Williams Leads MBB To 81-70 Win Over Tulane
July 19, 2000 | Men's Basketball
January 3, 2000
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - Louisville coach Denny Crum wasn't sure how his squad would respond following an 11-day layoff.
The results were mixed as the Cardinals beat Tulane 81-70 in a sloppy game Monday night at Freedom Hall.
Tony Williams scored 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds as Louisville (8-3, 1-0) snapped the Green Wave's nine-game winning streak in the Conference USA opener for both schools.
``I think the layoff hurt us a little bit,'' said Williams, who added five assists and five steals. ``Personally, I don't like layoffs. I'd like to play every other day.
``You can't expect us to go out there and be perfect after that kind of layoff.''
Marques Maybin had 17 points, Nate Johnson 14 and Reece Gaines 11 as the Cardinals won their third straight in their first game since an impressive 97-80 victory over sixth-ranked North Carolina on Dec. 23.
The rust showed as the Cardinals committed 20 turnovers after a season-low six against the Tar Heels.
``It was a good win for us despite not playing one of our better games _ not nearly as good as we're capable of, anyway,'' Crum said. ``We didn't execute like I'd have liked to, but they are a Top 30 team and that's a step in the right direction.''
Louisville led by as many as 17 early in the second half and never was seriously threatened. The Green Wave (10-2, 0-1) cut the margin to seven, 74-67, with 3:23 remaining but could get no closer.
``Every time it seemed like we were able to close the gap or put ourselves in position to have some success, they'd come up with a defensive play,'' Tulane coach Perry Clark said. ``Without a doubt, they are the fastest team I've seen go from defense to offense all year.''
Morris Jordan led Tulane with 20 points and 10 rebounds while Waitari Marsh had 12 points and Ledaryl Billingsley added 11.
Louisville pressured Tulane from the opening tip, scoring 25 points on 20 Green Wave turnovers and blocking nine shots.
The Cardinals also limited the Green Wave to 43 percent shooting and held leading scorer Sterling Davis, who came into the game averaging 15.3 points per game, to only seven.
``I thought the key was Louisville's transition,'' Clark said. ``It really hurt us. We turned the ball over and they jumped out on us and got us back on our heels.''
Trailing 33-21, an 11-0 run pulled Tulane to within two with 7:21 to play in the first half. A 10-0 Louisville run to end the half, however, increased the margin to 43-32 at halftime.
Louisville took a 71-56 lead on a Quintin Bailey steal and layup with 6:58 to play. An 11-3 Tulane run, capped by back-to-back inside baskets by Marsh, cut the lead to 74-67 and forced a Louisville timeout with 3:23 remaining.
Gaines responded with a long 3-pointer off the timeout to bump the lead back to 10 and end the threat.
Both teams were forced to battle a condensation-dampened Freedom Hall floor, slickened by 70-degree temperatures melting a minor-league hockey team's icy surface beneath the wooden slats.
The officials were forced several times to halt play after a player slipped and awarded the ball to that player's team on the sideline.
``It was really slick out there and hard to keep your balance,'' Williams said. ``I just didn't want anybody to get hurt.
``At halftime, I got scared because I heard they might suspend the game. Man, we were up 11 at that point. I said, `Heck let's go hurry up and shoot some layups and get this thing started.' ''
The game was the first of three in six days for the Cardinals, who face 18th-ranked Utah on Thursday and Southern Mississippi on Saturday.
