposition hits a fairly significant spike, and will remain pretty constant for the next three months.

Absolute statements pronounced in the realm of the sports world are almost always made solely for effect, and this one is no different: Earl Clark is the difference between this team being good and this team being great. When Clark is motivated, aggressive on the defensive end, willing to attack the glass, scoring points through the offense and looking to involve his teammates, then Louisville is a legitimate top five team capable of beating anyone in the country. When he's lethargic on defense and in the press, taking contested jumpers, content to go 1-on-3 and relying on T-Will or Samuels to come down with a rebound, then Louisville is a team that can lose to Western Kentucky by 14 on a neutral court.

Ninety-nine percent of the teams in the country don't have any answer for Clark, and can only hope that he takes the night off. In his junior season, it's time for that to stop being an option.

We've been over all the things that Terrence Williams brings to the table a number of times on here over the last couple of years, but if he really wants to assume the role of leader then he needs to learn what not to do. T-Will was the only one who played with any urgency down the stretch against Western Kentucky, but he spent most of his energy attempting to create shots for himself. This wouldn't be a problem if he were a good shooter; he is not. The same holds true for the holding the defender while coming off of a screen in order to draw a foul move he likes to utilize when the Cards are in the bonus. If you can't make free-throws then don't work hard to get to the line.

Williams makes this team go with his rebounding, passing and defense. He's going to go through some stretches where he knocks down consecutive outside jumpers, but this is never going to be the norm. When trailing late in the game, the best thing T-Will can do as a senior leader is play great D, board and try to create shots for his teammates. It's something he needs to understand as soon as possible.

More of the same from Samardo Samuels, who continues to eat up opposing low-major talent in the post. I'd really like to see him work more on turning to his right and hitting the face-up jumper or trying a half-hook with his left hand, because if he doesn't prove he can score in either of these manners then Big East centers are going to drape themselves on his left shoulder the same way they did with David Padgett near the end of last season.

Token Samardo picture

Yet another erratic string of performances from Edgar Sosa, which is disappointing. He has to understand that if his unneccessary, at times out-of-control right-handed drive to the bucket works about 50% of the time against the likes of Lamar and Indiana State, then it's only going to work about 20% of the time against Pittsburgh and Connecticut. Also, I'm not sure where the flying elbow on his jump shot came from, but it needs to tuck itself away.

Everyone still refers to him as streaky, but Andre McGee has proven himself to be a pretty reliable outside shooter over the last year and one month. Statistcally, McGee was U of L's best three-point shooter a season ago, and he went 5-for-13 from deep over the weekend to pick himself out of an early slump. If he can force teams to pay extra defensive attention to him around the perimeter then it will really open things up for Jerry Smith or whomever is in at the two.

I get about as excited when an opposing player goes up for a shot against George Goode or Terrence Jennings as I do when Samuels catches the ball alone in the post on offense. Jennings has the potential to be tremendous in a few years if he keeps his heart and head in the right place, and Goode has easily been the most pleasant surprise of the season to this point.

When Preston Knowles has bronchial problems, we all have bronchial problems.

Some current national rankings:

Scoring Margin: 2 (25.2)
Three-Point FG Defense: 2 (22.1%)
Field-Goal Percentage Defense: 4 (34.2%)
Assist Turnover Ratio: 4 (1.78)
Scoring Defense: 5 (52.4)
Turnovers Per Game: 6 (11)
Turnover Margin: 6 (+8)
Assists Per Game: 7 (19.6)

Obviously these would be more impressive if the team had played anyone of any real consequence, but still, good stuff.

Apparently the halfcourt shot against Oklahoma last year was just the thing Will Scott needed. Here's hoping he avoids a second straight new calendar year slump.

I needed some Lee Steiden in my life at some point over the past three days. I needed it like I need air. And that's an awful lot, girl.

The phrase "high basketball IQ" seems to be attached without hindrance to smaller white players far too frequently, but I found myself saying it with regard to Kyle Kuric multiple times over the weekend. He has a great nose for the ball, a terrific outside stroke, and he's got the potential to really help this team against some of the bigger, zone-favoring squads in the Big East.

