Men's Basketball Faces Pikeville in Exhibition on Thursday
October 31, 2012 | Men's Basketball
Oct. 31, 2012
Louisville Game Notes 
Rick Pitino and Tom Jurich Video | Rick Pitino and Tom Jurich Audio
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville men's basketball team opens the highly anticipated 2012-13 season with an exhibition against 2011 NAIA champion Pikeville on Thursday, Nov. 1. Tip is set for 7 p.m. in the KFC Yum! Center.
The game will be televised on WHAS-TV in Louisville, with Drew Deener (play-by-play) and Bob Valvano (color) calling the action. Coverage begins on WHAS-TV, channel 11 in Louisville, at 7 p.m., while being simulcast on the station's digital 11.2 channel. Due to an ABC Network programming conflict at 8 p.m., coverage will shift exclusively to the digital 11.2 channel for the remainder of the game. WHAS-TV's 11.2 channel is televised on Insight cable channel 432 and on Comcast channel 207. Customers with DirectTV, Dish or AT&T Uverse do not receive the 11.2 channel. The game will be replayed in its entirely on WHAS-TV at 1:05 a.m.
In the preseason, the Cardinals have received tremendous acclaim, earning a top rank from Dick Vitale and Lindy's College Basketball magazine and No. 2 ranking from the Associated Press, ESPN/USA Today, Blue Ribbon Yearbook, The Sporting News and Athlon Sports. Also, at the BIG EAST Media Day on Oct. 17, Louisville was picked to win the conference's regular-season title, and Peyton Siva (BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year), Gorgui Dieng (all-BIG EAST first team) and Chane Behanan (all-BIG EAST honorable mention) earned preseason accolades.
Louisville, which returns 10 lettermen, including three starters, brings back 61 percent of its scoring, 63 percent of its rebounding and 70 percent of its assists. Russ Smith is the Cardinals' leading returning scorer at 11.5 points per game.
Pikeville, led by seventh-year coach Kelly Wells, also boasts a top-10 ranking, checking in at No. 9 in the NAIA Division I poll. At the conference level, the Bears were picked to finish second in the Mid-South Conference preseason poll after posting a 17-12 overall mark last year.
The Bears won their first two contests of the year: a 105-64 victory over St. Andrews in Laurinburg, N.C. on Oct. 27 and a 108-72 win over Knoxville College on Oct. 30. In the win over St. Andrews, guard Jamar Briscoe had a team-high 23 points and was one of six players to finish with double-digit scoring totals. As a team, Pikeville shot 58.9 percent (43-of-73) from the floor, knocking down 12 3-pointers. Hobo McCoy accounted for five treys, as he finished with 15 points. Briscoe also led the team against Knoxville, posting 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting.
The last time Louisville and Pikeville faced each other was last year in an exhibition on Oct. 26, with the Cardinals posting a 74-55 victory. Behanan had a game-high 16 points, and Dieng posted a double-double of 14 points and 15 rebounds, while tallying six blocks.
GAME FACTS - Pikeville at Louisville
Date: Thursday, Nov. 1
Time: 7:06 p.m. ET
Site: KFC Yum! Center/Crum Court (22,000), Louisville, Ky.
TV: WHAS-TV will televise the game, with Drew Deener (play-by-play) and Bob Valvano (color) calling the action. Coverage will begin on WHAS-TV, channel 11 in Louisville, at 7 p.m., while being simulcast on the station's digital 11.2 channel. At 8 p.m., coverage will shift exclusively to the digital 11.2 channel for the remainder of the game. WHAS-TV's 11.2 channel is televised on Insight cable channel 432 and on Comcast channel 207.
Radio: WHAS (840 AM) will broadcast the game, with Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Doug Ormay (color) calling the action.
Series History: Louisville defeated Pikeville last season in the only meeting between the two schools, with the Cardinals posting a 74-55 exhibition victory at the KFC Yum! Center (Oct. 26, 2011).
Officials: Lamar Simpson, Alfred Smith, Bo Boroski
Next U of L Game: Nov. 7 vs. Bellarmine in KFC Yum! Center, 7:06 p.m. ET (WHAS-TV)
