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University of Louisville
DE PAUL
Men's Basketball Downs Blue Demons, 97-67
January 26, 2002 | Men's Basketball
Jan 26, 2002
By CHRIS DUNCAN
AP Sports Writer
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Louisville coach Rick Pitino has seen the Cardinals of old in the last two games.
Old, as in a month ago, when the Cardinals were 9-1, and routinely wearing down opponents with an up-tempo offense and withering full-court pressure.
Pitino said the Cardinals showed flashes of their aggressive selves in Wednesday's 77-71 loss at Charlotte.
They played that way for an entire game Saturday, easily beating DePaul 97-67.
"I'm really pleased with the last couple of games, because we've gotten back to the tempo I like. That's the way we have to play the rest of the season," Pitino said.
Erik Brown led four Cardinals in double figures with 17 points, as the Cardinals beat DePaul for the 11th straight time and posted their most lopsided Conference USA victory in almost three seasons.
Louisville had a season-high 23 assists, led by Reece Gaines' six.
Larry O'Bannon added 14 points, Luke Whitehead had 12, and Ellis Myles had 13 rebounds as Louisville (12-6, 3-4 Conference USA) snapped a three-game losing streak.
"Our confidence was a little down," said Whitehead, who also had five assists. "People weren't smiling as much, practices had gotten a lot harder.
"It's not only that we got this win, but how we got it. We just got back to our style of play."
Andre Brown had 18 points and Lance Williams added 17 points and 16 rebounds for DePaul (8-10, 1-6), which went 25-of-78 from the floor (32 percent), including 1-of-20 from 3-point range.
The Cardinals were in control from the start, jumping to a 16-4 lead in the opening four minutes and confounding DePaul with their pressure defense.
The Blue Demons missed 9 of their first 10 shots before Imari Sawyer scored inside with 13:12 left before halftime.
"We wanted to press right away, and get the tempo to our liking," Pitino said.
O'Bannon answered Sawyer's basket with a 3-pointer from the wing and Gaines converted a three-point play to give the Cardinals their biggest lead to that point at 22-6.
Louisville's first-half lead bulged to 29, as DePaul's dismal shooting never ceased.
The Blue Demons finished the half 8-of-37 from the floor (22 percent), including 0-for-11 from 3-point range.
"We pretty much lost the game in the first five minutes," said DePaul associate coach Tracy Dildy, filling in for head coach Pat Kennedy for the second straight game. Kennedy was at home nursing a bulging disk in his back.
Louisville shot 53 percent in the first half (17-of-32), its second-best shooting half of the season, and had 14 assists, a season-high for a half.
"We just shared the ball, looked to pass first," Gaines said. "That's how we were winning earlier in the season."
DePaul got no closer than 22 points down after halftime and lost for the sixth time in seven games.
The Blue Demons were 0-of-19 from 3-point range until Marlon Brooks sank a 3 in the closing seconds. They went 10-of-20 from 3-point range in an 80-58 win over East Carolina on Wednesday night.
"We just didn't make shots," Dildy said. "We made those shots the other night. We didn't make those shots today, and you see what happened."
Pitino, who spent Thursday night in a Louisville hospital for an undisclosed illness, said he didn't feel any better on Saturday.
"I'm feeling about the same. I'm a little beat from the tests, but I'm OK," he said.