Reggie Delk seems frustrated. Maybe I'm seeing something that isn't there, but that's how it appears to me. I'd really like to see him knock down a string of outside shots and build a base of confidence.

Jared Swopshire does not look like Barack Obama. Sorry, University of Louisville teammates.

I always enjoy the comfort that comes with December games in the Hall against completely overmatched opponents, but the past three days have left me ready for some competition...or at least some expected competition (read: I did not take Western seriously). It shouldn't come on Saturday (read: I am not taking Austin Peay seriously), but the four games after that are all very losable. And after that there's a tiny rivalry game on the docket.

It's slow right now, but we're very close to things picking up in a hurry.

Marques Maybin rules.

Red/White scrimmage report

Mike Rutherford — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 18:17:26 -0000

A day after seeing the Louisville football team topple the 14th ranked squad in the country and play itself right back into the middle of the Big East title chase, Cardinal fans were able to get their first look at a U of L basketball team almost certain to begin the season ranked in the top five.

Not a bad little weekend.

You can never come into these things expecting to see the same quality of basketball that the previous season left you with, but I actually thought the play was about twice as crisp as it was a year ago, which is somewhat remarkable considering how much youth was on the floor.

The athleticism on display was pretty breathtaking, and that's with Terrence Williams on the sidelines passing out towels and cups of water. It's also remarkable the shape that these guys are in already. To play at that speed for 40 minutes with limited breaks and just a five-minute halftime is something ordinary human beings just can't do.

Great crowd (just under 12,000), pretty high level of play, Rick Pitino on the mic twice, Sean Moth in midseason form and actual U of L basketball for the first time in seven months.

To sum up: this gon' be fun.

Though nothing too great should be taken from one 40-minute scrimmage, let's go ahead and look at the individual performances from last night.

Samardo Samuels

While I think Pitino was sandbagging a little bit with his "Samardo is fool's gold" comment after the game, the majority of Samuels' 36 points did come from dunks, lay-ups or put-backs, and he had a much tougher time putting the ball in the basket when he caught it in the post with Terrence Jennings on his back. Still, he's a tremendous finisher who does an outstanding job working to put himself in position to net those easy points in the lane. His free-throw shooting may have been the biggest catalyst for optimism on display, and I loved how mad he got when he finally missed one from the line. He's got a decent mid-range stroke, but has the bad habit that so many young players do of fading away when he takes jumpers with nobody guarding him. It's the same issue that plagued T-Will during his first two seasons here.

Samuels plays as hard as anyone on the floor when he's out there, and I loved how he stood up and cheered every time he got a quick breather. This is not going to be a tough kid to get behind. His first standing ovation in Freedom Hall will not be his last.

Andre McGee

We heard about it all summer, but it was amazing to see the shape Andre McGee has played himself into. He was one of the most underrated players in the Big East a season ago, but there are things he can do now that he simply couldn't during his first three years in red and white. There was one instance where he took the inbounds pass at his end's free-throw line and the other eight players were at or around midcourt, and he still beat everyone down the floor and scored on a contested lay-up.

The shooting nights are going to continue to be hit or miss, but with this newfound athleticism and a continued commitment to being a defensive nightmare for opposing floor generals, McGee is more than capable of getting this team to Detroit.

Edgar Sosa

Pitino has hyped Sosa's maturity for the last five months or so, and while those comments may have been an attempt at a psychological boost as much as anything, Edgar did look like he'd aged three or four years over the summer. He played calm, he didn't force the issue, and he took the ball to the rack when appropriate. I still don't understand why he refuses to get up to the line when he takes a three-pointer, especially since it's a foot further out than it was a year ago. Over the course of his two seasons here, he's been about twice as likely to connect from deep when he's been up at the line than when he's been a foot behind it, and I can only assume that the same will hold true in his junior year. Still, if he can keep the mindset that was on display Sunday night throughout the season, then he should be able to make all of us forget about the few ups and many downs of last year.

Jared Swopshire

I told you, you're going to love this kid.

