Cardinal Basketball Looks Impressive at Red-White Game

Louisville fans finally got their first glimpse at the 2009-2010 Cardinal basketball team as Slick Rick’s squad hosted their annual Red-White scrimmage Sunday afternoon.  10,247 fans filled the seats at Freedom Hall and they all had to leave with positive thoughts of what season could bring.  I left the building with the feeling that this team will be very competitive in the Big East again this season with the potential to make another deep run in the big dance come March. 

The Red Team consisted of three returning starters in Samardo Samuels, Jerry Smith, and Edgar Sosa. The White Team had two key freshmen in Peyton Siva and Rakeem Buckles along with key reserves Preston Knowles and Terrance Jennings.  It was a very uptempo game which is the style of play that Rick likes his team to run.  The red squad took control of the game early behind some sharp shooting from Sosa and tough inside play from Samuels.  At halftime, the red had a 15 point lead at 50-35, but the white would not be denied.  Siva and Knowles led a tremendous second half comeback in which the white outscored the red by 19 points to take the 93-89 victory.   

Here are the stats for every player that saw action:  

 VISITORS: RED

 ## Player Name           
12 Delk, Reginald……2-5  (2-5 3pt) 4-6ft  oreb 10pts  5asst  0TO  0blk  2stl  26min
21 Swopshire, Jared… 1-5  (0-1 3pt) 2-4ft  4reb  4pts  1asst  2TO  3blk  1stl   24min
15 Samuels, Samardo..9-12  (0-0 3pt) 2-5ft 13reb 20pts 3asst  8TO 1blk  2stl 34min
10 Sosa, Edgar……… 8-12  (6-9 3pt)  3-4ft  4reb  25pts  2asst  4TO  0blk  1stl  36min
34 Smith, Jerry……..3-10   (1-5 3pt)  1-2ft  3reb  8pts  6asst  5TO  0blk  2stl  34min
33 Marra, Mike………5-8    (4-7 3pt)   0-0ft   4reb  14pts  3asst  2TO  0blk  1stl  24min
44 Van Treese, Stephan..3-4 (0-0 3pt)  2-2ft  4reb  8pts  4asst  4TO  1blk  0stl 22min
   ——————————————————————————–
HOME TEAM: WHITE
                                                                  
## Player Name               
04 Buckles, Rakeem….7-13  (1-2 3pt)  2-2ft  10reb 17pts 3asst 4TO 0blk 5stl 32min
14 Kuric, Kyle………8-15   (2-5 3pt)   0-0ft   9reb  18pts  4asst  2TO  0blk  1stl  31min
22 Goode, George…….3-8    (1-4 3pt)  1-2ft   3reb  8pts  0asst  2TO  0blk  2stl  26min
02 Knowles, Preston….8-14 (5-8 3pt)  0-0ft   3reb  21pts  8asst  2TO 0blk 0stl  35min
03 Siva, Peyton……..6-10   (1-4 3pt)   8-8ft   2reb  21pts  7asst  5TO  0blk  0stl  37min
05 Smith, Chris……..1-3    (0-2 3pt)    0-0ft   1reb  2pts  0asst  0TO  1blk  0stl  13min
11 Brickley, Chris…..0-0    (0-0 3pt)   0-2ft    1reb   0pts  1asst  1TO  0blk  0stl   4min
23 Jennings, Terrence.. 3-8  (0-0 3pt)  0-0ft  4reb  6pts 1asst  4TO  2blk  1stl  22min

What I Noticed

1) The three returning starters look in great shape and much improved.  Edgar Sosa looks like he will be an improved shooter this year as he was 6-9 from behind the arc.  He shot the ball with tremendous confidence and with great accuracy.  He also showed greater ability as a leader and ran an efficient offense.  His leadership will be needed this season as the starting PG and this team will go as far as he is willing to take us.  He still needs to improve on his turnovers and getting himself into trouble.  We all know he can make sensational show stopping passes, but sometimes he gets a little too out of control.  That will be his downfall. 

Samuels looks stronger coming into this season and he impressed me a lot with his post play.  He has improved dramatically at finishing around the rim.  Last year he had the tendency to shy away from the contact instead of using his body to go to the hole strong.  In the scrimmage, he used his strength to get to the rim and finish off plays.  He also crashed the boards and led the game in rebounds with 13.  There are big expectations for Samuels this year and he looks ready to be a big time player. 

