Louisville-South Alabama Postgame Notes

Dec. 4, 2010

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TEAM

The Cards' 6-0 start is the school's best since a 10-0 start in 1996-97. The school record for victories to open a season is 13, achieved in three different seasons (1960-61, 1966-67, 1974-75).

U of L improves to 11-1 all-time against South Alabama, including 9-0 in Louisville.

Louisville is in the midst of a school record-tying streak of 10 consecutive home games. The longest stretches of home games in Cardinal history:

Most consecutive home games, Louisville history
1. 10 - 11.16.10-12.18.10
1. 10 - 12.8.06-12.30.06
3. 8 - 12.2.09-12.30.09
3. 8 - 12.1.01-12.26.01
3. 8 - 12.6.75-1.3.76
3. 8 - 12.3.66-12.23.66
3. 8 - 2.22.61-12.6.61
8. 7 - 12.14.04-1.2.05
8. 7 - 12.16.78-1.8.79
8. 7 - 12.10.59-12.29.59
8. 7 - 2.16.46-12.7.46

U of L finished with six made three-pointers in the game, extending the Cardinals' streak of consecutive games hitting at least five threes to 26. The streak is the fifth-longest in the nation (after Saturday's afternoon games), bested only by VMI (79), Northern Colorado (36), Chattanooga (34), and Weber State (29). Canisius and Eastern Kentucky are tied with the Cards at 26 games.

Louisville improves to 102-7 in the Rick Pitino era when scoring 80 or more points and 83-6 when shooting 50.0 percent or better from the floor.

The Cardinals have now reached the 80-point mark in five of the first six games this year, the first time they have done that since the 2002-03 team scored 80+ in seven of its first eight contests.

Now five of South Alabama's six Division I opponents this season have made at least half of their shots from the floor. Only UAB (30-of-67, .448) failed to reach the mark.

The Jaguars' three steals were the fewest for a Louisville opponent since Notre Dame had two on Jan. 12, 2009, in an 87-73 overtime win for the Cards.

U of L's 97 points were its most ever in the series with South Alabama.

The Cards had 20 assists and just eight turnovers in the game, their best single-game assist-to-turnover ratio (2.50) since the Sweet 16 of the 2009 NCAA Tournament (29 assists, nine turnovers in 103-64 win over Arizona). Louisville had 20+ assists and eight or fewer turnovers in one game for the first time since March 4, 2007 (20 assists, six turnovers in 86-71 triumph over Seton Hall).

PLAYER

Junior Terrence Jennings, fourth in the nation in blocks per game entering the contest, swatted three Jaguar shots on Saturday and has multiple blocks in every game this season. His current season blocks per game average is 3.5.

Jennings has blocked at least one shot in 12 of U of L's last 13 games--only in the NCAA Tournament game against Cal was he held without a block.

Sophomore Mike Marra set a new career high with five threes made in the game, besting his previous career mark of four (against Syracuse on Feb. 14 of last season). His 23 points were also a career high, as were his eight field goals made, 18 field goal attempts, and 14 three-point attempts.

Marra became the Cards' first 20-point scorer of the season.

The last Louisville player to make more threes in a game was Andre McGee, who went 6-for-9 from long range against Hartford on Nov. 17, 2007 (season's first game). The last with more three point attempts was Taquan Dean, who went 3-for-15 against Marquette on March 1, 2006.

Marra is just the third player in school history to hit multiple threes in each of the first six games of the season, joining Taquan Dean, who hit at least two threes in the first six games of the 2004-05 campaign, and DeJuan Wheat, who canned multiple treys in each of the first seven games of the 1994-95 season.

Marra has also scored in double figures in every game this season after scoring 10+ four times all of last year.

Sophomore Rakeem Buckles notched his fourth career 10-rebound game, finishing with a career high 14. It was also his third double-double (12 points) and second this season.

After going 26 straight games without a seven-rebound effort, Buckles now has six in his last seven games (including last season's finale).

Sophomore Peyton Siva's 15 points were a career best, surpassing his 14 against West Virginia on Jan. 30 of last season. Siva also tied his career high with five free throws made.

Senior George Goode set a career high with eight points in the contest.

UPDATE

Against Chattanooga on Nov. 22, Louisville had four players with at least five assists (Mike Marra five, Peyton Siva five, Chris Smith five, and Elisha Justice six) in one game for the first time since Feb. 6, 1986. In that game, a 103-68 win over Virginia Tech, Pervis Ellison (six), Mark McSwain (six), Jeff Hall (five), and Billy Thompson (five) all assisted on at least five scores.

University of Louisville Athletics

Players Mentioned

Rakeem Buckles

George Goode

Terrence Jennings

Elisha Justice

Mike Marra

Peyton Siva

Chris Smith

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