Despite facing off against a frontcourt of Earl Clark and Terrence Jennings, Swopshire showed absolutely no fear in his first public action as a collegian, and as a result he got to the stripe ten times, second only to Samuels' 12 attempts. He's extremely active, and was the biggest reason the Red team had so much success when the White went to zone. No one's ever going to write a sonnet about that stroke, but if it puts the ball in the basket as often as it did on Sunday then who cares. The fact that he's added so much muscle in so little time exemplifies why he's going to be a fantastic four year player at the University of Louisville.

Reggie Delk

This was our first look at Delk since his impressive showing in last year's scrimmage, and for a second it looked like it was going to be short-lived. After drilling a three-pointer from the corner early in the first half, Delk came down on a photographer's leg and injured his ankle. He returned to the floor about five minutes later, but was understandably tentative for the rest of the night. Still, he made a pair of athletic lay-ins going up against Earl Clark, and made several terrific entry passes into Samuels.

There might not be a player on this team with better basketball instincts. There are guys in every sport who you can watch for five minutes and automatically assign them the undefinable quality of simply being "a player." Delk is one of those guys. The drop off when T-Will comes out of the game should be significantly less extreme than it has been for the past two seasons.

Earl Clark

We all pretty much know what we're getting with Clark, and it was out there for all to see last night. The box score says he only took 22 shots, but after the game it felt like that number was considerably closer to 40. The one-on-one stuff is OK during an October scrimmage, but let's hope Earl remembers what made him so special in last year's NCAA Tournament by the time the games that matter roll around. His final season in red has the potential to be very special

There's still nobody funnier to focus in on for 20-30 seconds.

Preston Knowles

Kid's arms are enormous. He really is the new Larry O'Bannon. It was nice to see Preston looking for his shot a little more off the dribble as opposed to camping out along the baseline and waiting for another guard to drive and kick to him. There's still a sizable drop-off from McGee and Sosa to him when it comes to ballhandling, but he made a number of impressive plays during the little time he spent running the show. I also hear he's a decent defender.

Knowles' athleticism was hard to miss when he got up to block an Earl Clark jumper and was incorrectly called for a foul. Afterward, he went over to one of the cops sitting courtside, said something to him and then gave him a high-five. George Clooney daydreams about being this cool.

Terrence Jennings

The label of being a fearsome shot-blocker was not misleading. Despite being hampered by turf toe, Jennings made several stellar defensive plays and looked like a guy who will eventually be up to the task of spelling Samuels. The fact that his arms are longer than the head alien in Close Encounters is another plus.

He does have a ways to go offensively, but not as far as some were suggesting. He made a couple of nice up-and-under moves and showed some touch on a couple of baby hooks. Perhaps the most encouraging thing about Jennings was that he was consistently the first man down on the floor on both offense and defense. Perhaps the least encouraging thing about Jennings was that he showed the potential to be the worst free-throw shooter we've had since Ellis Myles.

His left elbow pad is cool.

Jerry Smith

Obviously, not Jerry's finest hour, but I'll give all of you 15 cents if he goes 0-for-10 from deep again this season. He'll be the most reliable player on the team once more.

Kyle Kuric

This was another pleasant surprise. I had no idea that Kuric was as athletic as he is. There were multiple times where he got up for rebounds or put-backs and was able to get his hands on the ball even with Jennings, Samuels and Clark in the area. He was just 1-for-4 from deep, but he's got a terrific stroke, and that will be the main reason he'll see the floor, albeit briefly, right away.

George Goode

Goode was frequently being traded from one team to the next, which was fairly amusing to watch. He looked bigger than he did a year ago, but the kid is still an absolute fouling machine. I really think he hit double digits. He has a decent mid-range stroke and is skilled enough to be a capable replacement if the rest of the frontcourt is riddled with foul-trouble, but Pitino's right when he says he has a long way to go. Still, the man can dress.

Will Scott

Played only 14 minutes because he's still recovering from a foot (ankle?) injury. Knocked down a lay-up and a three from the corner. Almost got Reggie Delk hurt again, an act Delk was none too pleased about.

