Credits AP
Louisville, KY – The Cardinals snapped a three-game losing streak by beating Pitt 64-61. Russ Smith netted 20 points to lead the Cardinals (17-4, 5-3 Big East), who played without starting forward Wayne Blackshear as he missed the contest with a right shoulder sprain. Gorgui Dieng added 14 points and 12 boards in the win. Tray Woodall tallied 14 points for the Panthers (17-5, 5-4), who had their four-game winning streak snapped.
By Chris Ramirez
Louisville, KY - Michael Carter-Williams scored 11 of his 16 points in the final 7 1/2 minutes and came through with a steal and go-ahead dunk with 23 seconds left, enabling No. 6 Syracuse to knock off top-ranked Louisville 70-68 victory. Carter-Williams added seven assists and Brandon Triche delivered 23 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point range to lift the Orange (17-1, 5-0 Big East) to their seventh consecutive triumph and remain unbeaten in Big East play. Russ Smith had a game-high 25 points for Louisville (16-2, 4-1), which had vaulted to the top of the polls for only the second time in school history on Monday by virtue of an 11-game win streak. Chane Behanan finished with nine points and 11 rebounds in the loss.
By Chris Ramirez
Louisville, KY – Russ Smith scored 23 points as No. 4 Louisville downed Providence, 80-62, in the Big East opener for both teams. Gorgui Dieng had 11 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks for the Cardinals (13-1, 1-0 Big East).
Mason Plumlee
By Evan Javel
Intro
This is the first post in what will become a weekly series entitled Bracket 68. Each Thursday I will attempt to give you the crib notes, to impress all your friends and coworkers with college basketball knowledge. This column will cover the important games of the week, and attempt to project some important aspects of the field of 68. During the early part of the season elite teams play mostly cupcakes to get their bearings before conference play. It is during this early part of the season that the tournament field takes shape.
Chane Benahan, Credit AP
By Chris Ramirez
Memphis, TN – Chane Behanan scored 22 points and No. 6 Louisville overcame a double-digit deficit in the second half to rally for a 87-78 win over Memphis at FedExForum. Behanan recorded 16 of his points after halftime for a Cardinals team that trailed 54-44 with under 12 1/2 minutes to play before outscoring the Tigers by a 43-24 margin the rest of the way to notch its fourth consecutive victory.
“We put in a lot of plays this week, a lot of things for Chane Behanan, and we ignored him (in the first half), and it doesn’t pay to work on it all week,” said Louisville head coach Rick Pitino. “At halftime, I just gave them a piece of my mind saying, you’ve got a great player here, but you’re ignoring him.
“They got the message and they didn’t ignore him.”
Andrew and Aaron Harrison; Credits Wildcat Nation
By Josh Cohen
As we near the start of the 2012-13 college basketball season, below are the ten teams that have stood out on the recruiting trails.
1. Kentucky
It is amazing what one weekend, and one set of twins, can do to keep a program riding the waves of success. Not even ranked among the top 2013 recruiting classes by ESPN or Rivals entering October, Kentucky catapulted to the top of the rankings with a big splash over the weekend, picking up verbal commitments from Andrew and Aaron Harrison, the twin phenom guards from Richmond, Texas. Andrew, point guard, and Aaron, shooting guard, are both considered top 5 players in the country, and have the tools to contribute immediately for Coach Cal. At 6’5”, Andrew has the size and strength to dominate from the point guard position. He is a quick player, tough rebounder, and has the physicality to overmatch many point guards in the ACC. Aaron shares his brother’s physical characteristics, and has range from just inside the gym. He can shoot the rock from anywhere, and with the annual turnover of lottery picks that Kentucky has experienced over the last few seasons, both brothers may have a chance to start from the outset of their careers.
