Louisville men’s basketball destroys Spalding in final exhibition

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Hosting local Division III foe Spalding for its second and final exhibition game before the start of the 2024-25 season next week, the Louisville men’s basketball program once again delivered a dominant performance, winning 99-54 on Monday at KFC Yum ! Center.

Unlike their previous exhibition matchup against Young Harris College last week, the Cardinals did the overwhelming majority of their damage inside the arc.

Louisville went 27 of 37 on two-point attempts, part of a 58.3% field goal shooting percentage, while making just 23 three-pointers (and conceding eight). A week earlier, they made 56 three-pointers during the exhibition opener. The Cardinals also got to the free throw line frequently, but only made 21 of 34 from the charity stripe.

Additionally, Louisville placed a noticeable defensive emphasis on high ball pressure. This, in turn, led to them forcing 28 Spalding turnovers, recording 21 steals, and the Cards scoring 45 points off turnovers. The Golden Eagles also shot just 36.4 from the field and 4 of 17 on threes.

The increased physicality of both teams did lead to some sloppier play than in the previous exhibition and in the Bahamas, but Louisville still performed well in terms of overall ball movement. Although they turned it over 16 times, they assisted on 24 of 35 made field goals.

Louisville added two 20-point scorers off the bench. Kasean Pryor finished with a game-high 26 points, and Koren Johnson added 20. Chucky Hepburn had nine assists and James Scott had a team-high nine rebounds.

Due to its heavy emphasis on the rim and heavy ball pressure, Louisville looked a bit sloppy to start the game, committing three turnovers early on alone. However, with just over four minutes of play leading just 9-6, the Cardinals began to find their momentum and went on a 12-0 run that began to put some distance between themselves and Spalding.

After starting to play well offensively, it allowed them to really establish themselves defensively. Spalding went 0-for-9 from the field in the final ten minutes of the first half after the Golden Eagles opened 6-of-11, and the Cardinals also had 14 steals in the half. Add to that the fact that they shot 21 of 31, and Louisville took a 53-21 lead at halftime.

Much like the first half, Louisville started the second half slowly. They turned the ball over five times in the first five minutes of the half and allowed Spalding to make 5 of 7 shots on target, opening the second half with a 16-8 run and cutting the lead to just 24.

Although the Cardinals shot only 14 of 29 in the second half, their defense returned to normal. After a good start to the half, the Golden Eagles scored 5 out of 17 goals, and later in the game they conceded as many as 50 goals.

Louisville will then host Morehead State in the first game of the 2024-2025 regular season. The friendly against the Eagles is scheduled for Monday, November 4 at 7 p.m. ET.

(Kasean Pryor photo: Matt Stone – Courier Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK)

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