Louisville basketball faces flu demons, Blue Demons
Blackshear might start for an ailing Behanan
The University of Louisville men?s basketball team could be without a starter again in today?s game at DePaul.
The flu threatens to sideline Chane Behanan. Coach Rick Pitino said the freshman forward would make the team flight Friday night but would wear a surgical mask and sit isolated in the back of the plane.
?We?ll see how he feels (today),? said Pitino, who then joked: ?Hopefully, he can give a Jordan-like performance, like Michael did in the Garden. It would really help. So we?ll see what happens.?
The No. 18 Cardinals (20-6, 8-5 Big East Conference) have beaten the Blue Demons (11-14, 2-11) eight straight times, including 76-59 in the KFC Yum! Center on Jan. 14.
Pitino has been looking for ways to get freshmen Wayne Blackshear, Kevin Ware, Angel Nunez and Zach Price more game experience, and DePaul might represent that chance. The Blue Demons have been outscored by an average of 11 points in their 13 Big East games.
?We?ve got a very unusual basketball team,? Pitino said. ?? Sometimes with our team you really don?t know what you?re going to get when you substitute.?
He said he?d rather not start Jared Swopshire even though he knows the senior forward is experienced enough to get the job done. Pitino said he wants to make sure Swopshire is available late in the game and doesn?t want to risk getting him into early foul trouble.
Senior Kyle Kuric, who missed the first DePaul game with an ankle injury, might start at power forward if Behanan can?t play.
?I may go with Kyle at the four and Wayne at the three,? Pitino said. ?I could get Angel ready a little bit and could go with Swop.?
Kuric played power forward most of last season, when the Cardinals used a four-guard lineup. Though Pitino said it would hurt rebounding, he added that Kuric could take advantage of an offensive mismatch.
?(Power forwards) have a very difficult time defending Kyle Kuric because he moves so well, runs so well, he beats them down the floor,? Pitino said. ?? I?m curious to see how it would work. I just wonder whether Wayne is ready for that many minutes in a basketball game. We may not have a choice. We?re going to have to find out, I think.?
Blackshear missed nearly an entire year of organized basketball because of injuries to both shoulders. He had surgery on the left one after hurting it while preparing for the McDonald?s All American Game, then tore the labrum in the right one in October.
That?s why the 6-foot-5 swingman surprised many when he played 20 minutes and scored 13 points in his debut against West Virginia last Saturday. Because he wasn?t familiar with all of U of L?s defenses, he was limited to six minutes in Monday?s loss to Syracuse.
?In the Syracuse game he didn?t have a clue to what we were doing,? Pitino said. ?Sometimes we go through with the cutters, sometimes we play strictly man, sometimes we play strictly zone. It?s foreign to him all the keys that we have. It?s just a matter of learning it.?
If Blackshear does start, it would be a bonus for the Chicago native, who Pitino said is getting better every day.
?He?s not near where we hope to get him, but this is the game we shot for to try and get him ready to go,? the coach said. ?? We think by the Big East Tournament and NCAA he?ll be near 100 percent. At least we hope so.?
Blackshear?s former teammates at Morgan Park High School are expected to be in attendance, as well as family members who have yet to see him play in person in college. Then there?s a large contingent making the trip from West Louisville, who also will give the Cards a boost in 18,500-seat Allstate Arena.
?For us it?s a big lift,? Pitino said of the expected fan support. ?And if Chane is not playing, we?re going to need a lift in a lot of areas.?
Blackshear might start for an ailing Behanan
The University of Louisville men?s basketball team could be without a starter again in today?s game at DePaul.
The flu threatens to sideline Chane Behanan. Coach Rick Pitino said the freshman forward would make the team flight Friday night but would wear a surgical mask and sit isolated in the back of the plane.
?We?ll see how he feels (today),? said Pitino, who then joked: ?Hopefully, he can give a Jordan-like performance, like Michael did in the Garden. It would really help. So we?ll see what happens.?
The No. 18 Cardinals (20-6, 8-5 Big East Conference) have beaten the Blue Demons (11-14, 2-11) eight straight times, including 76-59 in the KFC Yum! Center on Jan. 14.
Pitino has been looking for ways to get freshmen Wayne Blackshear, Kevin Ware, Angel Nunez and Zach Price more game experience, and DePaul might represent that chance. The Blue Demons have been outscored by an average of 11 points in their 13 Big East games.
?We?ve got a very unusual basketball team,? Pitino said. ?? Sometimes with our team you really don?t know what you?re going to get when you substitute.?
He said he?d rather not start Jared Swopshire even though he knows the senior forward is experienced enough to get the job done. Pitino said he wants to make sure Swopshire is available late in the game and doesn?t want to risk getting him into early foul trouble.
Senior Kyle Kuric, who missed the first DePaul game with an ankle injury, might start at power forward if Behanan can?t play.
?I may go with Kyle at the four and Wayne at the three,? Pitino said. ?I could get Angel ready a little bit and could go with Swop.?
Kuric played power forward most of last season, when the Cardinals used a four-guard lineup. Though Pitino said it would hurt rebounding, he added that Kuric could take advantage of an offensive mismatch.
?(Power forwards) have a very difficult time defending Kyle Kuric because he moves so well, runs so well, he beats them down the floor,? Pitino said. ?? I?m curious to see how it would work. I just wonder whether Wayne is ready for that many minutes in a basketball game. We may not have a choice. We?re going to have to find out, I think.?
Blackshear missed nearly an entire year of organized basketball because of injuries to both shoulders. He had surgery on the left one after hurting it while preparing for the McDonald?s All American Game, then tore the labrum in the right one in October.
That?s why the 6-foot-5 swingman surprised many when he played 20 minutes and scored 13 points in his debut against West Virginia last Saturday. Because he wasn?t familiar with all of U of L?s defenses, he was limited to six minutes in Monday?s loss to Syracuse.
?In the Syracuse game he didn?t have a clue to what we were doing,? Pitino said. ?Sometimes we go through with the cutters, sometimes we play strictly man, sometimes we play strictly zone. It?s foreign to him all the keys that we have. It?s just a matter of learning it.?
If Blackshear does start, it would be a bonus for the Chicago native, who Pitino said is getting better every day.
?He?s not near where we hope to get him, but this is the game we shot for to try and get him ready to go,? the coach said. ?? We think by the Big East Tournament and NCAA he?ll be near 100 percent. At least we hope so.?
Blackshear?s former teammates at Morgan Park High School are expected to be in attendance, as well as family members who have yet to see him play in person in college. Then there?s a large contingent making the trip from West Louisville, who also will give the Cards a boost in 18,500-seat Allstate Arena.
?For us it?s a big lift,? Pitino said of the expected fan support. ?And if Chane is not playing, we?re going to need a lift in a lot of areas.?