Smith didn’t shoot the ball very well during the scrimmage, but showed improvement in other areas.  He showed great court vision and made some tremendous passes as he led his squad in assists with six.  He also played hard defense and led the red team in steals.  I am not at all concerned that Jerry went 3-10 from the field including just 1-5 from deep.  Everyone knows how great of a shooter Jerry is and I have no doubt he will get the stroke back once the season starts. 

2) The freshmen looked outstanding.  Siva, Buckles, and Mike Marra were the talk of the scrimmage.  Siva was as good as advertised as he ran the white offense.  He proved he can be a scoring threat by going 6-10 from the field and finished the game with a team high 21 points.  He also proved he has tremendous passing ability as he led the team with seven assists.  He created scoring opportunities with his quickness as he broke down the defense with his driving ability which would allow him to kick it out for the three, or dish it off underneath to the big men for an easy dunk.  This kid is a big time play maker that is going to have a huge impact on the offensive end.  His only downfall is he gets into an Edgar Sosa frame of mind.  He occasionally tries to do to much and will make throw bad passes or try to force things.  I think he will improve on this as he gets more experience at this level.

Buckles was just as impressive as Siva.  He showed the ability to score from behind the arc as well as use his strength to get inside.  He is a very versatile player that is going to cause match-up problems for opposing defenses.  Buckles also crashed the boards with authority as he led the white team in rebounds with 10.   He showed great ability on the defensive end with quick hands as he disrupted the passing lane and completely shut down Jared Swopshire.  Buckles led the entire scrimmage in steals with five which is three more than the second highest total.  He is an all around player and will see a lot of minutes this season.    

Marra lived up to his stereotype of being an outstanding shooter.  He came in off the bench and immediately went to work.  He nailed his first three 3-point attempts and finished the game 4-7 from downtown.  He will be the type of player that will come in the game when the team needs instant offense.  His long range shooting could be a major asset in key situations this season when the game is on the line.  He needs a little improvement on the defensive end before he sees major playing time.  After some experience, I think he will be an outstanding player for the Cards for many seasons to come. 

3) Two reserves from last season that really caught my eye during the scrimmage are Knowles and Kyle Kurich.  Preston Knowles is just a beast.  He plays with so much energy that it drives opponents crazy.  He is still the defensive specialist that everyone has seen over the past two years, but he has now added another dimension to his game.  He showed that he can be a primary option in the offense.  Last year was his coming out party on the offensive end when he led the Big East in three point percentage.  This year, he is even better.  Knowles looked to score during the scrimmage and showed  increased confidence.   He was 5-8 from deep and was tied for the team high in points with 21.  He might be the most important piece of this team as he is already our best defender, and now is a serious scoring weapon. 

Kyle Kuric looked the most improved from last year’s team.   Pitino has always said that Kuric was the best rebounder on the team and he showed that on Sunday.  Kuric is a hard nosed player that gives 100% effort every minute he is on the court.  He played the hardest out of anybody on the court and seemed to be everywhere.  He played great defense and crashed the boards hard, especially on the offensive end, finishing with nine rebounds (7 offensive 2 defensive).   One thing that surprised me about his game was how well he can shoot the ball.  Kuric finished 8-15 from the field, including 2-5 from three.  He isn’t scared to take the ball strong to the rim and draw fouls.  His improved offense combined with his all-out style of play should translate into more playing time this season.     

4) Jared Swopshire will struggle again this season.  Swopshire looks overmatched on the court.  He isn’t as physically strong as the guys he matches up against and just gets dominated.  He is not a very good shooter and can’t finish around the rim.  He looks lost at times on defense and he is a liability for this team on the court.  It doesn’t look like he is going to see much playing time unless he shows drastic improvement in a short amount of time. 

Looking Ahead

I am very excited to see what this year’s team can do.  Expectations aren’t as high as they were last year, but I feel that this team can accomplish what last year’s did.  There is a good mix of veterans and talented young players that will gel and become a legitimt contender in the Big East.   The Cards will start their schedule with an exhibition game tomorrow night at 7:00 against Georgetown College in Freedom Hall.  The regular season will start on November 17th against Arkansas in St. Louis.  Let’s put the football season behind us, pack the Hall tomorrow night, and get excited about what this basketball season can bring.