Chris Brickley

Made 3-of-5 shots from the field. Welp, we'll see you here next year.

Lee Steiden

Managed to knock down one trey in eight minutes of action. Still, you're a member of one of the best college basketball teams in the country. Myself and thousands of other people know who you are and know a little bit about the way you play. Don't think for a second that you'd be better off leading North Delaware State in scoring.

Terrence Williams

T-Will looked like the 9-year-old kid who knows he's supposed to leave his stitches alone, but just can't help picking at them. He's doing air chest bumps with McGee before the game, he's dancing on the sidelines, he's shooting during breaks, he's hanging from the rim after the game. I love everything about the guy's personality, but give that knee a break, my man.

Box Score

Red Team

Player	FG	FGA	3pt FG	3pt FGA	FT	FTA	Off Reb	Def Reb	Tot Reb	Pts	Ast	To	Stl	Min
Samardo Samuels	13	22	0	0	10	12	7	9	16	36	3	3	1	35
Jared Swopshire	6	13	3	3	6	10	3	4	7	21	5	3	0	37
Preston Knowles	4	11	1	4	0	2	2	6	8	9	8	3	0	34
Reginald Delk	5	8	1	2	0	2	2	7	9	11	2	0	1	33
Andre McGee	4	8	1	5	0	0	0	2	2	9	6	3	0	30
Chris Brickley	3	5	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	6	2	0	0	16
George Goode	0	3	0	0	2	2	1	3	4	2	0	1	0	7
Lee Steiden	1	2	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	8

White Team

Player	FG	FGA	3pt FG	3pt FGA	FT	FTA	Off Reb	Def Reb	Tot Reb	Pts	Ast	To	Stl	Min
Earl Clark	12	22	2	5	4	9	2	12	14	30	4	5	0	39
Terrence Jennings	8	14	0	0	2	5	2	3	5	18	0	1	4	28
Edgar Sosa	5	15	2	9	0	0	2	1	3	12	7	2	0	38
Kyle Kuric	3	6	1	4	0	0	1	4	5	7	1	1	2	28
Jerry Smith	3	14	0	10	0	0	0	3	3	6	3	1	1	40
Will Scott	2	2	1	1	0	0	1	0	1	5	2	0	0	14
George Goode	1	2	0	0	0	0	1	2	3	2	1	1	3	13

Visuals

Ten minutes of quality scrimmage video courtesy of Jerb.

Louisville basketball is here. Welcome to the backseat, everything else.

Practice update from Rick Pitino

Mike Rutherford — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 19:09:37 -0000

You can check out the whole report here, but the highlight is Pitino's player-by-player review.

Terrence Williams - Injured, will return in three weeks.

Andre McGee – In great shape and a defensive killer. Must cut down on his turnovers.

Will Scott – Has not practiced – injured hamstring.

Edgar Sosa – Pushing the fast break with precision passing. Still needs to improve weak side defense.

Earl Clark – Rounding into shape. Working extremely, extremely hard to be the best he can be.

Jerry Smith – The major stick out. Working well at all phases. Jerry has consistently looked good in practice.

Preston Knowles – Playing hard but like Dre’, must cut down on his turnovers.

Reggie Delk – The one silver lining with T. Will’s injury. Probably playing second best to Jerry. Gaining confidence.

Samardo Samuels – Needs Terrence Jennings to return for competition. Not getting enough defense to make him better. Working hard but has a lot to learn. Pleased with his work ethic.

Terrence Jennings – Has not practiced, (turf toe) should return Wednesday.

Jared Swopshire – Talent on the offense, liability on defense. Must get stronger and more aggressive on defense. Will get it. Great attitude.

Kyle Kuric – Needs work on his ball handling. But improving with each practice.

Lee Steiden – Working hard. Dependable player for practice.

Chris Brickley – Another hard worker with great passion for the game.

George Goode – Must work harder at the defensive end. The year off put him in a difficult spot. Hope he picks it up.

The more I hear about him the more I think we're all going to love Jared Swopshire.

Five days until basketball season.